Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Range Report - Ruger Vaquero 45 Colt


Cowboy shooting lovers, are real fans of the Ruger Vaquero. Mine is the 4 inch barrel version in 45 Colt. I use Trail Blaser powder, Laser Cast 250 gr bullets and after much experimentation, I filed down the front sight to be dead on at 25 yards with my pet reload....5.8 grains of trail blaser...using the Laser Cast Flat Nose hard cast 250 grain bullet. Trail Blaser powder meters well and fills most of the 45 Colt case which was designed around 1873 for black powder. I love the blue smoke it produces and the smell is OK...compared to other gun powder smoke.

The Ruger Vaquero is a fine, moderately priced domestically produced Cowboy gun. As my results shown on the picture reflect....using a two hand hold standing at 25 yards, most of my rounds are in the black. Very good results for a gun with a simple front post and receiver groove for taking aim.

If you ever wanted to know, in case you didn't know...a six gun...is single action only. You cock the hammer and gently touch the trigger. Around one pound of pressure or less on the trigger will cause the hammer to fall. There is no manual safety...but shooting these guns are pure fun.

The 45 Colt has very manageable recoil when using a two hand hold so with some patience and after doing some sight adjustments (filing the front sight down) you can be happy with the results, once you come up with a load that the gun likes.

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