What's the dif between "old model" and "new model" Ruger single-action Lockwork?

[Kaylee]

Yes, I know about the lawyering and the addition of the transfer bar and all.

What I'm curious about is this - what specifically changed in how the other parts interact between the models? Why the change from three screws to two posts - the hand/bolt, hammer, and trigger all still need to pivot on something, right? So what's going on with just two pins?

Further, how different are the frames themselves? For instance, if you were to weld up and redrill a new Ruger single action with three tapped screw holes instead of two pinholes, would the old model lockwork fit? Or are there more profound differences between them?

And um... any explanatory pictures?

 

[Jim Watson]

Hanged if I know. Sounds like an excuse to buy two guns. For study purposes only, mind you.

Or you could go to Numrich www.e-gunparts.com and look at their parts diagrams for the New Model Blackhawk and the Old Army which still uses the standard lockwork, it being difficult to hit a percussion cap with a transfer bar. Looks like the New Model gets by with two pins instead of three screws by pivoting the cylinder bolt and the trigger off the same pin.

There is one customizer who will slot the ends of the pins to look like screws and puts in a screw to take the play out of the cylinder bolt, so the gun resembles an Old Model.

 

[McCall911]

I don't know either because most internal parts, in my vocabulary, are referred to as "thingamajigs" and "doohickeys." It just seems to me that the Old Model has a smoother action and better trigger compared to the New Model.

 

[Old Fuff]

The internal parts of an Old Model vs. New Model are hardly related, and in fact I think the only parts that were carried over was the hand and the hand spring & plunger. The Old Model was loaded/unloaded with the hammer in the half-cock position. The New Model is loaded/unloaded with the hammer fully down, and to rotate the cylinder you have to open the gate. The trigger was changed to eliminate the narrow tip at the top that was prone to breaking, and all but the full-cock notch was removed from the hammer face. All together it is a much more rugged arangement.

In the Old Model, the cylinder bolt and trigger each have their own screw. The New Model uses one pin (pins are less expensive then screws) for both the cylinder bolt and trigger. This basic idea wasn't new - Remington did the same during the Civil War, but used a screw rather then a pin.

I think what you may want is a .357 Magnum that's an Old Model, but built on a New Model sized frame. Or maybe a different cartridge. Anyway, if I had the money to spend I'd buy an Old Model Blackhawk built on the .44 Magnum frame. These would include revolvers originally made in .30 M1 Carbine, .41 Magnum, .44 Magnum and .45 Colt. Then if I didn't wan't the adjustable rear sight (which I would) I'd have a gunsmith remove the sight, weld up the slot where it was mounted, and then profile the topstrap to look like a Vaq.

This would cost far less then trying to make a New Model into an old one, give you the lockwork and "clicks" that you want, and look like what you want the revolver to look like.

On second thought, I think that the hand is different too - so that only leaves the hand spring & plunger. Interesting perhaps, but of no practical consequence.

 

[Jim March]

Be aware that the New Vaquero and 50th Anniversary Blackhawks are sort of a "New Model Revision B" action. These guns are Colt SAA-sized and will align the cylinder bores perfectly with the loading gate on each "click" - unlike prior "New Model" actions.

(Did I mention Ruger's naming system is turning into a bad joke!?)

Anyways. The New Vaq-style action (aka "mid frame" series) still loads with the hammer fully down and is definitely a close kin to the original "New Model" action.

 

[TallPine]

Did I mention Ruger's naming system is turning into a bad joke!?

The Vaquero is a "New Model" but there is an "Old Model" and a "New Model" of the New Model Vaquero.

So there is an "Old New Model" and a "New New Model" ...?

So is what Kaylee wants a "New Old Model" or an "Old New New Model" ???

This is all so confusing ... I think I will go have a drink at the Transfer Bar.

 

[foghornl]

The original "Old Model" [sometimes called the 3-screw model] did not use the transfer bar, and could ONLY be safely carried 5-up, i.e. 5 chambers loaded, hammer resting on the empty chamber.