Ruger OM Ft 44's

Not to hijack a thread we've been enjoying,, discussing the Ruger 44 mag FT Old Models,, I figured to start a slightly different one.
Early comments were about not finding any for sale & the expense of these fine guns.
I made comments about seeing some for sale,, fairly recent to the discussion.

Well, for the folks interested,, there is one for sale,, with link info on the Ruger Forum, Classifieds section. Plus,, that thread mentions currently there are 3 for sale on GB.
Now I didn't go looking,, or whatever,, but I figured this would be good info to share. There are folks looking for these guns,, and as noted, part of our discussion was about the fact none seem to be for sale. And, apparently,, the prices these 3 are currently at is below the collector prices we expect them to sell for.
So,, for those interested,, maybe a search is in order,, to hopefully find the gun you desire!

If ya stumble across one serial # 13076 tell her I still regret trading her off for a mere 219 Donaldson.

:D :D That serial number is likely for a 6-1/2" version. We don't have a list of those.

But we know how you feel!

I don't deal from gun broker or such. Some place on line must have $600 3screws but that has to be absolute top dollar maybe for NIB with docs. I'm thinking that a lot of people ate calling all 3screw Rugers Flat tops, they aren't. The new models designated Flat tops have added to this confusion. It's same type of thing you run into on Browing A5 shotguns when guys say they have a original Belgian Browning.

I'm not a expert on trivia of Ruger SAs but I didn't know that you could tell barrel length by serial number, or was that a joke?

there are three basic old models from introduction till about 1960 more or less they were flat tops. then the ears came on the frames as sight protectors. then the gun control act of 68 said you had to have a model number in the seral number they are the hyphen numbers they ran until 1972.

You can't tell the barrel length from the serial number, you have to get a factory letter which tells you the proper barrel length for any particular gun. But, on the Ruger Forum there's a list of certain very scarce or rare models, like the 44 flattop with 7.5" barrel, that have been found by collectors and verified with a factory letter. Also, the Flattops, both 44's and 357's, were discontinued by the end of 1962, with the final ones being shipped from the factory up well into 1963, especially in the case of the 357's. Many of the later shipped ones, late 1962 to mid 1963, have some the new features like the XR3-RED grip frame and even the aluminum ejector rod housing. I have a 357 shipped in June of 1963 with the XR3-RED grip frame that is one of only 4 or 5 found so far by collectors; had to get a factory letter to verify the date of shipping for that gun. Also had to get a factory letter for the 44 I show in my above picture to verify the date of shipping was late enough for the XR3-RED grip frame. This is what makes collecting of Ruger 3 screws so interesting and challenging.
McLintock

Contender1!
You won the Kewpie Doll . . .
Indeed it was 6 1/2" gun and went many a place with me.

Previous owner used it on treed bear just before trading it to me for my S&W 57.
M57 came from Ron Peterson, still located today where he was when I bought from him back in the 60s.
As an aside, the guy that loaded the ammo for the bear hunter called him and told him not to use the ammo, he had loaded 12.5 not 22.5 gr. 2400 behind what I now know was 429421.
Still a dead bear.

"I'm not a expert on trivia of Ruger SAs but I didn't know that you could tell barrel length by serial number, or was that a joke?"

No joke,,, just a knowledge of the OM 44 FT's. See, when they first came out,, they were 6-1/2". Then later on,, the other barrel lengths were added. By the collector notes & lists we've been working on,, you can often determine certain features of a particular model by the serial number. This was the case about the above gun mentioned. The number offered was much lower than any KNOWN example of the 7-1/2" or 10" 44 FT's.

Read closely what McLintock wrote. He speaks truth. Quite often some things require a letter,, while other things can be speculation,, or kitchen table gunsmithing. As a study of collecting OM Rugers,, I can often determine much about a gun by the serial number. And,, when you own a copy of the RENE Ruger Reference Guide,, a LOT of EXCELLENT information can be easily studied. But as mentioned,, to be SURE,, a factory letter is necessary. (And even then,, even the Factory makes mistakes.)