Stags, OEM or aftermarket

Includes all Pre-1973 Old model Single-Sixes, Blackhawks,
Super Blackhawks, Bearcats, Super Bearcats, Hawkeye
and Black Powder Old Army.
Ruger8r
Posts: 403
Joined: Sat Mar 28, 2020 1:28 pm
Location: Glendale, CA

Re: Stags, OEM or aftermarket

Post by Ruger8r »

The reason I mentioned the fact that Ruger didn't normally ship with stags was to explain, clumsily, why a factory letter would not be supportive even if they specified grip panels.
My prettiest set are knock-offs and compliment my prettiest Six.
"My greatest fear is that, when I die, my wife will sell my guns for what I told her I paid for them." Anonymous Collector
JAYDAWG
Posts: 744
Joined: Sun Nov 05, 2017 1:14 pm
Location: Olympic Peninsula

Re: Stags, OEM or aftermarket

Post by JAYDAWG »

Hawkeye28 wrote: Mon Jan 16, 2023 9:42 pm I suggest you refer to Dougan's last book the observe his treatise on the stag panels. To our best, Ruger never placed their stag grips on the single actions in NORMAL sales distribution firearms. I question the staking(lack of) in your panels.
Good idea Hawkeye.
Since I am always referring to it, John's book never gets put away and sits on my gun bench. I guess that's where I'm keeping it now :)

He says, like Bill said, that the screw enters on the opposite side of the rubber panels. The left side.
He states that Ruger used 3 suppliers for the approximately 6700 pairs of Stag grip panels and all came assembled with medallions installed.

So, my question is, how can anyone be sure that all 3 used the same staking process and location?

Cheers,
Jaydawg

P.S.
My 3 sets of Stambar stags all have the screw entering from the left side like the OE Ruger Stags
I do not "own" these guns, I am but the next caretaker
rugerguy
Posts: 194
Joined: Tue Jul 01, 2014 1:57 pm
Location: NE OHio

Re: Stags, OEM or aftermarket

Post by rugerguy »

don't let the screw side get your shorts up in a snit, we've seen them fall out , get put back in even had a "lefty" switch things around in all his grip panels, I know cause he broke a fine looking set of hard rubber ( black) grips early 357 flatop doing this, and again, as for staking seen all forms of criss cross, partial criss cross, half a criss cross, and yes even the ball ( round version) look at some more, and look again at some more,,, lots of the early grips BROKE during staking.....all I know is when they are TOO perfect, caveat emptor baby....knew far too many guys back in the day that faked them, and made more than the factory ever put out especailly ivory..........those are NICE grips...............turn the screw around ,,, ;) :roll: 8-)

and to this day still recall the when Jeff M actually wrote with a black marker "Fake" on a pair of grips sold at Monroeville PA....some of you old timers gotta remember that one, and they were "perfect" :)
and I also bought , paid top dollar for a pair from a HIGH up , BIG Dawg, that had been sanded down,,,,bought them for the late Don W. at one of the NRA conventions, and HE later said they were "NOT right"........duh :(
radicalrod
Posts: 410
Joined: Fri Jun 20, 2014 12:00 pm

Re: Stags, OEM or aftermarket

Post by radicalrod »

These came from Don W
Image
Image
Image
chet15
Posts: 734
Joined: Sat Aug 16, 2014 11:28 am

Re: Stags, OEM or aftermarket

Post by chet15 »

There are probably several sets of factory stag out there that have had some of the bark ground or polished off. The reason Ruger went to varnished walnut grips on the .44 flattop was because of the complaints with the checkered hard rubber panels on the .44 during recoil.
Also, the pic of the tag on the backside of that pair could mean anything, could mean nothing. There were several advertisers who offered XR3 stag, ivory and pearl sets in the advertisements they had such as the American Rifleman back in the '50's (Ruger never offered pearl). The stag were almost always priced at $8.50 and the ivory at $16, Ruger's standard MSRP if they were factory grips. However, Ruger probably only ordered 2 sets of pearl panels, and those probably never got medallions in them. One pair was supposedly put on serial number 4 Single-Six, but the other pair is unknown today.... maybe that's how Ruger found out pearl panels broke easily??? Because they broke one of the two sets trying to install medallions???
Chet15
Ruger44fan
Posts: 27
Joined: Wed Jul 30, 2014 6:09 pm
Location: Maine

Re: Stags, OEM or aftermarket

Post by Ruger44fan »

John Dougan's book was easiest for me to reference and I checked my grips. The backs look right and have the milled cuts at the top to align with the frame castings (Colts are perfectly flat over their entire backs). The diameter of the recess is 1/4" and medallions are very ligtly staked so as not to break the grips in the process; this was especially problematic with ivory and absolutely terrible with pearl which explains why there are only a couple sets known. Also, the medallions are closer to the front than on hard rubber or walnut grips which is normal. Most non original aftermarkets seem to copy the regular Ruger grip medallion spacing which is NOT right for stags or ivories. Ivories had slight sanded depressions on the backs with a penciled number in the depression to keep the grips together as a pair; stags are plain. The bushings for the grip scew (fully threaded, not partially like regular Ruger grip screws) on your grips are reversed as all examples shown by Dougan (and my own) have the screw head on the left. 6,703 pairs of grips were supplied by 4 makers: Superior Pearl and Horn (359), American Gun Handle and Novelty (1,542), The House of Treasures (1,955), and Zaharoff (1,347). The hole on the back to allow for staking was NOT dish shaped as if by a ball end mill; they were square bottomed likely by a normal end mill (this would also make it less likely for a split than if dished). I venture that out of all the grips by 4 suppliers, it is possible for the screw bushings to be reversed; but not likely. The bushings you presently have could be reversed with care and then your grips would look "right". Stags and Ivories were for the XR-3 frames only, not the XR-3RED which was a redesign of the XR-3 with different shaped panels. Medallions were never installed by Ruger (even on the Lett manufactured wood grips). The only real "off" item seems to be the reverse of the screw. The best sources of information are always RENE and John Dougan along with close examination of many photos and personal observations. I have been collecting Rugers since 1968 when I bought my first 357 Flat Top Blackhawk. The foregoing is a summary of references and my years of looking at Rugers. I hope this helps and be sure to enjoy your fine Flat Top.
Post Reply