Accurate Ruger #1 single shot?

[22to45]

Hello All,
I am thinking of getting a Ruger No. 1, and I only know two guys who have had them. One loves his in 45/70, and the other went to a bolt action as he was not happy with the single shot feature after he bought it. (Yes, it had that feature before he bought it). Anyway, I am wondering if anyone has had a lemon, or if they are generally as accurate as Ruger would have you believe.

Al

 

[captonion]

I just sighted my brothers in with factory remington,and printed alot of groups under an inch@ 100.

 

[jed]

I've owned 5 and all have been accurate enough for hunting. One would shoot handloads at 100 yds into 1/2 an inch all day long. One hated cast bullets but I am not entirely it wasn't the loose nut behind the trigger there. Do a search on acurizing the no1 there have been many articles written about the various methods to wring more accuracy out of them. Buy one you won't regret it

 

[Ruger No.1]

I have 4 and all shoot between .6 (.22-250) and 1.2 (.338WM). Sometimes you need to play with them a bit (ie. forend pressure) but there is lots of info on the 'net and most of the tuning involves doing things that you can easily accomplish yourself. Having only one ready shot has made me a much better hunter and shot. Between the tinkering and hunting/shooting skill required, I find them very satisfactory firearms to own but also realize that they are not for everyone. If you watch the EE exchange you can get one in excellent shape to try and will be able to resell for virtually the same $$ if you do not like it.

 

[catnthehatt]

I've owned many No.1's and have a friend who has five a the moment.
They were all accurate rifles, some moreso thatn others till they were worked on , forend hanger screws installed, bedded, triggers changed, etc.
Ours don't stay factory very long, we usually rip the barrels off and put a Smith or McPhee on them
in weird wildcat calibers - THEN they REALLY shoot!
Cat

 

[Lefty Dick]

A buddy has to limit his #1's to shooting 2 shot groups.
He read somewhere that the quarter rib the scope gets mounted on is a big culprit in the accuracy potential game. Something to do with it warping or distorting when the barrel heats up.

If your first 2 shots are bug holes every time what else do you need for hunting!

 

[MTM]

I've had many. Everything from heavy varmit guns to H's. While accuracy varies I've never had a skunky one. Easily hunting accuracy and with some fidleing drills. If you like the guns buy one. While I've owned quite a few I've only ever shot varmits with them, my bolts always get the nod when I get serious.

 

[Claybuster]

A two piece stock, quarter rib and hanger system means the Ruger #1 isn't usually as accurate as a bolt action.

The .270 #1A that I used for several years gave me fits until I noticed that it was very consistent. The first round from a cold barrel always went exactly to the point of aim. The second round went right on top. Round #3 went 1.5" high while #4 and #5 stretched the group out to 4 inches.

This was frustratining until I accepted that it was a single shot. Cold barrel performance and the accuracy of the first two shoots are more important than a five shot group from the bench. I could shoot the Ruger off hand better than most rifles I've owned and with the top tang safety it was an easy transition from shooting shotguns. YMMV.

 

[Boomer]

The only #1 I've owned was the .416 Rigby. This rifle was wonderfully accurate, the trigger was close to perfection, it was reliable, and a pleasure to own and shoot, but there are a couple of issues that you should be aware of.

I had two butt stocks crack, the reason was ultimately determined to be unven bedding at the tang. Once this was addressed there was no further problem.

The scope mount on some models is inletted in the quarter rib. It seems that more folks are unhappy with the eye relief provided on these rifles than there are folks who are happy. I had a custom quarter rib made for mine that would allow the scope to mount in such a way that the ocular lens was even with the face of the falling block. Thus mounted, there was nothing in the way of the loading port and there was no way I could get tagged with the scope when the rifle recoiled. Other folks have complained that the scope cannot be brought far enough rearward for them to achieve a full sight picture, with what are probably high power scopes with more critical eye relief.

The flip up rear sight was a waste of time, its the cheap Williams variety, and could not be adjusted low enough to bring me within 6" high at 100 yards. An after market aperture sight is a better answer, but a higher front sight is required in any case.

My rifle was carried over long distances on foot. It was distressing to me to unsling and find that the safety had moved to the fire position. I saw no way to resolve the problem, and because the rifle had to be carried loaded I just made sure there was no one on my left side, and slung the rifle muzzle down so 100+ grs of powder didn't go bang beside my ear. I never had a problem, but the situation was not comfortable. Attempting to carry the rifle loaded with the action out of battery resulted with decorating the tundra with expensive ammo and an empty rifle in my hands.

 

[Bobby Ironsights]

I think you should define "accuracy" 22to45, and what you'll use this for.

Accuracy is putting the bullets where they need to go, and precision is doodling around with group size in millimeters.

The three elements of mechanical precision are bullets, bedding and barrel, (thanks mysticplayer), with the nod going to a usable trigger.

I've gotten the impression that ruger no.1 a hunting rifle whose main points are relatively light but ferociously strong action, with good "pointability" that has the ability to handle monster cartridges, but that some people are fond of, and soup it up with heavy target barrels.

I've know a guy who likes his, and gets reasonable results with on paper, but he shoots high horsepower hunting loads, and it IS a .375 H&H and that's not exactly a target cartridge AFAIK.

 

[WR1894]

I have had a few from 17 Reminton to 500 A square and if they have been made up or factory they have shot fine for there calibres they were in. I still have four but from 375 H&H up

 

[Chuck]

From my experience with two different Ruger #1 rifles they are quite accurate provided that they are properly bedded. I have a #1V in .22-250 that is very accurate. It has often produced groups of under 1/2" but I'd say that is reliably shoots 5/8". It has had the forearm pressure tip removed and a screw put through the forearm hanger to adjust bedding pressure. The other #1 that I have is a #1B in .270 Winchester. With good handloads it is a sub-MOA rifle and it typically groups 3/4".

I've often heard mention of point of impact shift from barrel heating but that really hasn't been reflected in my experience. I occassionally shoot at the Urban Counter Sniper match in Listowel. The course of fire has usually involved 52-54 rounds in 30 minutes. This will certainly tell you if your rifle will shift POI and how dramatically. Set up as it is, the #1V really doesn't seem to move and the #1B probably didn't move until 25 or more shots were fired.