what are the largest cartridges that can be fired from a ruger # 1???

has anyone done a 50-140?
505 gibbs?
550 magnum?

ect ect..

They have been done up to 577NE 3 1/4", but the practical limit is the 500NE 3 1/4", and that will give you enough recoil to make you wish you had gone smaller!

50-140 makes a nice rifle, it has been done many times! It is a far better rifle than the Sharps clones, just not as much history.

that sounds like a lot of fun

Go to the AR videos and look for the "Doctor and the 460 Wby" or similar. That will give you some idea of what the upper end is for the #1. Taking it to plus or minus 9000 ft lbs in a 550 Mag is NOT recommended!

There are serious issues with the recent Ruger #1 barrels related to the depth of the Quarter rib retaining screw holes and I would not reccomend anything over .500NE. Anything over a 460wby on a #1 will bring tears to your eyes when you fire it.-Rob

I have shot two different #1s in 458 Lott. That is plenty.

With a well done bolt gun I will shoot bigger rounds, but not in #1s.

As for the 500 NE or bigger, just because it CAN be done, does NOT mean it is a good idea.

Hog Killer

A case head of 577 is about the max the No. 1
will take. Case length is not really a problem.
But, 750 grains at 2350fps will really get
your attention in a 10.5lb rifle. If you want
a nice big No.1, buy a 458mag, and have it
rechambered to 450- 3 1/4NE. Lott velocity
easily, no pressure problems. Big bore No.1's
are a hoot!
Raff

I'm with Hog Killer. My RSM in 458 Lott is SO much easier to shoot than my #1 Lott...I would say my #1s felt recoil is easily 25% more...and the muzzle rise, etc is way more.

The #1s are a great rifle. The #1 458 Lotts are a great way to get into big bores for cheap. A custom BIGGER bore on a #1 is a stunt gun IMHO.

John

Try to contact Mr. Hubel here, I belive his .458 Hubel express is ideal for Ruger #1.

I shot it chambered for the .577 Nitro Express. When loded, you can see the top of the rim above the block! I only shot it with cast bullets, so I guess it would be more brutish with full loaded jacketed bullets. About par with my friends 8 pounds .505 Gibbs. Fun to shoot? You bet! Would I hunt DG with it? NO way!!!

I emailed and talked to a guy who had one in 600j?? I cant remember the other 2 letters. He shared some loads he was using for castbullets with me. He did the conversions Ill check my files and see if I still have his info.
I had a #1 in 458lott shoot one of them they get your attention!
Dean

JD Jones of SSK Industries (Ohio) will convert a Ruger No. 1 to .600 JDJ. That is a .577 NE case fireformed to take .620" bullets.

It would be better to build such big boomers on a Farquarson or Bourchardt action.

thanks Dan thats the guy I talked with I new it was j something.
Dean

I personally rebored a No. 3 to 45-120-3-1/4", restocked it with No 1 wood and loaded it up to the 460 Wby neighborhood. (Case volumes are not unsimilar.) The gun only weighed about 7-1/2 pounds. It was brutal. This was several years ago when the 45-120 brass was just becoming available. I wrote an article about it which was accepted by Rifle, but was never published.

Just as an aside, I have always thought the 45-120 would make a dandy double rifle round if you wanted a rimmed 45 caliber for bullet selection. Has plenty of case volume to get good velocity at decent pressures. (Looks good in your belt loops too).

the 50-140 would be a great american double rifle

quote:

Originally posted by Art S.:
Just as an aside, I have always thought the 45-120 would make a dandy double rifle round if you wanted a rimmed 45 caliber for bullet selection. Has plenty of case volume to get good velocity at decent pressures. (Looks good in your belt loops too).

Mr. Searcy built at least one of those in one of his earlier doubles (reworked Browning action). Hallowell's had it for sale for a while, but it has been sold.

Just an echo of the others, 500 NE (or sharps variant) is the biggest practical round, and to echo what Rob said, don't get the barrel re-bored, have a new barrel fit. Ruger drills the 1/4 rib screw and pin holes really deep, deep enough that even rechambering a 458 #1 to 460 isn't a great idea. Also, the large dia rim of the NE rounds requires the safety to be modified so that they clear.

Why doesnt Ruger just make a bigger version of the No1? even if it were twice the price as the present model.And make them in 470,500,577,600NE, i am sure they would not have any problems selling them !Even if they made a limited run of them i bet they would sell everyone of them

I think you vastly overestimate the market for really large bore rounds, hanging around here will scew your view that way

There are two types of folks that would be in the market for such a gun, those that can't a afford a doulbe so chambered, nor a large bore bolt gun, and those that have doulbes so chambered that want a companion single shot. I'd say in the first group, when push comes to shove, the $10 a shot ammo, or several hundred $ investment in dies, brass and componet bullets tends to weed out the majority of I wanna big bore vs that will buy one. Of those will doubles so chambered, me thinks the quality of the Ruger rifles is below what those folks expect in a rifle.

I also think you don't understand what type of investment is required by Ruger to manufacture a new action, likely 100's of thousands in tooling, fixturing, r&d, and training of folks that assemble the new guns. Even if they doubled the price, I don't see them selling enough to recoup their investment.

A factory Ruger #1 470 NE does however make alot of sense.

Here's a Ruger customized by SSK in 600JDL for sale on GunsAmerica: RugerSSK

My no.1 in 460 WBY was brutal off the bench with full power loads.350 X bullets at .270 speeds made it a realistic moose gun but as far as going way bigger, ouch!

I've seen them done up to .600 Nitro Express, but the case rims had to be turned down to .577 rim size. If you don't want to alter brass, the .577 is about tops for that action.

quote:

Originally posted by MacD37:
It is a far better rifle than the Sharps clones, just not as much history.

The Sharps rifle is a percussion design that was later converted to use centerfire cartridges.

What about the 50 Alaskan?