Hope you and yours had a great Christmas. Here’s to the best of everything for 2012!
The Ruger #1 is #1
Back in the mid-1960′s you could have polled American shooters as to what sort of new rifle they would like to have seen produced and I really doubt that a single shot would have even made the list. However, Bill Ruger was never known for doing what was popular at the time. Instead, Ruger created things that appealed to him and watched while they became popular with the shooting public. And so, probably without consulting anyone, Ruger announced the introduction of the #1 single-shot rifle in 1967.
Mr. Ruger very obviously studied the old Farquharson single-shot design and incorporated its strengths into this new rifle. The falling block and solid action make for a very strong rifle. Although I’m not a fan of trying to make a magnum out of every rifle caliber, the #1 action will handle all sorts of reasonable handloads and some not-so-reasonable ones, too.
There have been all sorts of models and all sorts of chamberings in the #1 over the years. However, my own favorite is the #1A, with its Schnabel for-end, and the #1H, which is a similar rifle in the heavier calibers. The first such rifle that I acquired was a #1A, in .270 Winchester. I topped it off with a 4x Leupold scope and used it to take quite a few whitetail deer, Rio Grande turkey, feral hogs, and javalina. Upon his successful graduation from high school, my son asked for it since he had killed his first deer with it. So it’s still in the family, just no longer in my gun case.
I now make do with a #1A, in 7×57, and a #1H in .375 H&H. Both rifles are topped off with the Leupold 1.5×5 scope, which I think is just about the best hunting scope I’ve ever found. And, I can’t imagine what I can’t hunt with this pair of #1′s. The 7mm is just about right for deer, pronghorn, black bear, and elk. While the .375 has been used to take nine head of Australian buffalo and, if the Red Gods are willing, it will be matched up with a cape buffalo in August, 2012.Hunting with a single shot is not for everyone, nor would I ever suggest that it is. It does, however, suit me perfectly. A light, compact, accurate rifle that is a joy to pack into the field and a pleasure to shoot. The few times that I visited with Mr. Ruger, I never thanked him for the #1. I sure should have, though.
Posted in Guns, Rifles
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Classic Cartridges: The 7×57 Mauser
One of the world’s most useful rifle cartridges, the 7×57 Mauser, was developed by Mauser Co. of Germany in 1892. It was adopted as the Spanish military round in 1893 and soon taken up by Germany, France, and various other countries, in the ensuing years. The John Rigby Co. of England also saw its value as a sporting round and began production, calling it the .275 Rigby cartridge.
Originally, the 7×57 Mauser featured a 173 gr round-nosed, jacketed bullet that ran at about 2300fps. However, by 1913, the various military units realized that they would have a more efficient cartridge if they topped it with a 139 gr bullet at almost 2800fps.
The effectiveness of the 7×57 Mauser in the hands of the Boers caused England to redesign their .303 cartridge for more efficiency. And the US military also studied the 7×57 and used it as a model to develop the .30-06 cartridge that served us in two world wars. The 7×57 Mauser cartridge also became a favorite of sportsmen all over the world, due to its light recoil and flat trajectory. In this day and time, it is hard to believe but W.D.M. “Karamojo” Bell killed most of his 1,100 elephants with the cartridge. Bell used the 173 gr FMJ load and perfected the brain shot. The rest of us find the 7×57 Mauser to be just right for deer, the various antelope species, black bear, and elk. One of the toughest critters, pound for pound, is the aoudad sheep, yet I’ve found that they go right down when a 139gr 7×57 bullet is properly placed.
For some reason, the 7×57 Mauser has never been quite as popular with American sportsmen as it deserves to be. Only a few US companies chamber a rifle in this grand old caliber, although it is still one of the most popular calibers among those who have custom rifles built. One day, it will probably go the way of the 16 gauge shotgun and the .41 Magnum revolver. For all that, the 7×57 Mauser is truly a rifleman’s cartridge.
Posted in Guns, History
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