SAA revolver for First Handgun.

StrelokM38

StrelokM38

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Alright guys. Going to start to look into getting my first handgun sometime this winter. I'm a big fan of the Colt Single Action Army and I think it'd only be right to get one as my first handgun :).

I'm not particularly concerned about authenticity or anything like that, and I'd prefer it if it were on the lower cost side of the scale. Do any of you guys have any experience or suggestions for a SAA Replica?

Thanks!
 
Single action revolvers are great guns be it for a first, fifth or fiftieth purchase. Not a common choice but certainly as valid as any other. If that's what you like then welcome to the wheelgun club :D

Fixed or adjustable sights?

If you know for a fact that you will go with ONE load then fixed sight guns are great and have that classic look moreso than the adjustable sight models. But if you want to tinker with your ammo and try different weight bullets and load powers then really there is only one option that works and that's a Ruger Blackhawk.

If you are fine with one load and one bullet weight then it opens up a bunch of options from Ruger, Uberti, Pietta and Chapparal.

Of the four brands Ruger, Uberti and Pietta are all top notch. I've got a couple of Uberti and a couple of Pietta and there's little to wish for between either and all of them have been 100% reliable so far with hundreds of rounds through the cap and ball Ubertis and between 2500 to 3000 through the cartridge Piettas.

Ruger's New Vaquero is a lovely gun. But it's only SAA on the outside. The action is more modern. On the other hand the Uberti, Pietta and Chapparal guns are faithful to the old Colt action design.

On the Rugers you lock out the hammer and unlatch the cylinder bolt when you open the loading gate for loading. With the others you go to half #### to retract the cylinder bolt and then the cylinder can be indexed and loaded through the gate.

One thing in favour of the old classic way is that when you index and draw back against the hand on the old style action you can literally lay the round in the gate and let it slide forward into the chamber. On the Rugers you can't do this and you have to hold it in place more precisely.

Finally there's the choice of caliber. If you don't reload the only decently economical ammo is .38Spl. If you do reload then the options are wide open since the difference in cost from .38Spl to .45 Colt and any of the others in between is minor and is all in the cost of the bullets themselves.

The fixed sight cartridge guns will also come to you with the front sight too high. The intent is that you are supposed to settle on a load power and then file down the sight to match the sights to the point of impact. Obviously this is something you want to sneak up towards and do in stages since it's pretty hard to put metal back on. You also want to pick your gripping style since holding the guns one handed and two makes a small but noticable difference in the point of impact.
 
I am biased in my opinion, so take it for what it is worth.

My intention was to cowboy shoot and be reasonably authentic. I will never run full commercial loads through mine, so I chose the Uberti brand. I have put through about 950 cast rounds in total through them (almost finished one pail - is how I know) which is about 320 rounds each - give or take.

They have all the sweet sounding clicks on cocking and the half #### for the loading gate. Solid front sight. Authentic and loving it.

I tried out the Vaqueros and did not care for the smaller hand grip, the absence of the half #### on loading/unloading, the clicks for firing and the look of that goofy transfer bar.

I shot a Pietta and played with a brand new Chaparral. Both were not as tight as the Uberti's. The Chaparral had a noticeably wide gap between the cylinder and the barrel and the overall mechanism was loose as hell.

For me...Uberti's all the way.
 
I shoot ruger new vaqueros in 357 and love them in fact I think I might get a second pair.
I see that your avatar is the sask coat of arms if that's where you live then check these guys out www.sawws.com

If you live in the southwest send me a pm and I'll take you out to try some cowboy guns.
 
Unless you are a reloader I would go with one in 38-357mag as well, 45 colt ammo can be quite hard to come by. Hell, even brass is hard to find.
 
the whole point of going to the so-called "new " cocking system was that some UNEDUCATED folks were loading 6 instead of 5 and ruger didn't want the LAIBILITY- funny how the same half #### system worked for roughly 110 years( i'm not counting the colt paterson as it was a 5 shot),and all of a sudden we had to have a new system with a transfer bar( yea, it FEELS different) so it can't possibly go off- if you were taught properly, it was " FIVE BEANS IN THE WHEEL, and you rested the hammer on an EMPTY chamber- or the notches between the chambers if you had those- etiher way was perfectly safe- to me the "new " blackhawks feel "heavy" n the trigger compared to old 3 screws
 
t-star said:
the whole point of going to the so-called "new " cocking system was that some UNEDUCATED folks were loading 6 instead of 5 and ruger didn't want the LAIBILITY- funny how the same half #### system worked for roughly 110 years( i'm not counting the colt paterson as it was a 5 shot),and all of a sudden we had to have a new system with a transfer bar( yea, it FEELS different) so it can't possibly go off- if you were taught properly, it was " FIVE BEANS IN THE WHEEL, and you rested the hammer on an EMPTY chamber- or the notches between the chambers if you had those- etiher way was perfectly safe- to me the "new " blackhawks feel "heavy" n the trigger compared to old 3 screws
Click to expand...

Excellent observation. I was taught 5 in the chamber and to shoot CAS, it is the golden rule. It has become a habit for me and for many others over the last 150 years or so shooting single actions. Holstering or resting the firing hammer on a live round is just dumb. I know the Uberti's have that safety system on the cylinder rod, so the hammer cannot come to a rest on the round, but it is cumbersome and a waste of time if you practice and live by the SASS rule.
 
jdawg said:
I shoot ruger new vaqueros in 357 and love them in fact I think I might get a second pair.
I see that your avatar is the sask coat of arms if that's where you live then check these guys out www.sawws.com

If you live in the southwest send me a pm and I'll take you out to try some cowboy guns.
Click to expand...

Wow that is some set up for a cowboy shooting club!
 
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