Ruger

Based in Connecticut, US, Sturm, Ruger & Company is the largest firearms production house in America. It has plants and foundries located in Newport, NH and Prescott, AZ, while the company headquarters are located in Southport, CT. It was modestly established in 1949, when William B. Ruger and Alexander McCormick Sturm acquired a small amount of industrial space in Connecticut and began development work on a highly successful .22 target pistol that was fated to make history of sorts – the Standard. The business that this handgun generated for Sturm, Ruger was the cornerstone on which the rest of the empire was built. William B. Ruger had been fascinated by guns from a young age and he invented and patented a large number of sporting firearms in his lifetime. In fact, he received the distinguished Outstanding American Handgunner Award in 1975. Alexander McCormick Sturm, a friend of Ruger, was an artist and writer who had an interest in guns and invested $50,000 into the company.

In America, Sturm, Ruger is best known for its .22 rimfire rifles and .22 rimfire semiautomatic pistols. A more complete catalogue of its products would list its centerfire rifles (AC-556, Number One, Mini-14, Mini-30 and the Ruger Police Carbine), rimfire rifles (Ruger 10/22, Ruger 77/22, Ruger 77/17 and Ruger 96/22), centerfire pistols (P89, P90, P91, P93, P94, P944, P95, P97 and P345), rimfire pistols (Ruger MK II, Ruger MK III, Ruger 22/45 MK III and the discontinued Ruger MK I), single-action revolvers (Vaquero, Single Six, Bearcat and the Blackhawk series) and double-action revolvers (GP-100, SP-101 and the Redhawk series). Sturm, Ruger also manufactures a submachine gun called the Ruger MP9.

Of these, the Ruger 10/22 rimfire rifle has been an amazingly successful product. In fact, international firearm sales records show it to be the most successful rimfire carbine ever produced. It was first introduced in 1964 and has sold over 5 million units since then. Other clear winners are single-action revolvers such as the Vaquero, an Old West replica which was introduced in 1993 and the Ruger Bisley, which was first marketed in 1991. Other famous revolvers to have emerged from Sturm, Ruger’s arsenal of groundbreaking list of handguns are the pioneering the Ruger Single Six, the Blackhawk and Super Blackhawk, the Security Six, the Redhawk and Super Redhawk, the Hunter and the Super Redhawk Alaskan. Their line of double-action revolvers includes the SP101, the GP100, the Redhawk .44 Magnum and the massive Super Redhawk .44 Magnum. Ruger’s double-action revolvers are the handguns of choice for shooters who require rapid firing and reloading facilities.

The company has emerged as one of America’s leading manufacturer of high-quality firearms for sport, hunting and law enforcement. Apart from its extensive firearms production program, Sturm, Ruger also manufactures precision steel and titanium investment castings components for other consumer industries.
On the anvil at Sturm, Ruger is the new line of .375 Ruger bolt action rifles, which will shoot the newly developed .375 Ruger cartridge – advertised by the company as ‘practical, useful, and hard-hitting’. This line of new firearms is expected to be made available on the commercial market by 2007. Additionally, the company recently announced a limited production of the
Ruger No. 1 .30-06 Centennial Commemorative single shot rifle, which is meant to be a tribute to the most preferred rifle cartridge in the United States. This ornately decorated and gold-inlaid rifle will only be made as a limited release edition in 2006.

Constantly in the news, Sturm, Ruger’s saga of success continues. At the recent Golden Bullseye Awards ceremony, the .22 caliber Ruger Mark III Hunter pistol won the ‘2006 American Hunter Hunting Handgun of the Year’ award. Additionaly, the Ruger M77 Mark II Frontier rifle was selected as the ‘2006 Shooting Illustrated Rifle of the Year.’ These are significant distinctions, since Golden Bullseye Awards are awarded only the highest grades of products available in shooting sports. Alexander McCormick Sturm died in November, 1951 and William B. Ruger followed him to gun heaven in July, 2002 – but they will be remembered by gun enthusiasts around the world for having launched a true legend among firearm companies.