Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Single Shots Ruger #1 accuracy expectations?

For what it's worth the biggest mule deer I ever shot 30 1/4) was with an 06 #1. The biggest bodied elk I ever shot was with a #1 in 7x57.

I have owned exactly 3 of them all made after 1990 and they all shot extremely well with no tinkering 2 1B's 280 rem and 30-06 and a 1A in 270. I wish I had the 1A back.

Have a 1B in 7mmRM, late 70's red pad. Awful trigger, then I installed a "speed" hammer. Now a nice, crisp but heavy 4lb trigger. Free floated the forend, and now will shoot 139gr Hornadys into a tight little cluster. With almost 1600 rounds fired, it's about ready for a new tube. Maybe a 6BR??

I have a #1 in 338wm that will shoot factory Barnes TTSX right at 1" at 100 yards, and Winchester PowerPoints at about 1.5" at 100 yards. Problem is, I can't get handloads to shoot for crap in that rifle. Once I switched from Federal primers to Remington, the groups tightened up a bit, but still not there.

I have a #3 in 223 that will shoot some ammo right at 1", but it is picky. It shoots 65 grain Sierra Game Kings well enough that I will use it for deer.

I have a #1 that has a 6mm CM barrel. I have a Jard trigger and a speed hammer. The forearm is bedded and the hanger drilled and tapped with a screw to maintain constant tension between the barrel and hanger.

This is one group at 100 yards. 1" target



Then out to 300 yards. I think this was a 3" target



But again, somedays, it will shoot like this, and some days not. Been trying factory Nosler 95 grain Ballistic Tip ammo, only shot half a box so far and not excited yet.

Nice shooting rifle Scoony. Gotta love the 6cm.

My only example is a SS 1B in 7mm STW. It was a 3 moa rifle with everything I threw at it from 140 gr to 175 gr bullets seated as close to the lands as I could put them. Floating the barrel did not help.

Installation of a "Hick's Accurizer" cured all my problems. I settled on two loads, a 160 gr Sierra spbt, or the Hornady 162 btsp, either over the same charge of H 1000. I set the accurizer screw to contact the barrel, and then turned it in about another 3/4 of a turn. It turned the rifle into a .75 moa shooter with either bullet.

Of course, by then I had about 2000 rounds down the tube, and it needs a trip to PacNor.

https://eabco.com/hicks-1-accurizer/

Is that the range in Winnemucca? Looks good. I haven't been there on any kind od long or short term basis in years Left due to job transfer 31 August 1979 to Tucson AZ. Nice pay raise and wife was happy but I didn't care for it. Been back a few times to hook up with my hunting partner for trips to Washington and Oregon to hunt elk. Most of out elk hunts were in the John Day area. My hunt buddy still puts in for a cow elk hunt out of Ely as his family has property there. My other buddy lived in battle Mountain and his family owned or managed the local airport. There was an abandoned FAA building we called, "the Facility" that my WMC buddy and I used as a place to sleep. I do miss those those days. I'd take a road trip back up there if I could get away from all the damn dr. appointments and PT I have to endure.
PJ

I have a Ruger No. 1A in 7x57 long throat Red pad that shoots most loads under 1.5" bullets seated short of throat shoot well also, neat rifle.

BSA, looks like you are on the road to perfection. Keep at it.

Thanks buddy. I just loaded up some 120gr Sierra gamekings. Heard some of you guys like those in your 25-06's. Found a stash of them and bought 3 boxes, as well as 20 boxes of those discontinued Hornady 120gr H.P Interlocks. Only bought 4 boxes of those, since they seem to shoot decent in this rifle. The lady at the gunshop I rarely go to said everything was 10% off too, so $25-10% on the Hornady pills, $31-10% on the SGK, $33-10% on the box of 100 gr Nosler partitions was a score. By todays standards.


That's a beauty. Looks a lot like mine. Sounds like it's a good shooter too.

Yep, that's the range there. They are working on extending that 400 yard range out to 1000 right now. The sad part is we will not be able to drive out to the 1000 yard steel, for safety reasons I guess. I have other ranges where I can shoot past 1000 though. This place has changed a lot since you lived here. I know it's even changed a lot since I moved back. I was away for 30 years!! If you ever do swing by, look me up. I know the areas in Oregon you mention as well. I know some guys that have property on the john day. Decent elk hunting over there, but they move from one property to the next pretty quickly. I hunt the hell out of them in the national forest, where the hunters success rate is low. Just my preference though, since I know the area and usually get a bull every other year there. Cows are a gimme, but still fun to hunt.

My mid-70s #1V shot consistent 5/8 inch 5 shot groups with preferred loads. That barrel had a very long throat. I couldn't reach the lands with a 55 grain bullet. My #3 shot 3/4 inch 5 shot groups consistently.

I shot my 300 H&H yesterday working up a load with the 200 grain Accubond. 63 1/2 gr of IMR 4350 and Federal 215 Magnum primers put three into one ragged hole. I believe I'm minute of Gemsbuck LOL.

That sounds like something I need to try in mine GSP.

Most folks should figure on getting MOA out of a #1. Ruger says they only guarantee that their rifles shoot 4" at 100. Can not imagine a 4" shooting single shot at 100 yards being what I need.

I have four Ruger single shot rifles, 218 Bee, 22 Hornet, 7mm RM, 300 WM, they all shoot well under 1" at 100, but all have barrels free floated, scope ribs removed and cut so as not to be touching the receiver, glass bedded, etc.

I would shoot a new purchase for group, if used I would strip the bore to brite steel, a new rifle,I would throughly clean, do a break in, if it does not hold as I would accept I would redo it.

You might send your Ruger, if you have a problem, to Eben Arthur Brown, EBCO , he makes the BF single shot actions, pistols and rifles, so, he can and does do a good job on single shots.

"Most folks should figure on getting MOA out of a #1. Ruger says they only guarantee that their rifles shoot 4" at 100. Can not imagine a 4" shooting single shot at 100 yards being what I need."

I concur. More than several years back when I had a #1A in 7x57 that was a lousy shooter, I called Ruger to send it back At that time I asked what their accuracy was for #1s and they said two inches. I forget if it was at 50 or 100 yards though. This was back abound 1980 or 81.
I've been hunting with #1s since my first one, a B model in 30-06 came my way. I looked for one ever since I saw the ads but never saw one. Ordered one many times and the various LGS I dealt with said they couldn't get one in any caliber. Finally in 1975, I found that one in 30-06 and bought it. It took a while to fine out what it liked but worked fine after that. Around 1981 or so I ordered a .300 Win. mag. in the "S" model and was sent a "B". My KGS raised hell with the distributor and was told that was the only one they could get, take it or send it back. I took it. It took years for me to even find one in the "S" configuration and it was in .300 Win. Mag. And a liberty model to boot. Since then I hav gotten two more "S" version, all in .300 Win. Mag. They all like the same load, a max charge of WMR powder with the 200 gr. Speer Hot core. I've found more than a few #1s for sale, A's, B's, V's and the RSI's but the "S" versions are scarcer than hen's teeth. I did see one more, another .300 Win. that was so beat up with gouges in the wood, plenty of rust on the barrel and action and looked like it was rode hard and put away wet. I might have bought it if the price had been right to save my four nice ones and use the beater in hunts but Cabelas and I couldn't come to an agreement on what was a fair price. I wasn't gonna go $1,800 on a beater and they wouldn't budge. I also wonder why so few of the "S" models have never seems to get west of the Rocky Mountains? Just glad I do have what I have.
PJ

Good info guys. It looks like most of the ones that are shooting sub moa have also had some work done to them. I checked my rib and there is about .015-.020" clearance between it and the receiver. I didn't measure it with a feeler gauge, just looks like about that much. The forend does not appear to be freefloated though and it is not bedded. I shot a few groups yesterday for some more load development with the new Sierra's I found. Here are the best 2 groups:



That load is still fairly dialed in, and closely matches the 120gr Hornady H.P interlock for POI. I may try a different powder and take it out again. See if I can get something a bit more consistent.

If I'm shooting "4" groups" with anything, it better be open sights, a muzzle loader or a slug from a shotgun. Just sayin..

I bought a new 1V in 22-250 in 1982 primarily for shooting groundhogs. I am happy with the accuracy I get with handloads ( a bit under an inch). Other than a trigger job the rifle is as it came from the factory.

After owning and shooting a couple dozen of them, from .218 Bee to .475 Turnbull, I think I'd be annoyed with one that wouldn't do 1½ MOA or better with its best handloads. One like that was a 4 digit 1968 model in 6mm Remington. The barrel was burned to a crisp. Another is a .44mag, which I suspect just needs the right load.

The .22-250 in my avatar frustrated me for years, putting 3 in one hole, then tossing the next one an inch away. I finally fire lapped it, and it immediately settled down, and became a reliable 1/2" rifle.