doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion Classic & Custom Single Barreled Sporting Rifles @ doublegunshop.com Winchester 1885 vs Ruger No1

IWhat are the feelings of the Ruger vs Winchester 1885 (modern) Am I making the right choice with the Winchester?

I'd rather a Ruger than an asian browning...

A lot will depind on what your going to do with it, for me you cant go wrong with the Ruger # 1, both rifles will need triggers or trigger work, and both should have speed hammers if you intend to use it as a target rifle or a range rifle, you can buy stuff like that for the # 1 but I'm not sure if you can for the new 1885. Again from a range shooting standpoint it's very easy to tune the # 1 barrel if need be, not sure what can be done with the new 1885.
S T

Good point about the Ruger vs the Winchester. American is better. I am going to use the gun for hunting and fun, nothing more.

The problems I have with the Ruger is:
1. It is my understanding that Ruger will not sell part to anyone. They want guns returned to them. (My small time, but very good, gunsmith says the won't sell him parts.)
2. Albet the resale is better on the Winchester. This may be moot, becuase I don't sell my guns.

I guess I need to think about a bit more.


Jerry

That's easy - Ruger. At least hat one can be disassembled and reassembled with a basic understanding of the mechanics - and you don't need 3 hands, slave pins etc.
Plus I like the fact that the Ruger buttstock has less drop.

My state has a single-shot 'Primitive' deer season that does not allow hammerless rifles, and several S/S target-shooting games also require rifles with external hammers. That could become a factor for you, depending.

I'm a big fan of the original Winchesters, but not the copies. The Brownings are frequently extremely accurate but too hard to work on and the Italians won't accept the original parts such as set triggers without heartache and discontent.

If I was going to buy a rifle I could take pride in owning and using as-is with only minor mods, and never shoot a match or go 'Primitive' hunting, I'd choose the Ruger every time. OTOH if I wanted a rifle for competition or a primitive hunt I'd choose the later Win copy but with a shotgun butt and better sights.
Regards, Joe

Gerald
What calibre are you thinking of? I have killed more groundhogs with my #1 458 win than the 25/06. I dont know why you would want to work on a new rifle. Get a good one to begin with. Ruger comes with scope mts. Don't know about the jap winchester. If you are going to play long range get a sharps. You will eventualy want one anyway.
Only an opinion from an old guy who likes small martinis.
Get one of everything. Enjoy what u have.
Tom

I've only had one #1 that could produce accuracy better than mundane. It was my heavily modified .32-40 Obermeyer barreled Schutzen gun....Just my experience. I don't care for the new Winny either.

Other than price, what's wrong with the current BALLARD produced
High Wall?
Good shooting.

IMO the Ballard LLC high wall is a splendid rifle but W-A-A-A-Y-Y over-priced. Their parts will interchange with the originals fine and the workmanship is excellent. I did notice a tendency to break firing pin noses due to brittleness but this may have been corrected by now. Firing pins are a perennial problem for many folks so I don't think poorly of them for it unless they haven't corrected it.

FWIW IMO every sidehammer Sharps owner should equip the rifle with a field repair kit consisting of a new firing pin and a new lever spring. It's not so much a question of 'if' they'll break, it's more like 'when'! Like my first flight instructor told me in regard to pilots failing to lower the retractable gear, "There are only two kinds of pilots: those who HAVE, and those who WILL!" Unfunnily enough, he later proved the validity of his statement in a Gulfstream...
Regards, Joe