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Cheap .22 wheel guns

tomcatmv

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Full Member
Minuteman
Apr 13, 2017
2,477
3,889
Central Texas
Anybody else have a Heritage Rough Rider? I bought one about three years ago with the 5.5" barrel and just recently picked up a bird's head with the 3.5" barrel.
For inexpensive guns they sure do shoot pretty dang good. The bird's head is louder than shit with .22 mag. Gonna pick up some.22 shorts for the longer barrel one for yard pest control.
Hickock 45 did a pretty good review on them a while back.
 
Anybody else have a Heritage Rough Rider? I bought one about three years ago with the 5.5" barrel and just recently picked up a bird's head with the 3.5" barrel.
For inexpensive guns they sure do shoot pretty dang good. The bird's head is louder than shit with .22 mag. Gonna pick up some.22 shorts for the longer barrel one for yard pest control.
Hickock 45 did a pretty good review on them a while back.
my sons each have one and they are really fun. I paid 99 each and they've got at least 4k rounds through them. kids love them, I love them, friends love them. Just tighten the screws lol
 
I don't have one, but I like the looks of the Ruger Wrangler. More true to size of a Single Action Army, and doesn't have that goofy looking safety.
 
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Wrangler. I’ve had a single six since ‘86 and got my me of my daughters a wrangler. There’s not a comparison between them but I don’t see a need to spend the extra $500 for a single six over a wrangler.
 
the only difference is the pressed barrel and the cost. wrangler looks nicer but we're pretty happy
 
Besides being very accurate a Ruger single six will still be working when you are long gone.

Why would you give your kids substandard stuff?

Mine never saw top shelf guns but a hundred dollar revolver is disappointment on speed dial.

Had my single six for 40 years and has never missed a lick. It is still the first training sidearm everyone is handed no matter age.
 
Besides being very accurate a Ruger single six will still be working when you are long gone.

Why would you give your kids substandard stuff?

Mine never saw top shelf guns but a hundred dollar revolver is disappointment on speed dial.

Had my single six for 40 years and has never missed a lick. It is still the first training sidearm everyone is handed no matter age.
X2 First pistol I fired as a boy and first pistol I purchased for my boy.
 
I don’t need it, but the 3.5” Birdshead Wrangler tickles some strange fancy of mine. Feels light and fast.
Have my great-grandad’s High Standard Sentinel, it’s a great little pistol. Not a Smith by any stretch, but it was probably half the price back in the late 60’s/early 70’s.
 
Old school cheap pistol.
9 shots of High Standard .22lr goodness.
Even fits the EPS K-Frame Tortilla!!!
 

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I forget the make but there is an open top 22lr that works great too, cheap as well.
 
It ain't cheap, but it will be nearly impossible to beat the S&W 617 6" with the full underlug... Talk about a tack-driver!


I have the 4" model, and it is a wonderful piece. I'd shoot it more often if my 11-year-old would set it down for a minute when we're out plinking.

A 317 is in order when I can find one in stock.

I miss the days of $400 Ruger Bearcats :(
 
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I had a hard time making l0-15 yard shots accurately with the smallest cheap .22 wheel guns I have so I added a Sig Romeo Zero optic. Much better on target. Just for fun, also fabricated a small delrin-aluminum vise bench rest (used either directly off the bench or secondary mount inside HogSaddle) to better zero the NAA and other J frames.

IMG_8286NAA Black Widow with and without optic Side by Side copy.jpg
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IMG_8011NAA Black Widow & Standard .22LR pistol with Dollar Bill 01.30.21 copy.jpg
IMG_8001NAA Black Widow Rear Sight Dovetail EGW Mount Project - First Range Session 01.30.21 c...jpg
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It would be wise to “economize” in other areas.
Most decent handguns will retain or increase in value over time and be safe and reliable.
The ammo you shoot is not cheap. The money spent on a used Ruger or S&W is money in the bank. I also suspect many of the cheap guns are chinesium. I do not know. Don’t care to check.
 
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It would be wise to “economize” in other areas.
Most decent handguns will retain or increase in value over time and be safe and reliable.
The ammo you shoot is not cheap. The money spent on a used Ruger or S&W is money in the bank. I also suspect many of the cheap guns are chinesium. I do not know. Don’t care to check.
Supposedly Heritage are made in the USA. I also have a .357 Uberti SAA and it is a fine handgun. I have a couple Ruger pistols in semi auto and they are good guns. I had a chance to buy a .357 Ruger Blackhawk about 40 years ago for $85 but was poor then.
 
Heritage is ok, not heirloom quality. Fun, inexpensive, fairly accurate. Skip the nickel plating. Had a 3.5 inch with nickel planting, it pealed at the muzzle. Sent it back they sent a "new" one and it did the same thing.
 
Heritage is ok, not heirloom quality. Fun, inexpensive, fairly accurate. Skip the nickel plating. Had a 3.5 inch with nickel planting, it pealed at the muzzle. Sent it back they sent a "new" one and it did the same thing.
Mine are just the regular blue finish but I did order some checkered coco bolo grips for the birds head as I have pretty big hands and the smooth grips don't feel quite right.
 
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my boys have the basic wood grips. As I said earlier, thousands of rounds and only the screws needed tightening. fun, reliable, fairly accurate and cheap.

22lr is cheap, no need to go full monty unless you're a smith guy (cough cough)
 
my boys have the basic wood grips. As I said earlier, thousands of rounds and only the screws needed tightening. fun, reliable, fairly accurate and cheap.

22lr is cheap, no need to go full monty unless you're a smith guy (cough cough)
yeah, I have the .22 mag cylinders for both and that ups the fun a bit but more spendy. I'm thinking about carrying the short barrel bird's head with the magnum loads as an EDC piece if I can find a good IWB holster.
 
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Ruger Bearcat... or a Smith and Wesson M-Frame... Though the latter isn't cheap any more!

Bearcats are great little revolvers!

And still not bank breakers.

M-frames are super cool. But spendy.

Sirhr
Was gonna say Bearcat earlier in the thread, but he said cheap so I didn’t. I love mine
9D0CA86F-3821-4E5A-BD1D-2702206B1146.jpeg
 
I guess Cheap is relative. But the Bearcats are great little guns that won't break bank!

I love mine, too!

Sirhr
cheap isn't relative, interpretation is relative to how much common sense people use

for instance, OP highlights heritage and invariably, we get 617s and the like, all of which are 7-10x in cost. There is no 'relative' about intent and direction OP was looking for.
 
I'm seeing Bearcat prices on Gunbroker track closely with the Single Six model. Both are crazy expensive these days.
 
friend let me shoot a cylinder thru his today just to try the trigger. i was shocked at how smooth and crisp it was likely get one with adj sights,which i badly need. just a cheap plinker is all i want.
 
friend let me shoot a cylinder thru his today just to try the trigger. i was shocked at how smooth and crisp it was likely get one with adj sights,which i badly need. just a cheap plinker is all i want.

The uberti?

That would be some work, it just has a groove for the rear sight
 
X2 First pistol I fired as a boy and first pistol I purchased for my boy.
I bought my boy a single six before his first birthday lol I wouldn’t have a problem handing him a Rough Rider though. I’ve put 10K+ through one I sold last year.
 
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