Heritage Rough Rider .22 LR/.22 WMR Bird's Head 4.75" First Lead

[C.R.]

I like mine , a couple friends tried mine out & got themselves rough riders too , for less than a buck and a half , they work ok , and would be an alright beater/truck/tacklebox gun

 

[OrangeCat]

I have one of these in the longest barrel the man had, ostensibly I bought it so I could practice firing a handgun.

As it turns out this little guy has been my go to 'is that that armadillo digging in the backyard again?' gun. Hasn't gotten him yet, but it's convenient and easy enough to use that it's what goes out in the dark with me.

The sights aren't great and the finish is decidedly meh, but it has eaten everything I put in it without complaint, and it throws the lead pretty close to where I want it to be if I stay within my (admittedly low) ability.

 

[Old Stumpy]

Things to consider are that the grip frame is die cast Zamac (zinc aluminum alloy) and that the loading gate, safety, and ejector rod are injection molded plastic. The ejector rod can break if you let it snap back too often.
Internals are flat leaf springs that do break on occasion, and sometimes more often than seems normal. But YMMV.
The barrel is lightly micro-thread and cemented in place with permanent Loc Tite, but it will hold together for 10,000 rounds or more. Sometimes you can just cement the barrel back in again.
After 10,000 rounds end shake may become excessive and shims may be needed.
The good thing is that parts are easily available by mail, and sometimes given free of charge by Heritage.
But, for $150.00 it owes you nothing if you have to scrap it at 15,000 rounds.

 

[OrangeCat]

The loading gate is metal.....and the only plastic on the ejector rod is the handle the rod actual is steel. I'm fairly certain that if you really wanted to you could replace the ejector rods handle with a metal piece without a terrible amount of hassle.

The safety being plastic isn't too much of a issue as I see it. It's nice to have especially if you want to use it as a youth/inexperienced shooter trainer

 

[Old Stumpy]

The loading gate is metal.....and the only plastic on the ejector rod is the handle the rod actual is steel. I'm fairly certain that if you really wanted to you could replace the ejector rods handle with a metal piece without a terrible amount of hassle.

The safety being plastic isn't too much of a issue as I see it. It's nice to have especially if you want to use it as a youth/inexperienced shooter trainer

I stand corrected. I don't own one. But I have researched them carefully through many You Tube videos, including one published by Heritage themselves. The loading gate looked like the same material as the safety, but the safety probably won't wear out.

I think that what I took out of that research is that these revolvers will probably stand up to the number of rounds that the average plinker is likely to put through them over a number of years, but it's a gun that won't end up usable by those who inherit it after that.
And, you will probably need to replace a few springs over that time. And the steel cylinder is a point in it's favor.

I owned a Sauer & Sohn .22 SAA revolver made in Germany. It was full size with one piece walnut grips, but it was made out of ZA-12 (a pretty good zinc aluminum alloy), including the cylinder. The barrel and cylinder had steel liners for the bore and chambers. I was probably the third owner and it had fired many rounds. While the quality of manufacture seemed decent, the cylinder notches were pretty worn, such that you could rock the cylinder out of alignment manually, though it stayed in battery when you cocked the hammer. The ZA-12 frame stood up fine, but zinc alloys are not great for wear resistance with small parts or threads.

 

[mjsdwash]

got a friend with one. While I won't bash them, I will say the 22 mag was not impressive over the chrono. Not sure what it was, I think CCI 40gr and some SuperX was running around 1200. Around what my MK3 does with CCI velocitors. I think it was the endshake. Otherwise it shot well, and the 22lr shot normal velocity. I would just write off the 22mag cylinder in that one though, all the velocity went out the side, adding only about 80 FPS for a bullet weight. He had it for years, and has not broken it, and shoots it a lot.

 

[OrangeCat]

Yeah I was pushing winchWinch SuperX's too and only have had one misfire. Which I turned around and Bang!
I tried a box of subsonic cci's but wasn't too terribly impressed. No crono for me but the fence post I was using for target practice looked like I got drunk and hammered a bunch of nails into it haphazardly. I still have a hundred of them. Oh well

I have a box of minimags that I haven't tried.
And I picked up a few boxes of Aguila ammo for giggles.

I didn't get the. Magnum cylinder since I intended to use this as a plinker and I don't feel like I'm missing anything.

 

[TTv2]

They work, and the internals are conventional leaf springs like a Colt 1873 clone or any Colt or Remington black powder revolver.
But their springs do break, fairly frequently on some, though replacements are easy to get, and it's simple to take apart and reassemble.

Excellent, a simple mechanism that is easy to fix. Boy I wish cars today were like this.

The internal parts (trigger, hand, and cylinder latch) are cast MIM parts, but they work.

I don't like the hand being MIM, but with the cylinders being 12L14, they're not exactly hard so a hard hand would wear the ratchet teeth out faster.

The cylinder frame is aluminum, so you need to be careful not to overtighten the screws.
The grip frame is as-cast and painted Zamac zinc-aluminum alloy, basically pot metal, which is cheap to cast, but it works, even if it is ugly.

Mine looks fine.

The barrel and cylinder and hammer are steel, but basically just inexpensive mild steel not used much in guns.

Yeah, they are soft steels, I would like the barrel to be a bit harder, but because these steels are softer they're easier to machine, so the cutting tools are under less stress and last longer, will deflect less and reduce chatter, thus the accuracy should be there, they just won't hold up after many decades of shooting.

Which is fine IMO as the price reflects that.

The safety, loading gate, and ejector are plastic. The ejector rod breaks easily if you let it snap back too often.

Loading gate is metal.

The barrel isn't screwed into the cylinder frame. It's micro-threaded, as is the receiver, and they are permanently epoxied together.
Accuracy might be good or bad, depending on your individual specimen. Machining tolerances vary, and that can affect the accuracy and the overall functioning of your individual specimen.

That's the case with every newly made .22 LR revolver these days that's not made by Freedom Arms. There is absolutely no guarantee unless you buy an already proven, used .22 revolver.

All things considered, it makes you wonder how well one of these will stand up to a steady diet of .22 magnum?

Good question. I expect the barrels and cylinders to hold up, but the frame I'm not so sure about. Idk what the melting point is for the frame material, at minimum it's 800 degrees Fahrenheit, but nobody really knows what the true composition is of it. It's not pure Aluminum, so there's going to be other elements in it, but a mixed alloy composition adds strength as metals in their pure form are soft. If you're shooting a thousand rounds of +P Hornady .22 Mag, then no, it's not gonna last, but people buy these mostly to shoot .22 LR for fun and if they need to shoot something with it use .22 Mag.

Can't say I'll be doing that, but I'm not gonna be shooting more .22 Mag in this than .22 LR.

They work I guess, but comparing one to a Ruger Single Six is like comparing a flea market hot dog to a steak dinner in a fine restaurant.

Poor comparison. Food doesn't last decades like guns do and we're talking in the span of years and decades. Sure, the Ruger will last centuries if properly maintained, but the Heritage will last decades. Will the occasional spring go bad? Yes, but those are easy to replace. If this were a gun to be used in competitions, then I'd say get the Ruger, but for people who just want a plinker, a self defense revolver, a small game getter, or a cheap "bad times" revolver that can shoot .22 ammo that you can carry thousands of rounds on your person the Heritage is perfectly fine for the task.

I'd rather have three of these than one Ruger. I'd rather have one Heritage, one Pietta 1858 NMA, and an H&R Handi Rifle in .243, .308, or .45-70 for one Ruger.

 

[TTv2]

I think the biggest issue that most people are going to find with the Heritage and other SA revolvers with fixed sights is the sights are terrible and never "on." After having issues with a .32 Heritage I own, I decided I would try another Heritage, but it had to have adjustable sights. So I picked one up yesterday and my gosh, I can actually hit what I'm aiming at now. The only downside to the adjustable sights is they won't work in holsters that the fixed sight models fit in.

It's worth the trade off tho.

 

[Jeb Stuart]

Love the Heritage. If not looking for a heirloom than actually a much better buy than models costing 5 times as much. And the quality IMO is better than the snobs want to make you believe it is.Just like the Phoenix HPA, have two of them. And guess what. I would gladly trade off my Ruger SR22 before one of these. And they are more reliable than any of the 22.cals I own or have owned.
I think it has always been funny, when someone post about a Heritage. You always have a whole lot of folks that report how fun they are while you will always get one or two "Snobbies". Folks that have a Snowflake meltdown at the thought that these guns do so well and cost pennies on the dollar. And even more laughable is when they never even owned one.

PS Not interested in fixed sights for the heritage. I enjoy just using old Kentucky windage and honing my point and shoot skills. I do not use the Heritage as a target gun.


Here is my Ruger Blackhawk convertible with my Heritage.

 

[TTv2]

Love the Heritage. If not looking for a heirloom than actually a much better buy than models costing 5 times as much. And the quality IMO is better than the snobs want to make you believe it is.Just like the Phoenix HPA, have two of them. And guess what. I would gladly trade off my Ruger SR22 before one of these. And they are more reliable than any of the 22.cals I own or have owned.
I think it has always been funny, when someone post about a Heritage. You always have a whole lot of folks that report how fun they are while you will always get one or two "Snobbies". Folks that have a Snowflake meltdown at the thought that these guns do so well and cost pennies on the dollar. And even more laughable is when they never even owned one.

Yup, lot of snobs out there, not sure why. I've never understood the "one upper" mentality or the negative ninny's, but don't bash a "cheap" gun until you've owned one.

I can't say I'd trade away my SR22, but I did see a Phoenix HPA with the 5 inch barrel in an lgs recently and I couldn't believe how skinny it was. I'm gonna have to look into them more now. I will say tho that when it comes to semi autos pistols, the quality seems to be high with most all manufacturers, so I don't have the reservations about spending more money on them like I do revolvers.

PS Not interested in fixed sights for the heritage. I enjoy just using old Kentucky windage and honing my point and shoot skills. I do not use the Heritage as a target gun.

I think they're plenty capable of it. It's not so much winning competitive events, I just want to see how far out I can get hits.

 

[TTv2]

For those interested, here's a video of the process of making a Rough Rider:



Notice the use of non CNC methods? There's nothing wrong with using broaches for the aluminum frame because broaching is a very accurate machining method that is repeatable, especially for mass production and when soft metal parts are being made. The cutting tools will last a very long time on the frame and grip handle, years most likely, which means repeatable, interchangeable parts.

Notice where the cylinders are made they have drop indicators to check the dimensions. Also note how one person makes the cylinder from start to finish on the cnc lathe, to the cnc mill, to the horizontal mill. The CNC machines they have are not rust buckets from the 80s, they're Okuma lathes and Hass mills from the 00s.

Barrels are permanently affixed using red Loctite. Also, now I know who to blame for the front sight shooting high and left on my .32 Mag Heritage. SOB is smashing those sight blades down way too hard.

But overall, I see quality and in process/100% inspections where the need to be done. The original Heritage, before Taurus bought them, clearly worked out a great manufacturing process for their revolvers to make them at a low price.

Are all their employees running the machines CNC setup guys and engineers like me? Nope, but the guys at Ruger aren't either and neither the Heritage or Ruger guys have to be, they just have to check their parts and put questionable parts off to the side. Ruger uses steel frames and harder steels and all that, so they have to use more involved machining operations that require more expensive cutting tools that wear out faster, take longer to machine, and that adds to the cost. From what I can see at Heritage and what I've heard about Ruger, the guys on the floor at the machines, the skill level is the same.

In fact, I'd give the slight edge to Heritage because the production employees make the same guns every single day and repetition means repeatability. Ruger is a high mix environment as they make a lot of different guns.

 

[Old Stumpy]

Love the Heritage. If not looking for a heirloom than actually a much better buy than models costing 5 times as much. And the quality IMO is better than the snobs want to make you believe it is.Just like the Phoenix HPA, have two of them. And guess what. I would gladly trade off my Ruger SR22 before one of these. And they are more reliable than any of the 22.cals I own or have owned.
I think it has always been funny, when someone post about a Heritage. You always have a whole lot of folks that report how fun they are while you will always get one or two "Snobbies". Folks that have a Snowflake meltdown at the thought that these guns do so well and cost pennies on the dollar.

You get what you pay for. For $150.00 you get a $150.00 gun made out of soft steel, aluminum, and Zamac. Heritage is a U.S. company making guns in the U.S. to turn a profit and they can't do that by paying slave wages, so they have to drive down the cost of their product in other ways in order to sell it so cheap. That is simple economic reality.
When you point out this simple fact to some, they become incredibly defensive, and will begin to make ludicrous claims about how their cheap gun is better than anything on the planet. Silly really.
I tried to be balanced in my review, but just the same there will always be those who will be driven to insults if someone disagrees with them in any way.
I am neither a firearms snob, nor a "snowflake". Unlike many of the younger shooters on this forum, I have bought, own, used and sold many different firearms for over 40 years. I have plenty of experience and I know what I'm talking about. And, when you resort to personal insults you lose nearly all of your credibility.
As for reliability issues, The RR has a deserved reputation for breaking it's leaf springs, while Ruger Single Six revolvers never do. That's because they have all music wire coil and torsion springs. In fact, just about nothing ever breaks on a Single Six because of their high quality materials and manufacturing. They just keep on going forever.
I would agree that Ruger firearms seem pricey, and that upsets those with a meager income who can't afford them.
But hey, many things that we want, like consumer electronics, seem over-priced as well. Yet, most people with a full-time job seem to be able to afford them just the same.
If you are happy with your RR and you are having fun with it that's great. But it is what it is.

 

[Jeb Stuart]

For those interested, here's a video of the process of making a Rough Rider:



Notice the use of non CNC methods? There's nothing wrong with using broaches for the aluminum frame because broaching is a very accurate machining method that is repeatable, especially for mass production and when soft metal parts are being made. The cutting tools will last a very long time on the frame and grip handle, years most likely, which means repeatable, interchangeable parts.

Notice where the cylinders are made they have drop indicators to check the dimensions. Also note how one person makes the cylinder from start to finish on the cnc lathe, to the cnc mill, to the horizontal mill. The CNC machines they have are not rust buckets from the 80s, they're Okuma lathes and Hass mills from the 00s.

Barrels are permanently affixed using red Loctite. Also, now I know who to blame for the front sight shooting high and left on my .32 Mag Heritage. SOB is smashing those sight blades down way too hard.

But overall, I see quality and in process/100% inspections where the need to be done. The original Heritage, before Taurus bought them, clearly worked out a great manufacturing process for their revolvers to make them at a low price.

Are all their employees running the machines CNC setup guys and engineers like me? Nope, but the guys at Ruger aren't either and neither the Heritage or Ruger guys have to be, they just have to check their parts and put questionable parts off to the side. Ruger uses steel frames and harder steels and all that, so they have to use more involved machining operations that require more expensive cutting tools that wear out faster, take longer to machine, and that adds to the cost. From what I can see at Heritage and what I've heard about Ruger, the guys on the floor at the machines, the skill level is the same.

In fact, I'd give the slight edge to Heritage because the production employees make the same guns every single day and repetition means repeatability. Ruger is a high mix environment as they make a lot of different guns.

Thanks for the post. I love touring factories and manufacturing plants. A lot of work sure goes into those little guns, hard to believe they sell as cheap as they do. Not to get off subject, I remember when I toured the TRANE plant in Texas. Went down the whole assemble line from beginning to end. Finally at the last stage, a completed unit would go down one lane and another would go down another lane for the Grill cover to be placed on. One lane would get the Trane, the next lane would get a American Standard grill. Same thing, but the vents were different on the American Standard. And from talking to salesmen later, they had customers that would pay as much as $500.00 for the Trane, simply because of the name.

Again thanks for the video, makes me want to go out and buy another. Have never shot one of their big Bores like the 357. And they always seem to be sold out every where.

When I bought my Heritage 22/convertible, paid about $10.00 for a lifetime warranty from Bud's, I doubt I will ever need it, but it is there, and even if I lost the whole gun, I am not out much money. It is not a carry gun, just a fun little plinker that has served my wants, and needs. And the Heritage exceeded those.
They also make for a nice camp gun.

 

[HankC]

I didn't know Heritage is part of Taurus now until I saw in the video guys wear Taurus T-shirts. Would be good if they now offer Taurus Life Time warranty! I have a 6" Rough Rider for many years, I think warranty is 1 Yr. Saw KY Gun Co carries a 16" barrel 22LR Rough Rider, sold out in back order, would be an interesting addition, but I don't know what the 16" barrel for! Squirrel hunting?

 

[ccoyle]

I would like to point out that in my original post I clearly indicated that my motivation in buying this firearm was to obtain a "cheap plinker." I always do my homework before buying a firearm, and I read many reviews and opinions of Heritage revolvers before my purchase. I was fully aware beforehand that a Rough Rider is not a Bearcat or Single Six (but of course one can buy three or four Rough Riders for the cost of a Ruger, so the latter are not "cheap plinkers"). I did not start this thread for the purpose of igniting yet another Heritage vs. Ruger debate (there are plenty of them out there in cyberspace already) -- I started it to share my experience with this revolver. And yes, so far I am completely happy with it. It is nothing more or less than what I expected it would be. So can we please put the debating to bed now? Thanks!

P.S. I own two Rugers, just neither of them happens to be a Bearcat or Single Six.

 

[Old Stumpy]

And from talking to salesmen later, they had customers that would pay as much as $500.00 for the Trane, simply because of the name.

The Single Six convertible with two cylinders (shown below) sells for around $559.00 at Sportsman's Warehouse.
It has a tempered steel cylinder frame and barrel, tempered steel cylinders, steel bodied adjustable sights, tempered steel parts, all music wire coil and torsion springs, and a high quality aluminum grip frame. A very high quality revolver at a reasonable price.

It's possible that Ruger tacks on a premium for their name, though I don't know that this is so. Ruger polymer pistols are much cheaper than Glocks, even though they both use the same type of Zytel frame, and very similar construction. The cost of manufacture should also be very similar, so they should cost the same as a Glock if Ruger were cashing in on their name.
However, even if you ended up paying an $80.00 premium on this Single Six for the name, goodwill, and awesome service and warranty, that would still leave $479.00. That isn't because of an inflated price. It's because it's a much better firearm than the RR and quality costs money. And, $559.00 isn't exactly a King's Ransom.

You get what you pay for. There ain't no free lunch. Only Democrats believe that.

 

[Jeb Stuart]

I would not mind having this little 3.75" with the Birds Eye Grip. Nice little package. I believe you can also get on in a 3". There is also the option of getting one with a steel frame. Not sure I would care about that for these little guns. Seem the standard material holds up just fine.Since I have the magnum cylinder, it would be nice to just get one in 22.lr only. I have the magnum but shoot mostly 22.lr. And of course you can get one without the extra cylinder cheaper anyway.

 

[Jeb Stuart]

The Single Six convertible with two cylinders (shown below) sells for around $559.00 at Sportsman's Warehouse.
It has a tempered steel cylinder frame and barrel, tempered steel cylinders, steel bodied adjustable sights, tempered steel parts, all music wire coil and torsion springs, and a high quality aluminum grip frame. A very high quality revolver at a reasonable price.

It's possible that Ruger tacks on a premium for their name, though I don't know that this is so. Ruger polymer pistols are much cheaper than Glocks, even though they both use the same type of Zytel frame, and very similar construction. The cost of manufacture should also be very similar, so they should cost the same as a Glock if Ruger were cashing in on their name.
However, even if you ended up paying an $80.00 premium on this Single Six for the name, goodwill, and awesome service and warranty, that would still leave $479.00. That isn't because of an inflated price. It's because it's a much better firearm than the RR and quality costs money. And, $559.00 isn't exactly a King's Ransom.

You get what you pay for. There ain't no free lunch. Only Democrats believe that.
View attachment 833841

You might want to just start a separate thread on the Ruger Single 6. We all know the difference in the quality of the gun. But this tread was started for the Heritage. Yes two different animals. We get it.

 

[MedWheeler]

Old Stumpy writes:

But it is what it is.

There. That's all your posts in this thread summed up, and it's all any of us has said about the gun as well.

Your later contributions (after quitting the thread) started out much more civilly, but have again devolved into a "buy a Ruger" argument despite the fact that the thread was never opened to ask about the RSS, or even whether or not the HRR should be bought (the OP already has his.) See the post immediately above this one.

My definition of a "review" would include opinions based on experience, not simply reading, and watching videos about, the item. You're offering a review on your sources, not on the product itself. A true gun review includes how the gun felt, handled, and shot when in the hands of the reviewer.

 

[BlueHeelerFl]

I would not mind having this little 3.75" with the Birds Eye Grip. Nice little package. I believe you can also get on in a 3". There is also the option of getting one with a steel frame. Not sure I would care about that for these little guns. Seem the standard material holds up just fine.Since I have the magnum cylinder, it would be nice to just get one in 22.lr only. I have the magnum but shoot mostly 22.lr. And of course you can get one without the extra cylinder cheaper anyway.

View attachment 833849

Every so often my LGS has a birdshead model in stock and o have to resist the urge to get it

That's a nice looking gun

 

[TTv2]

I would agree that Ruger firearms seem pricey, and that upsets those with a meager income who can't afford them.

I'm not on a meager income, but in regards to Ruger revolvers, I'm not seeing where the price meets quality. About the only Ruger's that I can say are worth their price is the LCR and the Blackhawk. Knock on wood I haven't had any issues with my Redhawk, but I've read others that have and for $800, there should be no issues. I have no problems with the price of Ruger's guns if they ship out good guns and not make the customer be the inspector.

That's not just a Ruger problem, that's a problem with near every revolver manufacturer today.

I bought a Taurus Public Defender yesterday and was it equal to a S&W Masterpiece from the mid 1900's? Nope, there's endshake, there was a metal chip in the bore, the hammer is a bit sharp, the DA pull is tough when staging it, but for a gun that cost under $400 and shoots .410 I'm not looking for a superb firearm. I'm just looking for something that will be problem free for a good while and be fun to shoot, but effective at stopping a threat.

A Ruger I expect to be a good, accurate shooter, have a good trigger, have proper cylinder throats, and be well finished. My SP101 is none of these and my .45LC/.45ACP Redhawk at least has proper throats.

It just seems every time I buy a Ruger Revolver and plunk the money down, I never leave the range feeling impressed by it. The Heritage, the Taurus Judge models, they impress me more because they deliver more bang for the buck.

 

[TTv2]

I would not mind having this little 3.75" with the Birds Eye Grip. Nice little package. I believe you can also get on in a 3". There is also the option of getting one with a steel frame. Not sure I would care about that for these little guns. Seem the standard material holds up just fine.Since I have the magnum cylinder, it would be nice to just get one in 22.lr only. I have the magnum but shoot mostly 22.lr. And of course you can get one without the extra cylinder cheaper anyway.

View attachment 833849

That in a 9 shot would be the ultimate .22 carry revolver.

 

[Old Stumpy]

We all know the difference in the quality of the gun. But this tread was started for the Heritage. Yes two different animals. We get it.

We agree that there is a huge difference in quality between the two. That was my point.
And, when you publish a thread where members praise a particular firearm, it is inevitable that there will be dissenting views and comparisons to other firearms. (See post #47 here.)
Practically every thread on THR that begins with, "Look at this new gun I bought." includes such opinions and such comparisons.
From my own experience, once you launch a thread you can no longer control where it may go, and it ain't always pretty.
That's how it is in a free country where free speech is enshrined in the constitution.
So, if I am not prepared to accept that, then I would not publish that thread at all.

 

[<*(((><]

All in favor of talking about the Heritage revolvers in this post say aye!

Aye!

@Jeb Stuart that 3.75” birds eye may have to be the one I get, that’s a handsome revolver for carrying around the farm.