cheap gun cheap results

[redriverhunter]

The other day Acadmy had an ad for Heritage rough rider for what ended up out the door for 133.68 and I got a 30 dollar rebate so 103.68 final cost. well I have never had a gun failure to fire like this one at first it only one out of 6, by the time I left I was getting 2 to 3 ftf. Seemed to good to be true I guess it was.

[G W Wade]

Cabela's ad had the 22LR heritage for $69.99 after rebate GW

[Green Frog]

There's a saying going around, "Play stupid games, win stupid prizes." I think we can say here "Pay cheap prices and get cheap guns." Ever since guns have been mass produced there have been guns built to a low price, but the cost of the gun to a large extent set the limit to its quality.

There was a popular term in my youth, we would call it a "Saturday Nite Special," or if it was even more sketchy a "Suicide Special." Derogatory yes, but probably accurate. Now I would just say, "It is what it is!" :killingpc

Froggie

[fastdadio]

I had one years ago with both the .22lr & .22wmr cylinder. It was a festering heap of lead shaving, misfiring, junk. A real smoldering turd. I traded it in on a Davis 9mm Derringer and felt I got away good. I see their quality has been consistent over the years.

[Texas by God]

I went down that road too, except mine fired every time- but some of every cylinder full keyholed the target-and not even close to POA.
Enter Ruger Wrangler. Done!

Sent from my SM-A716U using Tapatalk

[poppy42]

I’ve had one for about five years. I shoot 22 and22mag and I’ve never had a single problem! Not one!

[GhostHawk]

Break it in, clean it, oil it. Keep playing with it. My guess is if you show it some love and patience by the time you get 250 rounds through it you may be pleasantly surprised.

[charlie b]

Many years ago my son decided he wanted to buy his own pistol. Jennings .22. He paid less than $50 new.

That thing has only had a few FTF out of about 1000 rounds. Those few were from getting dirty. It would go about 100 rounds before it needed to be scrubbed. Not very accurate but it works. Surprised me. Still have it.

[MrWolf]

I’ve had one for about five years. I shoot 22 and22mag and I’ve never had a single problem! Not one!

Hoping that will be my story. I got the lr and mag version for $89.99 after rebate. Should be picking it up today along with a K31 Swiss and 6.5 Carcano. Had an itch....

[contender1]

"by the time you get 250 rounds through it you may be pleasantly surprised."

By the time you get 250 rounds to FIRE through that gun, you will have loaded it 750 times or more. That's 500 times of frustration.

I'm sorry,, but if I buy a product, and it fails to properly operate immediately as it should,, it's going back for a refund.

[smkummer]

Try a different brand of 22 ammo and see if it still has the issue.

[Froogal]

Pietta's "Frontier" model is another one to avoid.

[Hannibal]

Pull the cylinder, take a round and insert it into the barrel. If it goes in quite far or worse yet full length your barrel has issues. Mine had no such issues and shot well so I didn't have a problem like that but I did see it discussed on this forum more than once.

The only problems I had with mine were simply that I found the loading/unloading to be inconvenient/tedious and I just really didn't care for the fit/finish/function.

I bought a Ruger Single Six and that really ruined the Heritage for me. One pistol that I have no regrets about selling.

[txbirdman]

Bought a used Phoenix .22 several years ago. Had low expectations but it’s proved me wrong. The only cheap pistol I’ve owned that’s been reliable.

[tward]

The first pistol I bought was a Phoenix arms 22, $100 out the door. It has proved to be a reasonably accurate and reliable piece. I also bought a 5” Bbl for it. About 4 years ago I bought a Heritage arms rough rider with a 6.5” Bbl. It too exceeded my expectations for a $100 gun. Are these guns beautifully finished pieces to be passed down thru generations?, no. Are they functional yes. If it truly has issues return them for repair, both these manufacturers have good warranty, work with the manufacturer and I think you’ll get satisfaction. Good luck and good shooting. Tim

[lead collector]

Usually I avoid cheap guns, cheap tools, and cheap whisky. I the case of the rough rider, I have mixed feelings.
My cousin has shot the heck out of the one he has, and had no problems. It was probably purchased in about 2003, give or take a year or so. Probably has had 5000 plus rounds through it since then, and maybe more.
If I were you I would try different ammo, and if no change, call them and see what they will do. From what I hear they will take care of you, when there is problems with their products.

I am blessed with a Ruger Single Six, new model and even though I dont shoot it much, its a lot of fun.
There are several of us, who have single action 22 revolvers, and when everyone is shooting the same or similar guns it makes for a fun shooting experience.
Cant speak for the wrangle, but all things considered, if I was looking for an entry level gun, that is where I would go.

[Tripplebeards]

Almost bought one but got a Ruger wrangler instead. Just wanted a cheap trap line pistol. Works flawless and shoots point of aim. Also removed one of hammer springs that dropped the pull down to 2.5 pounds.

[georgerkahn]

The other day Acadmy had an ad for Heritage rough rider for what ended up out the door for 133.68 and I got a 30 dollar rebate so 103.68 final cost. well I have never had a gun failure to fire like this one at first it only one out of 6, by the time I left I was getting 2 to 3 ftf. Seemed to good to be true I guess it was.

A LGS had one and I fondled it. One of the edges was (imho) sharp enough to shave with! I do not recall the price and handed it back to owner while warning re the sharp edge. A couple/three months later I returned to same shop to purchase some primers and noted its absence. "You sold it?" I inquired. Shop owner said he felt it devalued everything else in the shop, and it was worth more to him to "bury" in the shops' back than "deal with the problems" sure to come from any buyer. From the price you cited, dealer was not out too very much...Re you ftf challenge, bion you might try other than what you've used brands. I have one "good" revolver which does not like -- occasional ftf -- plain-Jane CCI ammo. Best wishes!

[JoeJames]

I looked at one at the local, gun shop a few years ago, about the time the Ruger Wrangler became available. Wrangler was a tad more expensive. But after after I saw the Massachusetts safety on the Heritage, I thought "No way!" I do like the Ruger after I did a poor man's trigger job on it.

[hwilliam01]

Buddy of mine at our range bought one and was not impressed. First time out he fired a a bullet got stuck in the barrel. Tried everything to get it out, including pounding on it with a wooden dowel to the point iof breaking the dowel. He had to take it to a gunsmith and it cost him more to fix it than it did to buy it.

[elmacgyver0]

Buddy of mine at our range bought one and was not impressed. First time out he fired a a bullet got stuck in the barrel. Tried everything to get it out, including pounding on it with a wooden dowel to the point iof breaking the dowel. He had to take it to a gunsmith and it cost him more to fix it than it did to buy it.

That would be the fault of the gun, right? and not the ammo.

[Hannibal]

Buddy of mine at our range bought one and was not impressed. First time out he fired a a bullet got stuck in the barrel. Tried everything to get it out, including pounding on it with a wooden dowel to the point iof breaking the dowel. He had to take it to a gunsmith and it cost him more to fix it than it did to buy it.

I don't suppose it might have been some of those Golden Bullets Remington was putting out years ago that didn't even sound the same when fired and had a very high FTF rate, would it?

And that's a perfect example of why it's a very bad idea to use a wooden dowel to try and clear a squib load.

[TyGuy]

My Heritage RR was the first handgun I bought after my 21’s birthday. I’m now 34 and have put untold boxes of every type of ammo though it and with no more failures to fire than any other .22 and I would be far more likely to blame the ammo than the gun. The magnum cylinder collects dust because I have yet to find a load that shoots accurately enough to warrant spending .22 mag prices on ammo. With standard ammo it does great. It likes CCI MiniMags and will consistently ring my 6”steel plate at 50yd.

[snowwolfe]

The magnum cylinder collects dust because I have yet to find a load that shoots accurately enough to warrant spending .22 mag prices

That alone would be enough to make me avoid owning one.

[TyGuy]

That alone would be enough to make me avoid owning one.

I believe it’s a twist rate issue. The twist is likely optimized for standard .22lr and too fast for the magnums.

[Cosmic_Charlie]

Plenty of us have bought expensive guns and wound up with lemons too. I have a Springfield Armory 9mm Garrison enroute, will be here Wednesday. Lots of good reviews out there but we shall see. I can trouble shoot most 1911 issues. Hopefully there won't be any. Got a couple of 10 rd. Wilson Combat magazines at the lgs yesterday, they should up the reliability game. I could have spent quite a bit less on a Rock Island or Tisas but I wanted to avoid any potential quality issues.

[Baltimoreed]

The only lemon that I can recall was an AMT .45 Backup that I conceal carried for a while and liked until the firing pin broke while shooting in the yard. The 1/4 inch ss pin had two milled cuts in it. A long one for the retaining pin and another for a trigger safety which reduced the diameter down to a quarter of what it was. Guess where it broke? I got a new pin from AMT, installed it and sold the gun. A huge design flaw.

[Cosmic_Charlie]

The only lemon that I can recall was an AMT .45 Backup that I conceal carried for a while and liked until the firing pin broke while shooting in the yard. The 1/4 inch ss pin had two milled cuts in it. A long one for the retaining pin and another for a trigger safety which reduced the diameter down to a quarter of what it was. Guess where it broke? I got a new pin from AMT, installed it and sold the gun. A huge design flaw.

You are lucky then!

[Frosty Boolit]

Just out of curiosity, is it another of those crummy Turkish firearms imported into our country?

[elmacgyver0]

I have a HS MODEL 21 S Cal.22LR as stamped on the barrel.
Made by H.SCHMIDT OSTHEIM/RHOEM MADE IN GERMANY
I paid 65 dollars for it at a LGS, was told it locks up and is unusable, why it was so cheap.
I did fiddle around with it and did get it to lock up once but was easy to get it free again.
Never have gotten it to lock up again.
Western style revolver with a Buffalo on the plastic grips.
Well worth the few measly dollars I paid for it.
Fits well in my hand and has windage adjustable rear sights.
It has the four clicks like a Colt, does have an unobtrusive safety that has never bothered me and does seem useful.
Inexpensive does not always mean cheap.

[fatelk]

Regarding Heritage Firearms warranty- yeah not nearly so good as other manufacturers. I bought one out of curiosity a few years ago. It keyholed, and after a couple hundred rounds the barrel came loose.

I found out that if it's less than a year old they will repair it under warranty, BUT you have to pay to return it to them, and that costs nearly as much as the gun. I did return mine and they did put a new barrel on it, but as a revolver guy I was appalled at the quality of work. It came back with negative cylinder gap; yes the cylinder face was riding on the barrel breach instead of the cylinder bearing on the frame. It's hard to believe that a so-called "gunsmith" let that out of his shop.
I also found that the trick to it not keyholing is to cock the hammer with authority. The design is such that if you cock it slow and carefully, the hammer can be cocked without the cylinder being fully aligned. They all do this. If I pull the hammer back fully so that the cylinder aligns, it is actually pretty accurate and doesn't keyhole.

I'm sure there are plenty of Rough Riders out there that work pretty well, and if you get a good one they're a fun gun for the price. They're just not made with the quality of a real gun though. Lockup, cylinder gap, endshake, all the usual things you check in a revolver don't really work for a Rough Rider.

The Ruger Wrangler came out shortly after my misadventure with the Rough Rider, so I bought one. What a breath of fresh air! It's still a cheap gun and I'm sure there are lemons out there, but at least they're made like a real gun! Comparing them side by side, the Ruger is so far and away the better quality gun. I liked it so much I bought a second one. Plus, if you get a lemon from Ruger, they'll send you a shipping label to get it back to them for repairs. I was at the gun counter at the local BiMart store recently, and the guy next to me was looking at .22 revolvers. He had chosen a Rough Rider and was starting the paperwork. I mind my own business and don't butt in to other's affairs, but it was hard for me to hold my tongue and not suggest that he'd be SO much happier spending a few dollars more on the Wrangler next to it.

Ironically, less than a year after I bought the Wrangler, I happened upon a used Single Six for just a little more than the new Wrangler. The Wrangler may be head-and-shoulders above the Rough Rider, but the Single Six is a nice step above the Wrangler.


Just out of curiosity, is it another of those crummy Turkish firearms imported into our country?
No, the Rough Rider is made right here in the USA. From what little I've seen of Turkish guns, they're actually pretty well made for the price.

[Cosmic_Charlie]

Picked up the Garrison today. So far, so good! Feeds off a full mag from slide lock and the trigger is excellent. Probably will need a bit of throat work on the barrel to shoot cast well. Hope to to shoot it tomorrow.

[jonp]

The other day Acadmy had an ad for Heritage rough rider for what ended up out the door for 133.68 and I got a 30 dollar rebate so 103.68 final cost. well I have never had a gun failure to fire like this one at first it only one out of 6, by the time I left I was getting 2 to 3 ftf. Seemed to good to be true I guess it was.

I've got 2 and both fire fine with both the 22lr and 22WMR cylinders. I saw an ad for $109 with a $30 rebate from Palmetto. I'd have no problem buying them for that price if I needed one and, in fact, wife and I discussed a road trip to grab a few.

Neither will ever replace my trusty Single Six but for the price I can't say anything bad about them

[FergusonTO35]

I like my Wrangler, but going to sell or trade it for something with adjustable sights. My tiny 10 shot LCP .22 is just as accurate and much easier to carry. The latter is a real gem of a pistol, one of the best Ruger has ever made I think.