Ruger Ceasing Production of Multiple Lines, Including Legendary Revolvers

A little over a month ago, I wrote about my changing views on revolvers and, I suppose you guys liked it well enough. The truth is that while I still trust semi-autos more for self-defense, I don't distrust revolvers in the least, and there's a certain cool factor. Plus, I don't have to worry about springs wearing out, either in the magazine or in the pistol itself.

That means more revolvers for Good Old Tom.

And Ruger is one of those companies I was looking to for my new passion for wheel guns.

Talk about rotten timing.

The announcement by Ruger that it was suspending production of certain popular models including the legendary Blackhawk and Redhawk revolvers, and the iconic No. 1 single-shot rifle has ignited a wave of speculation, some misinformation, lots of hand-wringing and no small amount of unjustified doom-and-gloom.

TGM reached out to Ruger and learned, “To clarify, we are suspending production of certain products and completing final production runs of others. This does not necessarily mean these product families are permanently discontinued.”

This is important, as Ruger notes in its message to distributors, “Throughout our history, we have temporarily paused production of established product families, including the 77-series rifles, the 22 Charger and the SR1911 pistol, as market conditions and manufacturing priorities changed.”  (Emphasis added)

While the announcement has ignited the typical rumor and speculation mill, here are the facts as spelled out in the “Distributor Update.”

• Ruger is suspending production, effectively immediately, of the LCR, Ruger SP 101, GP100 and Bearcat revolvers.
• Final production through the end of this year “will continue through planned final production runs over the remainder of 2026. This applies to the following models: SR1911, LC Carbine, / PC Charger, PC Carbine / LC Charger, Redhawk, Super Redhawk, Blackhawk, Super Blackhawk. Single-Series revolvers, Vaquero, No. 1, 77-series rifles, Hawkeye and Ruger Precision Rifle.
• “Suspending production does not necessarily mean saying goodbye to these product families,” the Distribution Update says.

Now, I know our own Kerry Sloan won't miss the LCR, which she's most definitely not a fan of, but I've always wanted a GP100, and I have a thing for the Vaquero, too.

In fact, the only wheel gun left will be the Wrangler, which is a .22 LR single action that fits a sort of similar role to the Vaquero as a cowboy-style single-action, but without being chambered in something realistic for self-defense purposes, if one were so inclined.

The Gun Mag's Dave Workman notes that Ruger says they may be bringing some of these back via new designs and innovation, which is definitely good news for those of us interested in revolvers.

However, until some of these do make a comeback, it's best not to count on them being available in the future. I doubt any of these models will become super collectible, but that's because there are so many already out there. We're talking millions of firearms, which means the demand is unlikely outstrip supply sufficiently to make these "collectible" in the investment sense of the word.

And hopefully, they'll be making that comeback, but I won't hold my breath. That's not because I don't think any of them will, but because I don't think all of them will, and I'd rather not be chomping at the bit for something I'll never see again.

Editor’s Note: The radical Left will stop at nothing to enact their extreme gun control agenda and strip us of our Second Amendment rights.

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