sp101 questions

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coppinger

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GP-100 questions

Today in the used gun counter at a local gun store in Atlanta GA I saw a Ruger Sp101 (correction- a GP100) with the wood and rubber grips . I think it had a 3" brl., and I thought it was a 6 shot. The guy behind behind the counter said it was a 38/357 but I didn't check. It was stainless with a Century Arms stamp that had"CAI Vermont Canada". It did have a bit of cylinder slop when rotated cw/ccw with cylinder locked up per Jim March's revolver eval post a while ago. It had a price of $259. Is this a good price and what do you think the sloppy cylinder would cost to fix? Would it cost a lot to fix? Thanks- I really want to buy it if its not a lemon.
 
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I don't think that is SP101. The SP101 is a Ruger model. They are 5 shot, small frame revolvers that predomently are chambered in .38 or .357. Ruger SP101 have the rubber grips with black plastic inserts. The Ruger GP101 is a medium sized framed revolver that comes in mostly .357. It has the black rubber grips with the wood inserts you describe, but all Ruger guns are clearly marked as being Rugers and are made in Connecticut.

Maybe somebody else out there knows what that gun is but I don't think it is an SP101.
 
Agreed. Two points sound like it is a 3" barrel GP-100. SP-101 in .38 and above are only 5 shot revolvers. And the black grip with wooden insert is on GP-100s. It may well have been the 3" GP-100. If it is, for that price, go for it.
 
To answer your other question: when you checked the cylinder slop, did you put it in full lockup first?

That's how to check. See also:

http://www.thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=57816

There is such a thing as a Ruger SP101 with six rounds, but it's the .32H&RMagnum caliber (or .22).

Ruger cylinder releases are a button which you push straight in. I don't think anybody else uses that system - Colt revolvers use a "tab" that you pull back on, S&W/Taurus/Charter/Rossi uses slide-switches that you push forward. And Dan Wesson uses a slide switch in FRONT of the cylinder that you push down on.

Right now, the Ruger models are:

SP101 - 5 shots in .38/357, sometimes seen in 9mm 5-shot, .32Magnum or .22LR six-shot

GP100 - much larger frame 6-shot 38/357 (roughly the same size class as a Colt Python or S&W 586/686 L-Frame)

Redhawk - sorta the same size class as the S&W N-Frame "Dirty Harry .44Magnum".

SuperRedhawk - even bigger, S&W doesn't make anything similar.

There used to be the Security/Service Six series, which were six-shot .38/357s smaller than a GP100 but bigger than an SP101. If it was a six-shot .38/357 Ruger and was smaller than a GP100, odds are that's what you have there. They're actually good guns, same size class as an S&W "K" frame (model 19/66/etc).
 
Slap me upside the head-it is a GP-100

You guys are right-it is a GP-100. I called and asked.

Jim-I put the revolver in lock up per your instructions in your thread which I read a couple of weeks ago.

Does the Century stamp mean they are police issue? Is it still a good buy for the money even with the cylinder play? Thanks again. BTW I'm modifying the original thread to reflect the correction from sp-101 to gp-100.
 
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GP-100 for that much? I'd get it, but I don't know that much about the prices. I just know I've never seen one for less than 375$. I would send it in to Ruger to get that cylinder fixed up and BAM! New, beautiful, ready to shoot anything you put in it Ruger.
 
All Ruger DAs have a little bit of cylinder slop (in the rotational direction, front/back is much worse). If it's extreme, Ruger will fix it for free. If the timing seems OK and you're not sure how bad the slop is, the GP100 is so strong I'd just go ahead and shoot it with unjacketed lead .38Spls and see if they group OK. If they do, with no significant lead spitting, then it's OK. If groups are ragged, it's back to the factory. I would NOT do this with a weaker gun, but you won't hurt a GP100 with this trick :).

If it's REALLY bad, heck with it, back to Ruger.

The 3" GP100s are nice guns, most people don't realize it but the GPs come with two different possible grips, a smaller "round butt" type for fixed-sight models and a larger one for adjustable-sights. What you have there is a good street carry gun that can be pressed into duty as a "woods defense gun" with monster-hot Cor-Bon or equivelent hardcast hunting loads of 158grains or more if needed.

Which is not at all a bad sort of thing to have around.
 
Thanks to all for your input

Thanks everyone and thanks Jim for the input. I decided to put it on lay-away. BTW- it's a fixed sight, 3" brl., SS, with the same composite wood/rubber grips that is on the 4" SS, adj. sight, practically brand spanking new GP-100 sitting next to it for $339. Wish I had the money-I hate to seperate the liter :( . Thanks again.
 
The GP100 in question is a standard offering from Ruger. Stock number KGPF-330. A slew of these were purchased for some LEA and now they are coming on the used market. I've seen two. Both had significant end shake and rotational slop. Apparently they've been run hard.

One note, "round butt" and "square butt" are Smith and Wesson terms. Ruger refers to then as Full size and Compact grips. They are the same shape, just different size. The compact grips are standard on the fixed sight GPs and the Full size are standard on the Adjustable sight guns.

I bought a new KGPF-331 a couple years ago as a carry gun. I never got used to the sights. A notch in the frame just doesn't work well for me. Maybe someday Ruger will offer a 3inch adjustable sight GP100. That I will buy 2 of.
 
Granted on the butt terminology :). But the smaller Ruger grip does seem to me to be more "round-ended" than the large.

And they can be swapped at will - the grip frame (more like a "post") underneath is the same regardless. Lett custom grips sells everything you need to swap to the large or to the small for less than $40 if I recall right.
 
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