Friends-

I am pondering purchasing a Single Action, Cowboy Style pistol. I once had a 3rd generation Colt SAA in .45 Colt but, sold it a few years back. Dumbest move, I ever made.

I am wanting a .45 Colt. I was thinking about the following firearms:

Colt New Frontier
Uberti/Baretta
Ruger

No Cimarron, I have heard too many bad things and I understand that USFA is no longer making single action firearms. I know I could buy a Colt SAA but, I don't need to mortgage the farm. They are too pricy in this gun market.

I know that Ruger makes a good, if not great product, the problem is, it's a Ruger. I think the Colt might be out of my price range, but, it is a Colt, and for that reason, it will always hold value due to the Colt name.

I don't know how to handicap this horse-race. What are your thoughts?

Try to find a USFA if you can. I have been shooting one and I am impressed with it.

"the problem is, it's a Ruger".
Sorry, I don't understand this comment. Is a Ruger bad for "cowboy style shooting"?. A Ruger is quite a heavy gun, but for my Ruger 45 Colt and my Ruger 44 mag, that is good thing. Additionally, they are both exremely accurate with fully adjustable sights. Perhaps you don't need this feature?
Peter.

For strictly Cowboy Action, or even sporting use with standard pressure 45 Colt loads take a look and the new smaller Ruger. It is more the size of the Colt style SA.

I would still recommend you find a USFA. Check Gunbroker.

One man's opinion. For Cowboy you will need two single actions.

If that is not what you mean, but just good old cowboy style fun shooting,
I don't think you can beat a Ruger Blackhawk, with adjustables or a Vaquero
with fixed. By the way, a pal just bought a Cimarron 44 special and I have had a
Cimarron in 45 Colt. Both his and mine shoot very well. If it is a "name game"
you are after double your expenditures+ and get a Colt New Frontier or a USFA.
Neither will shoot or function any better. This from someone who has them.

As previously stated, the new vaquero is similar in size to the Colt SAA and is half th price. Ruger is also now making a small frame Flattop Blackhawk in 45 Colt with an extra cylinder in 45 ACP. They are a distributor exclusive through Lipsey's. In my experience, the quality of Ruger's single action revolvers has improved by leaps and bounds the last several years. About the time the "New Vaquero" came out (in '04 or 05' or so) Ruger really seemed to tighten up their quality. For a very long time, when you bought a Ruger Blackhawk, you had to really be discriminating to find one that was put together well. The fitting of the Aluminum grip frames was horrible. The front sights were often canted out of center, and it was a really good idea to test the chamber to bore alignment with a rang rod. I have a Blackhawk in 45 Colt from the 1970's that is truly a piece of junk. The firing pin is too short, the chambers and chamber throats are enormous, and there are machine marks on the face of the frame where the barrel screws in. Down right sloppy work. A 45 Colt Blackhawk from the late 1990's isn't much better, with very undersized chamber throats (.448"), and a poorly fitting grip frame. These days Ruger single action grip frames are fit very well, with the new vaquero and flattop Balckhawks having colt sized all-steel units. Ruger has heard the masses complain about the variation in 45 Colt chamber throat diameters, and has been cutting them pretty consistently at .452". Most commercial cast bullets and ammo these days are .452", so this is fantastic! Due to Colt's typically way oversized cylinder throats in their 45 Colt single actions, I think you will find the newer Ruger 45 Colt SA's to be more accurate with a broader range of ammunition than with a Colt. Lastly, the Ruger's are much more durable than a Colt or Colt clone. You never have to worry about headspace problems, replacing the cylinder bushing, fixing the tigger spring, replacing the firing pin, replacing the cone bushing, etc.! The new vaquero and small frame flattop blackhawk are safe with loads up to 23k psi, and the old model vaquero and Large frame Blackhawks can be safely loaded to 32k psi (slightly exceeding 44 mag performance). Just my 2 cents.
Matt

BTW, I've owned a USFA single action in 45 Colt. It was awesome. However, they have the same mechanical weakness' that the colt has except the cylinders are a little thicker and stronger than the Colt. Too bad they are now out of production.