RUGER OWNERS & COLLECTORS SOCIETY, INC
ROCS DISPLAY SHOW
DALLAS ARMS COLLECTORS ASSOCIATION & NRA NATIONAL GUN COLLECTORS SHOW
Dallas Market Hall August 2 - 3, 2014
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Write-Up by Bill Hamm
Pictures by Vince Carabetta
Members of the Ruger Owners & Collectors Society traveled to Dallas, Texas to display their Rugers and join in the competition with other various firearms collectors. Our Rugers did well with Member Vince Carabetta’s “Ruger Blackhawk Old Model .44 Flattops” walking away with “Best Ruger Display” and “NRA’s Outstanding Exhibit Award – Contemporary Arms” Awards. Vince received two very nice plaques and a pocket full of cash!! Our congratulations go out to Vince for his hard work and efforts to build such a fine display to represent our club.
The Red Eagle News Exchange (RENE), Chad Hiddleson, gave an Award Certificate and one year free membership to his RENE publication for the “Best Ruger of the Show”. The winner was Tom Hutton for his outstanding Red Label “All Blue” 12 Ga. O&U Shotgun, #410-00024. This was Bill Letts gun and may very well be the only 2-digit “All Blue” 12 Ga. made. Bill Lett was Bill Ruger’s childhood friend and owned the Lett grip making company who supplied grips for Ruger for many years.
There were nine Ruger displays representing various Ruger firearms and these are listed below.
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“RUGER BLACKHAWK OLD MODEL .44 FLATTOPS”VINCENT CARABETTA, NON-JUDGED MASTERS CLASS Awarded “Best Ruger Display” & NRA’s “Outstanding Exhibit Award – Contemporary Arms” |
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Vince’s display consisted of an example of the 8 major types and most sub-types of the Blackhawk .44 Flattop. Two special Flattops that were shown was a “S” BKH40 with 10” barrel, Super Blackhawk non-fluted cylinder and XR3-RED grip frame. Then there was a BKH46 with 6-1/2” barrel with the rare XR3-RED grip frame. Examples of the different boxes for the 6-1/2”, 7-1/2” and 10” were displayed along with the different types of ejector rods and ejector rod housings used on these guns. Different factory grip panels of Black Hard Rubber, Walnut, Stag and Ivory were shown. He also displayed the different types of ammo that could be used in these guns….44 Russian, .44 S&W Special and .44 Magnum. Period advertising, instruction manuals with parts lists, warranty card and complete packaging including the outer cardboard shipping carton supported this fine display.
It is very easy to see why this display won the two outstanding Awards!!
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“SINGLE-SIX TRANSITIONS 1953-1973”TIM HOWELL, AWARDED 1ST PLACE INTERMEDIATE CLASS |
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Tim displayed a rare Jerred Jr. engraved Single-Six with factory ivory grips; a New Model Super Single-Six, #69-00000 from the factory collection; a minty RSS9; Light Weight Tri-Color; a Type 1 RSS with its non-serrated sight; a Nickel Plated Super Single-Six and a Jerred Engraved RSSE with factory ivories.
This very educational display included: different types of Single-Six cylinders, Old and New Model hammers, the different RSS grip frames, frame castings, different ejector rods and housings and trigger transitions. It also had a barrel and frame display showing the transitions from 1953 – 1973.
Tim’s display well deserves the 1st Place Intermediate Class award and we look forward to seeing a lot more of his great displays in the future.
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“RUGER OVER & UNDER FIRST VARIATION BLUE 12 GA.”TOM HUTTON, AWARDED 1ST PLACE NOVICE CLASS |
Tom’s display featured the very first 12 Gauge Ruger Red Labels with the “All Blue” receivers. All the variations that were in the 1982 and 1983 catalogs were displayed including a very rare “U” marked Used or Second shotgun.
The display included two very special Red Label “All Blue” O&Us. The winner of the coveted “RENE Best Gun of the Show” Award, #410-00024, Bill Lett’s “All Blue” 12 Ga. O&U Red Label and #410-00459U, a rare “U” marked Used or Second “All Blue 12 Ga. Shotgun.
It is about time a member displayed these great O&Us made by Ruger!! Thanks for bringing those out for us and the public to see Tom.
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“THE FIRST RUGER”DON FINDLEY, NON-JUDGED MASTERS CLASS |
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WOW, what a one-gun display!! Don showed us the first Ruger Standard Auto, serial number 3! Along with a display of 1949 papers Don displayed a 1949 catalog and Bill Ruger drawings. The original blueprints for the 1949 pistol sight were there too. And to top all of this off, he had the 1949 Original 1st year FFL for the Ruger Company!!
This is one great display! We are very fortunate to have a Member who has such outstanding guns; I only hope all who missed it can get to see it someday.
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‘RUGER No. 1 – A QUEST FOR NUMBERS”LEE NEWTON, NON-JUDGED MASTERS CLASS |
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Lee says that serial numbers can be intriguing, whether consecutive, the same or whatever! I certainly agree with that and know a few others that believe the same.
While all of the rifles in this display are extremely rare in their own right, Lee focused on their #s. The display (six guns) consisted of two sets of 3 rifles each with very unique serial numbers. There were No. 1 rifles #2, #22, and #222. Then there were #10, #100 and #1000. Simply fantastic!!
“THE DR. J. W. CAVALLARO RIFLE”
LEE NEWTON, NON-JUDGED MASTERS CLASS
This Ruger No. 1 rifle, #7989 is the most extensively engraved rifle done by famed Master engraver A. A. White. While not a factory commissioned rifle, it was done in a pattern similar to the factory “21 Club” rifles. It was stocked by Hal Hartley, a noted stock maker of the era from North Carolina.
This is one beautiful rifle, the engraving and wood will knock you out!!
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“THE MAN WHO DREW ON MARSHALL DILLON”ED NEWTON, NON-JUDGED MASTERS CLASS |
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Arvo Ojala was a Hollywood Fast Draw/gun handling trainer of the movie/TV Western Stars of the day. He is the man who draws on Marshall Dillon in the opening sequence of all of the TV episodes of Gunsmoke.
Arvo made his own patented design of Hollywood fast draw holsters. Ojala rigs are sought after today by collectors and are quite valuable.
This Ruger .44 Carbine, #102-57071, bears the inscription “Presented to Arvo Ojala by Sturm, Ruger & Co.” This is one very special little carbine!
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“A FEW COOL CATS”BILL HAMM, NON-JUDGED MASTERS CLASS |
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My display included a few of my favorite little Bearcats and Super Bearcats. It included the “One-of-a-Kind Inscribed and Modified” Herb Glass #16 Bearcat. The gun is inscribed on the backstrap “To Herb Glass from Bill Ruger”. It also has a shorter front sight with a brass insert and a notch cut in the left side recoil shield where an empty chamber can be validated. These were factory modifications done by Bill Ruger at Herb’s request after he had tested the gun and provided the results to Mr. Ruger. Fully documented!
Bearcat #19, originally owned by Pete Kuhlhoff, “Argosy Men’s Magazine” Guns Editor. Bearcat #1066, one of only 2 known in the 1001 – 1999 serial number range. Super Bearcat #91-00015, originally owned by Elmer Keith, “Guns & Ammo Magazine” Editor, big game hunter, Cowboy and so-called “Father of the .44 Magnum Cartridge”. Super Bearcat #91-63166, originally owned by Stan Terhune, Factory Employee. This Cat has the earlier brass anodized trigger guard and was not shipped until March 1991, almost 17 years after SBC-4 production ended in 1974. Super Bearcat #91-46105, deep floral engraved and gold inlayed by Ray Viramontez, former Ruger Factory engraver. While Ray engraved several other Ruger firearms, he is noted for engraving and gold inlaying the famous “1,000,000 Ruger Pistol”.
Pictures, boxes, magazines, factory letters and other provenance enhanced the display.
All in all, it was a great ROCS show. We signed up eleven new members while at the show. Everyone had lots of fun and it was over too quick!! We had a great Awards dinner and made friends with several new Members.
