Ruger Old army grip frame Questions - Page 2

madcratebuilder · May 23, 2009, 11:09 PM

Quote:

It's better to know what you're looking at, rather than rely on the stampings, there is little logic behind them.

I learned that one the hard way about Ruger frames.

mykeal · May 23, 2009, 11:17 PM

I'm not sure what to think.

Blued Ruger Old Army grip frames are marked XR3-RED. Blued Ruger Old Model Blackhawk grip frames are also marked XR3-RED, and they are interchangeable, correct?
Blued Ruger New Model Blackhawk grip frames are marked XRN-3RED, and they are not interchangeable with XR3-RED marked frames.

I made the statement that any grip frame marked XR3-RED would fit a Ruger Old Army, and I was told that was in error because the XR3-RED frame 'spanned both Old and New Blackhawk production' and New Blackhawk frames would not fit the Old Army because of different trigger spring configurations. But the New Blackhawk frame isn't marked XR3-RED, it's marked XRN-3RED.

So my original statement is correct; any XR3-RED will fit a Ruger Old Army.

I understand the issue regarding stainless New Blackhawk and stainless Old Army grip frames both being marked KXR3 and not being interchangeable, but that doesn't make the XR3-RED statement incorrect.

madcratebuilder · May 23, 2009, 11:31 PM

Maybe this well help.
http://www.gunblast.com/Hamm_Ruger-SA-GripFrames.htm

mykeal · May 24, 2009, 06:20 AM

That's the same link I posted in #18. It says what I've been saying.

In reading the previous posts in this thread perhaps what CraigC is trying to say is that you can't trust the part numbers marked on the Ruger grip frames; that some New Blackhawk grip frames, which are supposed to be marked XRN-3RED are mismarked as XR3-RED. I've not heard that before, so I'm surprised. Just trying to get my head around this.

CraigC · May 24, 2009, 11:34 AM

Beyond the original XR3 and XR3-RED, you can't trust Ruger's grip frame stampings. After that point, there is very little logic to their numbering and the new XR3's are not even marked. Thus, we tend to disregard them and don't refer to the New Model XR3-RED as the XRN-3RED. So in effect, we're both right. And no, I fully understood the Ruger grip frame debacle long before Bill Hamm wrote his article.

May 23, 2009, 11:17 PM	#27
mykeal Senior Member Join Date: October 8, 2006 Location: Northern Michigan Posts: 2,634	I'm not sure what to think. Blued Ruger Old Army grip frames are marked XR3-RED. Blued Ruger Old Model Blackhawk grip frames are also marked XR3-RED, and they are interchangeable, correct? Blued Ruger New Model Blackhawk grip frames are marked XRN-3RED, and they are not interchangeable with XR3-RED marked frames. I made the statement that any grip frame marked XR3-RED would fit a Ruger Old Army, and I was told that was in error because the XR3-RED frame 'spanned both Old and New Blackhawk production' and New Blackhawk frames would not fit the Old Army because of different trigger spring configurations. But the New Blackhawk frame isn't marked XR3-RED, it's marked XRN-3RED. So my original statement is correct; any XR3-RED will fit a Ruger Old Army. I understand the issue regarding stainless New Blackhawk and stainless Old Army grip frames both being marked KXR3 and not being interchangeable, but that doesn't make the XR3-RED statement incorrect.

May 23, 2009, 11:31 PM	#28
madcratebuilder Senior Member Join Date: November 2, 2007 Location: Northern Orygun Posts: 4,864	Maybe this well help. http://www.gunblast.com/Hamm_Ruger-SA-GripFrames.htm

May 24, 2009, 06:20 AM	#29
mykeal Senior Member Join Date: October 8, 2006 Location: Northern Michigan Posts: 2,634	That's the same link I posted in #18. It says what I've been saying. In reading the previous posts in this thread perhaps what CraigC is trying to say is that you can't trust the part numbers marked on the Ruger grip frames; that some New Blackhawk grip frames, which are supposed to be marked XRN-3RED are mismarked as XR3-RED. I've not heard that before, so I'm surprised. Just trying to get my head around this.

May 24, 2009, 11:34 AM	#30
CraigC Junior member Join Date: November 28, 2001 Location: West Tennessee Posts: 4,300	Beyond the original XR3 and XR3-RED, you can't trust Ruger's grip frame stampings. After that point, there is very little logic to their numbering and the new XR3's are not even marked. Thus, we tend to disregard them and don't refer to the New Model XR3-RED as the XRN-3RED. So in effect, we're both right. And no, I fully understood the Ruger grip frame debacle long before Bill Hamm wrote his article.