Sturm, Ruger & Company, Incorporated is a firearm company based in Southport, Connecticut. They produce rifles, shotguns, pistols and are perhaps best known for their single and double action revolvers. Currently Sturm, Ruger & Co. is the fourth largest gun manufacturer in the United States.
History
Sturm, Ruger & Co. opened for business in 1949 with a meager $50,000 investment by William B. Ruger and Alexander McCormick Sturm in a small rented machine shop.
Their first creation, the Ruger Standard, an automatic pistol shooting .22 Long Rifle rounds, was successful enough to launch the entire company. This success meant that Ruger has an almost exclusive monopoly on the .22 LR rimfire rifle market in the US. The popularity of the 10/22 semi-automatic rifle in particular has also increased Ruger's standing.
In the 1950s, spotting a hole in the market for single action revolvers, the Ruger Single Six and later Ruger Blackhawk were released. These guns, particularly the Blackhawk and its subsequent variants are well known for their classic look and use in Westerns and Cowboy Action Shooting.
Following Sturm's death in 1951, the company was owned exclusively by Ruger, until Ruger's death in 2002. From 1949 until 2004 Ruger had made over 20 million guns, with their firearms being used for hunting, target shooting, self-defense and law enforcement. Ruger guns are also highly collectible.
Products
Apart from a single attempt at a submachine gun, the Ruger MP9, Sturm, Ruger & Co. have exclusively produced rifles, shotguns, semi-automatic pistols and both single and double action revolvers:
Rifles
- Ruger No. 1
- Ruger M77
- Ruger M77 Stainless Bolt-action in .204 caliber.
- Ruger Mini-14
- Ruger Police Carbine
- Ruger Deerfield Autoloader
- Ruger 96
- Ruger Model 44
- Ruger 10/17
- Ruger 10/22
- Ruger 77/22
- Ruger SR-556
- Ruger American Rifle
Semi-Automatic Pistols
- Ruger P85
- Ruger P89
- Ruger P90
- Ruger P91
- Ruger P93
- Ruger P94
- Ruger P944
- Ruger P95
- Ruger P97
- Ruger P345
- Ruger SR Series
- Ruger LCP
- Ruger Standard
- Ruger Mark II
- Ruger Mk II .22 Automatic Pistol
- Ruger Mark III
- Ruger LC9
- Ruger SR1911
- Ruger SR22
Shotguns
- Ruger Red Label
- Ruger Gold Label
Revolvers
- Ruger Blackhawk (Single Action)
- Ruger Super Blackhawk (Single Action)
- Ruger Single Six (Single Action)
- Ruger Bearcat (Single Action)
- Ruger Vaquero (Single Action)
- Ruger Bisley (Single Action)
- Ruger Old Army (Single Action)
- Ruger GP-100 (Double Action)
- Ruger SP-101 (Double Action)
- Ruger LCR (Double Action)
- Ruger Redhawk (Double Action)
- Ruger Super Redhawk (Double Action)
- Ruger Super Redhawk Alaskan (Double Action)
- Ruger Security Six (Double Action)
- Ruger Service Six (Double Action)
- Ruger Speed Six (Double Action)
Awards
Sturm, Ruger & Co. have received awards from the Shooting Industry Academy of Excellence for:
- Manufacturer of the Year:
- 1992
- 1993
- Handgun of the Year
- 1993 - Ruger Vaquero
- 1997 - Ruger Bisley-Vaquero
- 2001 - Ruger Super Redhawk
- 2008 - Ruger LCP
- 2009 - Ruger LCP
- 2010 - Ruger SR9c
- 2011 - Ruger LC9
- Rifle of the Year
- 1999 - Ruger .22 Magnum 10-22
- 2002 - Ruger 77/17RM .17 HMR Rimfire
- Shotgun of the Year
- 1992 - Ruger Red Label Sporting Clays
- 2002 - Ruger Gold Label Side-By-Side