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Ruger #1 7x57 custom

5K views 23 replies 13 participants last post by  MontyF 
#1 ·
I have an opportunity to purchase a 1979 Ruger #1 in 7x 57. This thing is pristine. The receiver, lever, and scope rail have very decorative scrollwork. Also the bottom of the stock (not the recoil pad), has a plate that opens and holds 3 shells. The stock and forearm look like burly walnut. The trigger is as smooth as any I've felt. Based on the serial number it was made in 1979. It has a Schmit and Bender 1.5 x 6 scope. I'm sure the scope is at least 12 yeas old. I have pictures but can't post here so it seems. Anyway this person wants a lot of money for this and I was wondering what a fair price would be. She's talking $3000.00. Seems like a ton of money to me.
 
#4 ·
I don't want it bad enough to pay that price for it. I can see it being worth that much from your description though. Someone put some labor into that rifle. Maybe did some other things that you can't see too?

Always is a good idea to negotiate some to get the best value for your dollar. I'd give you the same advice if you were selling the rifle.

Cheezywan
 
#5 ·
I have a 1976 "200th year of American Freedom" Ruger #1 with XXXX wood in 7x57(non-catalogued).

To a true collector the embellishments might now add what they may have cost. The scope adds value. I assume Ruger mounts, if tapped it reduces value.

I'd guess $1800 for a private sale would be fair to all.
 
#6 ·
Sounds to me that you're more interested in the rifle than the scope. That scope is an expensive one and to many as good or better than some quality new German glass. That said, I'd make an offer for the rifle sans scope and let the seller get $1000-$1500 for the scope alone.

I'd look at $1500 as the max I'd pay for the rifle with its custom stock & engraving. For that $$ I'd not worry greatly about true "value", only about how much I liked or desired the gun.

"Life's too short to hunt with an ugly rifle" :D
 
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#7 ·
That is the equivalent of £2000 here in the UK. OK, the scope has had a few birthdays but will still hold it's price and do the job admirably and I would expect to pay maybe £500($750) for it here. The rifle ????? beauty is in the eye of the beholder and sometimes you have to pay a bit more for your desires, but I would say that here in the UK the rifle would probably fetch £800($1200) but single shots are not top of anyone's list here. My bid would be $2000 .. take it or leave it. Nice rifle though :)
 
#8 ·
The price of the gun depends entirely on the quality of the workmanship. Otherwise, you have the value of the barrel and the scope and the rest is just bad junk.
Is the engraving signed? How about the stock? What kind of 'burled walnut'? Have you got pictures of it?
 
#9 ·
Wm, would the seller let you shoot it? It is rather important with the Ruger No. 1.

It is a very capable calibre you have there, and it is getting more popular in the US of late. But if the rifle does not print properly and consistently it may need quite a few more dollars before it does.
 
#11 ·
Welcome to the Forum

Wmstroud,
Glad to see you here. I agree with these folks and would offer a lot less for that rifle. It depends what you prefer and want to pay and prices do vary. I bought a mint condition Ruger #1 in .30-06 with a scope a few years ago for less than $700. So it depends. All the best...
Gil
 
#12 ·
A drive-by question hollered out the window of a travelin' van....

Ruger Number Ones take some special treatment before engraving and without it sometimes takes on the look of the spastic scratching of the carbide yard chicken. Quality will always sell (until you look at spur collectors, but that's another story) The OP said "pristine" but then said it had decorative scroll. That means it's been reblued at least. How well is the question.

Engravers charge money for what they take away from a gun. It is the eye of the beholder that declares the results good or bad. The time spent by the engraver is pretty much the same whether good work or what looks to have been done with a Mexican BBQ fork.

Difference of skill levels are apparent on similar priced guns.
 

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#14 ·
I was looking on "GUNS INTERNATIONAL" the other night and there are several Ruger #1's for a lot less money. You can look them over for yourself and get a better idea, if that Is really what you want. In my area, the average price for a Ruger #1 is in the $550 to $675 dollar range without a scope. I always figure a used scope for 1/2 it's price (800 dollar scope is 400 bucks etc) remember you have no warranty on that scope or rifle!:eek: The price just seems high for my wallet!:(
 
#16 · (Edited)
MonteF-- A cheap #1V sounds like a bad shooter....and there certainly are some. Number One's accuracy problems are sometimes extremely hard to find and repair because there's SO much to get right and easy to get wrong about that action. I'll be anxious to hear (what caliber) and how it shoots.

I'm trying hard right now to buy back a #1V-200th Year 22-250 that I foolishly let go after spending more than it was worth at the time straightening and getting it right. But, OH did it come out right! I sold it with a 12X Leupold while on a prairie dog shoot in Colorado and now the owner lives in S. Fla and hasn't shot it in 25 years. Seems only right he'd sell it back but he's a stubborn cuss and thinks its worth todays dollars! UN-reasonable!!

2 Bits--- Think "Engraved and re-stocked Number One with European-style cartridge trap in the toe line". Caliber makes very little difference, how it shoots might not make a bit of difference. There's a similar engraved and re-stocked #1 on Gunsinternational that is underpriced at $7K.
 
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#17 ·
Mine is in 25-06. When I bought it with the best handloads it would run about MOA with the best 5 shot group measuring .820". It had severe up pressure on the barrel which i relieved by shimming the forearm/hanger contact. Still has a little up pressure. That rifle will do under .5 MOA with several loads now and the best to date is..224" at 100.

Ps, I've found it very sensitive to hanger screw torque, is that common?
 
#18 ·
MonteF--- My repair/bedding process was described by Ross Seyfried in Guns and Ammo many years ago. I did over a hundred of them, but can't claim 100% success. Like I say, #1s have a multitude of 'Murphy spots'.

I drill and tap (10-32) the hanger right through the slot where the mainspring strut runs. It takes a milling machine and a carbide spotter to do it. I then make a thin section of spacer with a dimple in the back to lay between the barrel and the hanger and a set screw applies upward pressure on the barrel independent of the fore-arm and hanger screw. It allows the mostly floating of the barrel, but I actually leave contact so it looks good but the wood applies no significant pressure, only dampening. The benefit is in isolating barrel pressure which it needs to shoot well. Vertical stringing is a really serious problem in #1s and the above pressure system WILL cure it, but it takes some tuning, as you've found. Some loads will shoot with the new bedding screw so loose the spacer has to be glued in, but others want a full turn of contact which spreads the barrel and hanger apart by .030"!

I've got two Number Ones here with the system installed if you want to see pictures. You can do exactly the same thing by whittling a wooden wedge and drive it between barrel and hanger. Shoot and compare and epoxy the wedge in when you find the sweet spot.

Ross Seyfried got one of the 930 #1-A 22 Hornets ordered by Klien's. He called me and told me it wouldn't shoot in three inches and he needed groups for the G&A article he was doing. I told him of the wooden wedge trick and it worked. I later traded him out of the rifle and still have it.
 
#19 ·
Jbelk, I'd like more information on your procedure.

When drilling and tapping the hanger for the set screw, do you spot face the barrel contact area?
Do you use a locknut to secure the screw?

I like using the forearm wood to dampen instead for tuning like I did.
 
#20 · (Edited)
I turn the barreled action upside down with the fore arm off. With two parallels two-face taped to the vice jaws, I hold only the fore-arm hanger in the milling vice. Then, using a four flute carbide end mill, I go straight down through the mainspring slot just ahead of the attaching cross hole. You have to mill down about .300 to get past the slot and have a flat bottom to drill and tap through. There's about .150 of good steel.
Instead of spot facing the barrel, I spot face the spacer that goes between the hanger and the barrel.

The clearance between hanger and barrel is very little and making the spacer is more work than drilling the hole. The spacer is Vee shaped on the barrel side and U shaped on the hanger side and only about .100 thick so it takes a fixture with a magnet on a magnetic chuck to grind them.

I tap the hole with a taper tap with the end ground off so the hole gets tight towards the bottom. No need for a locker or glue.
 

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#22 ·
If the fore-end is bedded to the fore-end hanger, it means the new hanger screw determines fore-end pressure. Tightening the set screw will reduce the upward pressure of the fore-end.
 
#23 ·
okay, here's a couple ideas about Ruger Number 1's and the 7x57 in particular.
The #1 7x57 has a checkered history because of the original barrels Ruger used. They are throated long. Group sizes are negatively affected, and 3 inches at 100 or Greater are common with anything less than a 175 grain round nose bullet. Even the 175 round nose can have issues with large groups due to the overly long throat. Once Ruger went away from buying to making their own, this particular issue ended. I've passed up a few for this reason.

The thing is, the older Number Ones had better wood than what Ruger has put out in the last 5-10 years. Ruger Number One wood holds it's value, as do the Number One action and other assorted parts. Just not the older, long throat 7x57 barrels.

That being said, the custom work will have to be valued on it's merits and if not done by a Recognized engraver or stock maker, and with corroborating paperwork, then it's only of value it the buyer likes it enough to pay for it.

Check in with a fellow on Rugerforum.net that goes by El Numero Uno.
He will know a lot more.

A NIB Ruger Number One up here will go $1100-$1200, used in very good condition, $800-$900 depending upon desirability of chambering. An action, about $400, wood, anywhere from $250 to who knows what depending upon figure. Good glass holds value and 50% less than new is very optimistic on the part of a buyer. More like 75% of new cost.

BUT, without pictures, it's all guess work, so here is my guess.
For the rifle, Id offer $900, the scope $600, and if she said that was too low, I'd counter with $1000 for the rifle and $700 for the scope. If she wanted more, I'd shake my head and say it's not worth that to me and walk away. There are more 7x57 Ruger Number One's out there that can shoot lighter, spitzer bullets for less money. and I've never paid more than $1125 for a new one.
 
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