SAA Revolver, Itallian Clones fall short

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berger

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The next firearm I purchase will most likely be a SAA Revolver. I was leaning towards the Italian clones until a recent visit to Tombstone....yes, that Tombstone.

While moseying down the same boardwalk Wyatt Earp once moseyed... :cool:...I went into a shop that was setup as a small pistol range. The pistols on the table were fully functional Ruger Vaqueros in all barrel lengths....setup to shoot paint balls crammed into a .45LC :). The RO was a retired LAPD Officer and we got to talking about the pistols on the table. I mentioned that I was looking to pick up a Pietta or an Uberti clone, and he told me to forget them and stick with the Ruger. The range switched to Ruger because the clones just didn't hold up to the frequent usage. The firing mechanisms were always breaking. Since going with the Vaqueros, they haven't looked back.

I know there are a lot of hands on these pistols, but if the Italian clones cannot handle what essentially is a squib round, I think a Vaqueros is in my future....
 
Original Colts SAA's were delicate, too compared to the modern Ruger Vaqueros.

Flat springs vs coil springs. ;)

Plus Ruger being a US made product way easier for their 'smith to source any needed replacement parts vs import parts for Italian SAA clones.

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Hmm, see lots of uberti and pietta get sold, if they were so junky you would think the EE would always but full of em, also if it the firing mechanisms breaking its most likely due to the constant cycling of the actions hundreds of times a day everyday, not from the light paintball loads, ask yourself if you would ever plan to shoot as much as those range guns get used
 
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As a cowboy action guy the general consensus is that the Vaquero's are the most robust of the various clones. I personally have two in 357/38 and have never had any issue with either. On the other hand I have an Uberti Winchester 1873 clone and it has been rock solid reliable. A number of people in my Cowboy Action group use Uberti's but all the serious folks use the Vaquero. I think the Italian clones or more true to the original but that makes them a bit less reliable.
 
If you search around the net, you will see the Rugers shoot themselves loose pretty quickly with full power magnum loads as well. They appear "beefier" because they are made of cast metal, but they need to be beefier to match the strength of forged frame pistols.
Shooting any of the classic cowboy loads won't be an issue for any Ruger or Italian clone.
 
The Italian clones are great. They need a bit of regular maintenance if used frequently, just like the original Colt's did.

If they're used as range beaters then obviously they will fail at some point, and sooner than a Ruger.
 
I shoot my single action Italian guns once in a while when I'm feeling nostalgic. I go slow, take my time, and savour the experience.

With that sort of usage I expect them to last my lifetime.

I can't bring myself to buy a vaquero. When I go to buy a Ruger, which is already a gun that is simply inspired in design by Colt, I choose the Blackhawk, because I want a gun that I can dial in without having to file bits off of or accept using Kentucky windage with.
If I want the old west experience, I buy a closer clone of an old west gun.

There is no right or wrong answer. It comes down to what you want and what you want to do with it.

And what turns your crank.
 
I bought a Uberti Cattleman because I found it to be the closest copy of the Colt SAA at the time. I enjoyed the gun and had no problems with it. That being said I didn't rough house it or fan the hammer etc. I sold it when my Colt order finally came in. The Colt is an old design for sure and in my opinion not as durable as the Vaquero. It is the original however and I would still choose it's clone over the Ruger because I prefer the style. Now, if the Vaquero would do away with that silly transfer bar and put the firing pin on the hammer where it belongs, I'd probably buy one.
 
Keep in mind that rental guns at such places see more use in a month than any privately owned gun sees in a year. For a while I was helping out part time at the local rental range and even the Glocks were down for parts that broke surprisingly regularly.

Having said that I accept that Ruger is more rugged. But like IH mentions above I wanted the closest gun in every way to the original old Colts that I could have without having to pay Colt prices. The Ruger was simply not an option for me because I wanted something other than a SA like gun with the classic looks that were only skin deep.

Yes, I've had a couple of the bolt springs break between the 8 replicas I've got for cartridge and cap&ball. But other than that the guns have been very reliable. Over the 5 years I've had them I've likely shot something like 4000 rounds through each of the cartridge Piettas. On those other than cleaning I have not done a thing to them. They burnished their own internals up very nicely just from being used.

Now Ruger New Vaqueros ARE very nice guns that are generally extremely rugged and reliable. If the style of how the action works along with the higher price isn't that big a deal then buy one and be happy. But if you are more interested in a faithful copy instead of a SAA like object then I would not lose any sleep over their findings since you simply won't ever shoot it as much as any sort of rental scenario would do.
 
Old gun design have old issues. Most of the re-pops are OK. But if you are shooting thousands of rounds and beating the crap out of a gun shooting cowboy action, better look at Rugers for long term.
 
Sorry, I'm more curious about the OP's comment of using paint balls in .45LC than an esoteric argument over which SA pistol is better. Anyone ever try this? lol

Edit: I just did a quick search and it seems as though most paintballs are sized between .688"-.690", so it doesn't appear that it would work extremely well. As for fun and novel usage, I thought it would be kind of cool to try. Now, maybe not so much.
 
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2bad4u2 said:
Sorry, I'm more curious about the OP's comment of using paint balls in .45LC than an esoteric argument over which SA pistol is better. Anyone ever thry this? lol
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I have never heard of such a thing before and if any "gun store" tried to pull that on me I would go elsewhere to buy my gun.
 
When i worked behind the counter, i sold a LOT of uberti's and some pieta..(however you spell it lol)...never had one come back, and in general the owners loved em....yes, if you shot it a lot, you would eventually break springs, but that is inherent to the design...colt's where notorious for it. But very easy to fix if you keep a 2$ spare. Personally, i think the clones feel much better in the hand the the black hawks for balance and pointability, but that's personal.

In regards to the comment on forged being stronger then cast...that's only partially true. A forged frame is stronger in one axis..for a given cross section of material. Cast is equally strong in all directions. When you consider that the frame on the ruger's are substantially heavier and thicker then a smith frame you see why they are a much stronger firearm. Personally, i'm a smith guy and find ruger revolvers heavy and clunky..but if i wanted to shoot max or higher loads..it would be in a ruger...and most definitely NOT in an italian clone...
 
There is also a much wider world in the Italian guns. Ruger you have an 1873-a-like in 3 barrel lengths and 4 chamberings, for the most part, only one of which is a classic period one, and you've got black or stainless.

Look through the Taylors and Company site and you might wonder how anyone could pick just one revolver out of the myriad combinations on offer, and that's just the SAA replicas! You've also got Remington, Colt conversions, Smith & Wesson. You've got some options for 38WCF and plenty in 44WCF. It's a smorgasbord, and not one of those crappy $7.99 ones ;)

So I've got 3 Rugers, and feel that I don't need any more - they are representative of the brand. I want at least 3 MORE Uberti guns!

Again it comes down to what you like and what your purpose is.
 
I assumed that when they mentioned "paintballs" that the guns were using simunition paintball rounds. Nothing else would fit.

Truth be told if you think about it the Ruger New Vaqueros likely represent what the old original Colt guns would have grown into if Colt were still making the guns and there was an interest in modern safety and reliability combined with wanting to keep the look and feel of the original style. In that way and for durability of the action the Ruger IS a better firearm.

But for many of us feeling and working with the original historical pattern actions is more desirable. And in the end the old actions are reliable enough to make do for most of us. It's not like they are 100 shot wonders then need rebuilding.
 
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