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SASS Vaqueros


Dantankerous

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Just wondering if anyone here is shooting the new SASS 45 Colt Vaqueros and what you think of them.

 

None around my neck of the woods (plains actually) to put my hands on. I did get about 30 seconds with one at EoT last year and remember I really like it. That's been awhile though.

 

Comments on how they shoot?

 

Thanks!

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If you are going to have a gunsmith work on them then they are not worth the extra money. You can, usually, get a pair of stainless 4 5/8" barrelled guns cheaper.

 

That being said... They have consecutive serial numbers, different grips (that I happen to like better), and wider rear sights which are nice and IF you have smaller hands, the hammers are nice. My wife shoots some of these and she really loves them. I on the other hand, shoot a pair of regular New Vagueros that I happen to love. So it depends on what you want out of them.

 

KQ

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My understanding is, they're not all that special. They're basically NewVaqs with Montado hammers grafted on, which in turn are functionally the same as SuperBlackhawk hammers but with a different thumb-pad checkering pattern. The "hammer reach" is the same. SASS recently legalized the use of the SBH-type hammers and the SASS Special NewVaqs are one obvious result, along with the Taylor's "Running Iron" and other low-hammer Italian variants.

 

I've had a NewVaq357 with the SBH hammer since 2005, and love it. If you're a strong-side-thumber as opposed to an off-hand cocker, you'll love the lower hammer. Ditto if you're doing any of the one-hand types of shooting.

 

Here's the weird and cool part: if you take a NewVaq with an SBH or Montado hammer and measure the "thumb reach" against a pre-war Colt SAA, they match. They don't look the same, but they function the same in your hand, as far as the cocking stroke goes. So it's actually the newly legalized combination (in the Ruger world anyhow) that's more "period correct" than what was previously allowed...which strongly supports the new rule change.

 

All the NewVaq/Montado-family guns tend to be very good. Quality control tends to be better than the previous Ruger large-frame series guns, as is the average out-of-the-box accuracy. I'm not at all saying the SASS Special guns are "bad", just that you can roll your own out of a regular NewVaq assuming you have a source of SBH or Montado hammers! With the recent legalization of those parts everybody and his brother are out looking for them and the usual sources are dry as a bone. This will be corrected eventually? I've heard Ron Powers is working on a high-end SBH-type hammer set.

 

As to 357 vs. 45: the 45 will feel more "muzzle light". Put another way: a 45 with a 5.5" barrel will feel like it has just about the same "muzzle heft" as a 4.68" barrel 357, due to the difference in barrel wall thickness and cylinder "meat".

 

Factor one more thing in: the Ruger 44s and 45s tend to have a slight constriction at the back of the barrel, where it screws into the frame. If you're a handloader, this can be corrected fairly easily with fire-lapping, shooting up to a couple dozen bullets dipped in fine grit first. It can also be corrected with "Taylor Throating" or some variant of that process, by a gunsmith. For SASS purposes the loss in accuracy from this restriction doesn't tend to be very significant. BUT with the 357, this is less likely to be an issue due to the thicker barrel walls resisting deformation better.

 

This is all on top of the usual reasons somebody might choose between the 357 and 45 :).

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I don't know if my answer is the one that you were after, but I had to put my two cents worth in. I own and shoot now a total of four Ruger Bisley Vaquero's in 45 LC. A pair and a spare pair. They are a blast to shoot with their Low hammer (lowest one around) and enough grip for all your fingers, pinky included. The 5 1/2" barrel holsters nicely and all shot to POA out of the box. I have been very pleased with their purchase. Smithy.

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Smithy is right: if the Bisley setup fits your hands, and you'll know pretty well if they do even without shooting 'em, then that's definitely an option. The Bisley variants based on the NewVaq will have the same quality level as the SASS guns and the hammer will be just a wee bit lower-slung than on the large-frame types made in 2004 on back (the large-frame Vaqueros and Bisley Vaqueros are now discontinued).

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I've got a new pair of the SASS vaqueros (actually, my wife talked me into buying them). Anyway I really like them, they seem to be more accurate than my old model Vaqueros and my fairly short thumbs really like the Montado style hammers.

 

Moose

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Guest Texas Bounty Hunter

I own guns with all kinds of hammers(bisley,montado standard ect)mostly it comes down to which

hand do you cock with . lower hammers help duelist and gunfighter.other wise stick to the taller hammers

IMHO.I love my 357 Montados and their 3.5 in barrels ;)

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Shooting duelist is kinda what I am thinking of using these for. I am slowly wandering into the land of CC. I have own and have shot the SASS 357's with cowboy loads and they are nice enough to shoot one handed, but those little sub 40 calibers won't qualify me for CC. ;) It's 45 Colt and the SASS Vaqueros are on the list of 5 1/2" guns I am looking at. I am also considerng the 5 1/2" Smokewagons, but again, I cannot find any around here to try in hand.

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I bought my wife the SASS .357s. Best deal that I could find was from Longhunter, and that price included slicking them up! Now I enjoy working on guns so I normally would not pay someone for action work, but I couldn't find a cheaper price on stock SASS Vaqueros so it was a no-brainer.

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