Ruger Single Six

Ruger Single Six (Ruger Catalog Picture)

About the biggest grin you'll ever seen is the moment your son/daughter, nephew/niece (who have the maturity and experience) gets permission to go plinking on their own. Due to the deliberate nature of single action shooting and robustness of the gun a Ruger Single Six a dandy gun for such an occasion. For many of us the Single Six was our first experience with a cowboy six shooter and it didn't matter how old we were, it was fun!

Over the years I've had five of them in barrel lengths of 4-3/4" to 6-1/2". Without exception they were good shooters. For one reason or another I traded them off but always kept at least one.

Meat Makers

Besides being good for inexpensive practice they are good hunting rifle companions. When hunting with a centerfire rifle I typically take the Single Six along to take Grouse I happen upon.

Equiped with the 22 Magnum cyclinder they are capable of Coyote sized critters or bigger in a survival situation. The Federal 40 grain WMR ammo clocks just under 1400 fps over the Chronograph which is better than all but the hyper velocity 22lr ammo out of 22 rifle. A Single Six with both cyclinders and a few boxes off ammo weigh right around three pounds and make a handy addition to the BOB.

Rimfire Cowboys

With most 22 lr ammo the velocity hovers around 1100 fps which is usually between 100 and 200 fps slower than it will do in a rifle.

25 Yard Target

The New Model Fixed Sight version is a VERY nice little six shooter. The grip is smaller but not too small. It is probably the prettiest Single Six ever made.

The Single Six can usually be had for under $300 used and there are a bunch of them out there. The best deals are from guys that prefer to burn through one magazine after another and find the Single Six too slow to reload. I guess they haven't seen my nephew burn through a brick with mine...

Late ADD: Single Six Chronograph Data 4-5/8" barrel
Federal Bulk 37gr HP = 1110 fps
Aguila SE Subsonic, 40 HP = 923 fps
CCI CB Long = 573 fps
CCI Mini Mag 40 grain Solids = 1063 fps
CCI Blazer 40 grain Solids = 1012 fps

CCI Maxi Mag (22 Mag) 1280 fps average
Federal 40grain FMJ 1387 fps