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Long before they plastered giant legalese billboards all over their guns, Ruger did something special for the United States Bicentennial in 1976 by inscribing their guns with this simple yet awesome banner-
My buddy and longtime FFL called me up the other day to see if I would be interested in an old Ruger .22. I says, "Well maybe" (as Ive already got a nice Standard) but Ill mosey over on my lunch break and takes a look......"
Turned out to be an almost flawless long-snout Liberty Edition MK1. My bud hadn't noticed the inscription, and in fact didn't recall ever seeing a Bicentennial Ruger before. I had actually owned a '76 Security Six years ago and always thought it was a neat gesture- the sort of thing we could use a little more of these days.
Needless to say, I slapped down my 3 bills- its good to have friends in the gun biz
- and picked up this 'Murican beauty today.
As luck would have it, I only worked a half day, so I was able to run by the local indoor range on the way home-
300 rounds down the pipe and not a single hiccup with either the original 9-round magazine or a later 10-shot I modded to fit this gun. Winning!
Here's my Bicentennial with its' 1959 Standard sibling-
By '76, Ruger had switched the magazine thumb stud from the right hand side to the left- the grip medallion flip-flopped as well.
Generally speaking Ruger Mark magazines are backwards compatible (sorta), but you cant make a vintage Standard mag fit any of the later guns because they are only slotted on the RH side.
To make a later magazine fit a Standard, you have to swap the thumb stud- which is a bear on the older mags with fixed aluminium baseplates. Also, when trying to use a modern 10-shot magazine in any of the older guns, you have to grind a small bevel into the magazine spine above the plastic baseplate. Without this, the mag catch will grab the gap between the magazine body and the plate, thus wedging itself in place and requiring a tiny screwdriver to free the mag-
In the end, I was able to cobble together 3 working magazines for the Mk1, but I will say the 10-rounders, with their plastic followers and baseplates, revised bodies, and larger studs, while not as pretty, are MUCH easier to load.
Vintage 9-round Mk1 magazine on the left, new 10-rounder on the right-
Im definitely feeling the LIBERTY, thanks Ruger.
Happy Independence Day everyone, and God Bless the USA!
My buddy and longtime FFL called me up the other day to see if I would be interested in an old Ruger .22. I says, "Well maybe" (as Ive already got a nice Standard) but Ill mosey over on my lunch break and takes a look......"
Turned out to be an almost flawless long-snout Liberty Edition MK1. My bud hadn't noticed the inscription, and in fact didn't recall ever seeing a Bicentennial Ruger before. I had actually owned a '76 Security Six years ago and always thought it was a neat gesture- the sort of thing we could use a little more of these days.
Needless to say, I slapped down my 3 bills- its good to have friends in the gun biz
- and picked up this 'Murican beauty today.As luck would have it, I only worked a half day, so I was able to run by the local indoor range on the way home-
300 rounds down the pipe and not a single hiccup with either the original 9-round magazine or a later 10-shot I modded to fit this gun. Winning!
Here's my Bicentennial with its' 1959 Standard sibling-
By '76, Ruger had switched the magazine thumb stud from the right hand side to the left- the grip medallion flip-flopped as well.
Generally speaking Ruger Mark magazines are backwards compatible (sorta), but you cant make a vintage Standard mag fit any of the later guns because they are only slotted on the RH side.
To make a later magazine fit a Standard, you have to swap the thumb stud- which is a bear on the older mags with fixed aluminium baseplates. Also, when trying to use a modern 10-shot magazine in any of the older guns, you have to grind a small bevel into the magazine spine above the plastic baseplate. Without this, the mag catch will grab the gap between the magazine body and the plate, thus wedging itself in place and requiring a tiny screwdriver to free the mag-
In the end, I was able to cobble together 3 working magazines for the Mk1, but I will say the 10-rounders, with their plastic followers and baseplates, revised bodies, and larger studs, while not as pretty, are MUCH easier to load.
Vintage 9-round Mk1 magazine on the left, new 10-rounder on the right-
Im definitely feeling the LIBERTY, thanks Ruger.
Happy Independence Day everyone, and God Bless the USA!
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Here is my Ruger 22's. MK3 &4. A 22/45 and my single six.
