Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Cowboy Action Shooting Ruger Old Vaquero?

Will the old Ruger vaquero trigger interchange with a Ruger Bisley Blackhawk trigger?
If yes where can I buy a Bisley trigger?
Also are the old Vaquero Rugers sorta collectable now and a little more pricey $$?
What did they do the smaller frame change?
Are the old vaquero Ruger's in 45LC able to take the +P loads in the reloading manuals?
How good do the vaqueros shoot for accuracy?
Should I be able to get a softball size group or smaller at 25 yrds. with a Vaquero or will I need to have it tricked out a bit?

Old Vaquero - yes, to heavy loads in .45LC, running 260 grainers at 1225-ish.

Mine shoots 4 inches easy at 25 yards easy, BUT it's an aftermarket barrel of unknown make.

Old Vaqueros are up a bit in price, but I think the market is still carrying enough of them to make the "collecting" price a bit mute.

The complaint I read the most about SA Rugers is the cylinder mouthes and having to open them up for uniformity, followed by recutting the forcing cone and the barrel crown.

Bisley Trigger - http://www.midwayusa.com/product/129787/ruger-trigger-ruger-bisley-single-six-bisley-bisley-vaquero

Bisley Hammer, Vaquero trigger kit:

http://www.brownells.com/handgun-pa...ey-hammer-vaquero-trigger-prod25443.aspx

I had a pair of .45s that shot to point of aim with no work at all. They cost more now, used, than I paid for mine new, but it has been a dozen years. They don't cost any more than New Vaqueros.

IMO the Vaquero was/is a great carry gun if you have big hands, but maybe not so much otherwise.

I've got a few of the Large frame Vaqueros both 45 Colt and 44 Mag. I like them. They fit my hand. Yes they will change out the trigger with the bisley I believe you have to change out the hammer as well. I haven't ever done it so I don't know what all is involved. The prices on them have held strong and are higher than the originals (true of a lot of guns). I haven't ever tried it at 25 yards, but I have won a couple of shooting contests that were both speed and accuracy with one of mine. Not sure that's indicative of the universe of them. Plenty accurate for CAS or woods bumming. I've got mine with Buffalo Bore hotter roads, no issues at all. Except they do spin pretty quickly in your hand and the hammer is sharp.

Thanks for all the great info!
The Vaquero is a third year vintage late 1995!

I read in Ken waters pet loads that 9gr. unique and 250gr.Jacket bullet was same as factory 45LC loads and a good "all round load",,,,is this a Max charge for Unique?

Should a Jacketed .452 bullet drop thru the cylinder throats or should the throat be tight/smaller?

I think it's close to the top in older/weaker guns but more of a mid-level load in the large frame Rugers. Nosler shows up to 11.3 with jacketed 250s in stronger guns. I've seen max of 7.5 - 9.5 for older/weaker guns. I've shot up to 10.0 gr with the RCBS 270 SAA (SWC - actual weight 282-283 gr) but 8.5 gr seems to be the sweet spot in several 45 Colt Rugers.

Ideally, cylinder throats should be slightly over bore diameter (.4525-.453) for a .452 bore (45 Colt, etc.). A .452 jacketed would just slip through and a cast bullet may be a snug to tight fit depending on sized diameter. What you don't want are undersized throats swedging down bullets to less than bore diameter. Ruger had problems here in the past with their 45 Colts and undersized throats (.449-.450 or smaller). I understand this to be more problematic with cast vs. jacketed, but all I shoot is cast and I've had to hone up throats on several Rugers.

I took a .421 45acp xtp bullet today and it was avery tight fit,it would not drop or push thru,some .452 xtp bullets are nice tight fit some seem to big front to base and no where near a fit,all came from the same box of factory xtp .452 bullets and shot fine in a Bisley 45LC I had last year...
also took a 45 acp round and it fell into the cylinder so its forsure not a 45acp cylinder,if I shoot the 250xtp 45LC round it will have to swag the bullet but will this not increase the pressure?Should I shoot the gun or have it checked out first by a smith?

It sounds like you are set up with jacketed bullets and have the typical undersized throats that were common on those revolvers. Out of curiosity, can you tell if the variation in fit is due to inconsistent bullet diameter or do the throat sizes vary between chambers? I've shot many jacketed bullets through similar throats without issues - were it me, I'd probably just shoot it and see how it does.

There seemed to be no consistency in cylinder throats in the ones I have come across, with variations of 4-5 thou in the same cylinder...all smaller than .451.

I hone them all to .452. A clean .452 bullet will slide through with finger light pressure. If you lube it with oil, the oil will be pushed into the grooves....that's .452...period.

Cones and barrels are another story.

Thanks friends!
I didn't know there was so much going on with these little gems.
I want the best accuracy I can,i don't fool with junk scatter group guns,i will test the ol' girl and maybe send it off for some work,would ruger fix it?
I know the cylinders are supertight and some of the xtp bullets seem slightly bigger as well,i had a couple that would push in deeper than others but still didn't go all the way thru,i didnt try to force them hard.
I just acquired the little vaquero and it seems to have only been fired maybe 1 box ammo if that much!
Thanks for all the great info!
This has been a good learning experience for sure!

What is the process requirement to fix the cylinders,do you ream it with a drill and is there a certain bit/reamer that's used?
where can I find info on this procedure?Is this something better left to a gunsmith?

I've honed them with emory paper wrapped around a brass rod to form a plug, then coated with lapping compound as needed and chucked up in a drill with decent results. There is a reamer available which I've also used, though I wouldn't use it again. The steel in the cylinder on the one I did was very hard and I had a heck of a time getting it to cut cleanly. Were I to do another, I'd send the cylinder to Hamilton Bowen and let a pro do it.

The old Vaqueros came in more chamberings than do the New Vaqueros. If you want a Ruger in 44/40 or 44 magnum for Cowboy shooting, the old Vaqueros work quite nicely. I will use a brace of 44/40 old Vaqueros for a shoot this weekend.