FunnyRunner Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Ordered my first SA pistol yesterday from Long Hunter's. It's a Ruger New Vaquero .357 in beadblasted stainless with 7 1/2" barrel. They said there would be an approximate 3 week wait, gonna be a long 3 weeks! Great people on the phone I plan to use it for fun/target shooting not SASS shoots which I fear is gonna be down the road after reading the many posts on this forum. You guys are a wealth of info. Of course, when and if I get into SASS that will necessitate the purchase of a shorter barrel Vaquero...seems to be an infectious thing, having more than one SA pistol! Anyway, I plan on getting a crossdraw holster for the 7 1/2"er but have a question for those who have worn crossdraw. Normal holsters are worn across the hips at a slant. Should a crossdraw be worn the same way or should it be more at one's normal belt/waist level? Are there advantages/disadvantages to wearing it one way or the other? Anyone have experience with holsters from "The Old West Gallery"? Looking at their Keegan Crossdraw holster for my new Vaquero. One other question, I live in a small cave just south of Atlanta, Jawja. Where can I find a schedule/location of local SASS events so I can go watch? Thanks for any assistance and thanks for the great posts I've been reading so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Driftwood Johnson, SASS #38283 Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Normal holsters are worn across the hips at a slant. Howdy You have it backwards. 'Normal holsters' are what we call straight draw holsters. They usually ride pretty much straight up and down on the gunbelt. Most of us have what we call our strong side and our weak side. For a righty, the right side is his strong side and the left side is his weak side. For a lefty, it is the opposite. Most shooters who use a cross draw holster will have a straight draw holster on their strong side. The gun is riding pretty much straight up and down. There might be a slight amount of forward cant or rearward cant, but they are pretty much straight up and down. Cant means the holster has a slight amount of angle. Most shooters who use a cross draw holster have the cross draw holster riding at an angle and it is a bit forward of the hips, more towards the front of the body. Riding towards the front of the body makes it quicker to pull the cross draw pistol. The rules say the angle can be no more than thirty degrees. This rule is hard to enforce and is often violated, but that is the rule. Personally, I have always worn my cross draw holster all the way over on my hip. I just like it better that way. My cross draw holster has no cant at all, it is actually just a regular straight draw holster worn backwards on the other side. But most do not wear their cross draw gun that way. Regarding long barrels, it is difficult to pull a long barreled pistol straight up out of a strong side, high riding, straight draw holster without getting your elbow tangled in your armpit. I discovered that long ago. MNost serious competitors use pistols that are matched in barrel length, or at least close, like a 4 3/4" and a 5 1/2". Not being a slave to convention, I wear my 7 1/2" Colt in my cross draw holster, and my 4 3/4" Colt in my straight draw strong side holster. This allows me to pull the cannon across my body without getting my elbow hung up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FunnyRunner Posted March 26, 2011 Author Share Posted March 26, 2011 Thanks Driftwood, that was good info. I thought a straight draw holster would run into problems with a long barrel. Howdy You have it backwards. 'Normal holsters' are what we call straight draw holsters. They usually ride pretty much straight up and down on the gunbelt. Most of us have what we call our strong side and our weak side. For a righty, the right side is his strong side and the left side is his weak side. For a lefty, it is the opposite. Most shooters who use a cross draw holster will have a straight draw holster on their strong side. The gun is riding pretty much straight up and down. There might be a slight amount of forward cant or rearward cant, but they are pretty much straight up and down. Cant means the holster has a slight amount of angle. Most shooters who use a cross draw holster have the cross draw holster riding at an angle and it is a bit forward of the hips, more towards the front of the body. Riding towards the front of the body makes it quicker to pull the cross draw pistol. The rules say the angle can be no more than thirty degrees. This rule is hard to enforce and is often violated, but that is the rule. Personally, I have always worn my cross draw holster all the way over on my hip. I just like it better that way. My cross draw holster has no cant at all, it is actually just a regular straight draw holster worn backwards on the other side. But most do not wear their cross draw gun that way. Regarding long barrels, it is difficult to pull a long barreled pistol straight up out of a strong side, high riding, straight draw holster without getting your elbow tangled in your armpit. I discovered that long ago. MNost serious competitors use pistols that are matched in barrel length, or at least close, like a 4 3/4" and a 5 1/2". Not being a slave to convention, I wear my 7 1/2" Colt in my cross draw holster, and my 4 3/4" Colt in my straight draw strong side holster. This allows me to pull the cannon across my body without getting my elbow hung up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tucson Jim Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Not being a slave to convention, I wear my 7 1/2" Colt in my cross draw holster, and my 4 3/4" Colt in my straight draw strong side holster. This allows me to pull the cannon across my body without getting my elbow hung up. That is a very underrated setup and one that works well. Before ordering a holster, you might want to check that barrel length again. I don't think Ruger made a 7.5" 357 NewVaq! Certainly not as a regular catalog item...*maybe* as a special run? Or, it's possible Longhunter built such a thing for a customer who flaked out and is now blowing it out the door because the first guy already paid 1/3rd to 1/2 of the price? (That does happen now and again!) To be honest, I don't think you'd like a 7.5" 357 very much - the extra-thick barrel walls will make for a very nose-heavy gun. Your wrist strength will have to be pretty extreme...maybe you're a motorcyclist who doesn't own a car and could therefore cope (us bikers get major wrists due to constant clutch and brake action...). A 7.5" *fluted* barrel would be way cool but, I think SASS rules would kinda choke over that . One big question is, are you looking for SASS-compatible holsters right away or not? Do you want a "street carry" rig for now, or do you want to go straight to SASS-compatible leather? My daily carry piece is a NewVaq357 with the 4.68" tube and I do all my own leather of an extremely "high ride" type. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deuce Stevens SASS#55996 Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Ruger does not make a 7.5" .357 New Vaquero. And there has not been a special run by any major distributors that I know of. Might want to double check that order so you don't end up ordering a holster for the wrong barrel length. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grizzly Dave Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Georga SASS Clubs link Enjoy your Ruger, I have two RNVs, SS, 357 with the 4&5/9 barrels and love them. Grizz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FunnyRunner Posted March 26, 2011 Author Share Posted March 26, 2011 Ruger does not make a 7.5" .357 New Vaquero. And there has not been a special run by any major distributors that I know of. Might want to double check that order so you don't end up ordering a holster for the wrong barrel length. http://www.longhunt.com/ruger/vaquero-beadblasted-stainless.htm Am I reading this wrong????? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grizzly Dave Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Interesting, Longhunter lists a 7 & 1/2, but the Ruger website does not... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rex M Rugers #6621 Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Actually , on the Longhunter site , the calibers are listed on one line together , and the barrel lengths are all listed together. Could be the 357s are not available in 7 1/2" and the 45s are. Maybe ??? A call to Longhunter Monday might save FunnyRunner any confusion , or verify his initial post. Be interesting to see how this plays out. Rex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Dog Jack, SASS #77862 Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 I shoot a pair of 7.5" pistols, one cross draw one strong side, and while the ss pistol is not the fastest thing out of the holster it works fine. What some I've seen do is get a shorter barreled pistol for the strong side. Just an idea, no reason you should disregard the long barreled pistol for CAS work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunner Gatlin, SASS 10274L Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Ruger does not make a 7.5" .357 New Vaquero. And there has not been a special run by any major distributors that I know of. Might want to double check that order so you don't end up ordering a holster for the wrong barrel length. It seems so Deuce.. http://www.ruger.com/products/vaqueroStainless/models.html http://www.ruger.com/products/vaqueroBlued/models.html unless it's a special from Long Hunter?? GG ~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Bullweed Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Come on in; the water in the SASS pool is fine! I hope that you can started sooner than you surmise. For me, the biggest problem with the longer barrels is not the length of the holsters or the drawing/holstering (undrawing??) process. Longer barrels produce higher velocities. In .45's this is very noticable. Most all regular cowboy shooters are shooting less-than-factory velocities. We tend to shoot better and faster with less velocity. We can also shoot more often with rounds that do not kick so much. I would think that taming these velocities would be very tricky if not inconsistent in a longer barrel. With all that said, I know of a couple local shooters havign a heap of fun and doing well with longer barrels. If that is what you have, don't let it stop you from shooting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Driftwood Johnson, SASS #38283 Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Howdy I am pretty sure that when the New Vaquero first hit the market around 2005 or so a Stainless 7 1/2" barreled 45 Colt version was available. I seem to remember it anyway. I think it has since been dropped. Better double check as to what is available now. Perhaps he still has some older ones. But this brings up another point. I always try to have a new gun in hand before I go shopping for a holster for it. Murphy often rears his ugly head. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tucson Jim Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Ah. Yeah, that's the problem, Longhunter has made a mistake on his website . I strongly recommend dropping LH a line by EMail or phone, he'll respond quickly either way. Again: I think you'll be very happy with a 5.5", esp. in 357. Or shorter yet if it's going to be a backpacking companion or street carry piece. The top 357 full house loads work up a major head of steam in just 4.68" - I used that combination to blow up a bowling ball once . One reason to get the 5.5" is that some states have 5" as a minimum barrel for hunting and a NewVaq357 is still a very decent setup for smaller deer or boar. As an aside, Ruger's latest catalog (online) deletes ALL of the 7.5" NewVaqs of any caliber. CDNN is listing what are probably the last of the stainless 7.5" NewVaq45s for only $399 which is a HELL of a good deal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cofachique Dick Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Howdy I am pretty sure that when the New Vaquero first hit the market around 2005 or so a Stainless 7 1/2" barreled 45 Colt version was available. I seem to remember it anyway. I think it has since been dropped. Better double check as to what is available now. Perhaps he still has some older ones. But this brings up another point. I always try to have a new gun in hand before I go shopping for a holster for it. Murphy often rears his ugly head. I have been using a pair of SS RNV 7 1/2" 45s this season. Been shooting them double duelist from two strong side straight hang holsters. They are not THAT hard to get in and out. But then I have fairly long arms. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunner Gatlin, SASS 10274L Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Yeah - 7 1/2" isn't avaiable anymore, but they seem to have been in the past: http://www.gunblast.com/Ruger-NewVaquero2.htm Seems those just might be a little more 'collectable' (if I can use the term) than other New Vaquero's. Style points for sure GG ~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MMJ#89586 Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 I've been waiting 8 months for my USFA revolver. 3 weeks is nothing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FunnyRunner Posted March 26, 2011 Author Share Posted March 26, 2011 I figure, with full power loads, that those rounds will come out at about Mach 2.5. Can't wait to try it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lone Dog, SASS #20401 Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 From the outset, from the beginning of production there have never been any 7 & 1/2" New Vaqueros in 357. Only 45 Colt. Now Ruger has discontinued the long 45 as well. I know that Long Hunter, as one of the most renowned and prolific sellers and tuners of Rugers, has always known this. The OP is mistaken that he actually ordered a 7.5" RNV from LHSS,I do believe. Up till a coupla weeks ago he could still get the long 45s, I know because he sold me one. The supply of these is bound to be getting low. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dirty Chris Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 Still plenty of 7 1/2s at Davidsons. If they are discontinued and you like the long barrels you may want to grab one or two. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FunnyRunner Posted March 31, 2011 Author Share Posted March 31, 2011 Clarification guys, I did order a 7 1/2" stainless bead blasted New Vaquero from Long Hunter but Travis called me two days ago and said that his source for them didn't have them any more. So, I changed the order to the 5 1/2" barrel. Was looking forward to the 7 1/2" but will be just as happy with the 5 1/2". Just can' wait to get it and see how it shoots. Now, I have to work on what holster I want. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buckshot Frank Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 If you start shooting CAS with it, you will probably be happier with the 5.5" barrel in the long run. When I started getting my gear together for CAS, I originally wanted long barreled .45's. Since my wife and I are sharing guns to start, we compromised on the 5.5" .357's (She couldn't draw the 7.5" barrels). I ended up thinking about the purchase too long, and when we went to buy them, they only had one 5.5". All of the Vaqueros were 20% off and I didn't want to pass up the deal, so I settled for a pair of 4 5/8" barreled .357's. After shooting for a few months, I'm glad that I now have the shorter barrels. I feel like I lucked into the right choice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshal TKD, Sass # 36984L Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 which I fear is gonna be down the road after reading the many posts on this forum. You guys are a wealth of info. Don't let the the stinkers on the wire discourage you from shooting. Even the ones that are stinkers are generally nice in person. There are some good clubs in the Atlanta area, give them a try, you will have a blast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny The Kid , SASS 22917 Posted April 1, 2011 Share Posted April 1, 2011 FunnyRunner The Georgia State Championships are being neld just north of Atlanta the first weekend of May....near Cummings....here is a link to a Wire thread about the match: http://sassnet.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=165013 Hope to see you out there. I'll be there from Orlando...Would be a good place to see some really good shooters and get a lot of help and information. Johnny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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