Ruger Wrangler Birdshead Silver 22 LR 3.75 in. – Superb Compact Six Shot Revolver

Description

A single action .22 revolver that works properly used to cost real money. The Ruger Wrangler Birdshead Silver is the answer to a question Ruger asked about six years ago: what can come off a Single Six without turning the gun into a toy? The answer turned out to be the expensive steel, the fitted grip panels and the adjustable sights, and not much else.

What stayed is what matters. A cold hammer forged barrel, a transfer bar safety, a loading gate interlock, and Ruger’s own heat treat and fit. What changed is an aluminum alloy cylinder frame instead of steel and a Cerakote finish instead of bluing, which together took most of the weight and most of the cost out.

This is the silver Cerakote version on the Birdshead grip frame, Ruger model 2016. The Ruger Wrangler Birdshead Silver weighs 28 ounces, runs a 3.75 inch barrel and measures 8.62 inches overall. Sports South shows the part number out of stock; we are holding 115.

Ruger Wrangler Birdshead Silver at a glance

• Six shot single action only revolver in .22 Long Rifle with an exposed hammer and loading gate.
• 3.75 inch cold hammer forged steel barrel, silver Cerakote, 1:14 right hand twist, six grooves.
• Aluminum alloy cylinder frame in silver Cerakote with a black Cerakote cylinder, which is where the two tone look comes from.
• Ruger Birdshead pattern grip frame with black grip panels.
• Blade front sight, integral notch rear in the topstrap.
• Transfer bar mechanism and loading gate interlock, so all six chambers can be loaded and carried.
• 28 ounces, 8.62 inches overall, MSRP $279.

Where the cost came out, and where it did not

• The cylinder frame is aluminum alloy rather than steel. That is the single biggest saving and the single biggest weight reduction, and on a .22 it costs nothing in service life.
• Cerakote replaces a polished blue finish. It is more durable than bluing against sweat and weather, it just is not as pretty at arm’s length.
• Sights are fixed rather than adjustable. Blade front, notch cut into the topstrap, zeroed at the factory and not adjustable by the user.
• The barrel is still cold hammer forged, which is the process Ruger uses across its centerfire rifles and is the reason a Ruger Wrangler Birdshead Silver shoots better than the price suggests.
• The transfer bar and the loading gate interlock are unchanged from Ruger’s more expensive single actions. Nothing was removed from the safety side of the gun.

Ruger Wrangler Birdshead Silver specifications

• Ruger model number: 2016
• Caliber: .22 Long Rifle
• Capacity: 6
• Action: single action only, exposed hammer
• Barrel: 3.75 inches, cold hammer forged steel, silver Cerakote
• Twist: 1:14 right hand, six grooves
• Cylinder frame: aluminum alloy, silver Cerakote
• Cylinder finish: black Cerakote
• Grips: black, Ruger Birdshead pattern grip frame
• Sights: blade front, integral notch rear
• Overall length: 8.62 inches
• Weight: 28 oz
• Safety: transfer bar mechanism with loading gate interlock
• MSRP: $279

Living with the Ruger Wrangler Birdshead Silver

On the Ruger Wrangler Birdshead Silver every round goes in through the gate and every empty comes out the same way, pushed by the ejector rod. That is six deliberate motions to load and six more to unload, and it is the entire reason people either love single actions or never buy a second one. If you have only shot swing out revolvers and semi-automatics, handle one before you commit.

The payoff is a trigger that has nothing to do but release the hammer. Cocking the hammer does all the work of indexing the cylinder and staging the sear, so the pull itself is short, light and consistent. A new shooter will shoot better groups with a Ruger Wrangler Birdshead Silver than with almost any double action of the same price.

The transfer bar on the Ruger Wrangler Birdshead Silver is the modern part, and it matters. A traditional single action had to ride on an empty chamber, because a knock on the hammer could set off the round under it. This one physically cannot reach the firing pin unless the trigger is held, so six rounds is six rounds.

Feeding the Ruger Wrangler Birdshead Silver

For volume, Federal AutoMatch 40 grain lead round nose is the bulk standard velocity load and the cheapest way to put a brick through a revolver that costs less than some optics. For small game out of a short barrel, Remington Golden Bullet 36 grain plated hollow point is the one to try first.

Rimfire is famously load specific and the 3.75 inch barrel on the Ruger Wrangler Birdshead Silver exaggerates the differences, so buy two or three types and shoot them against each other rather than assuming the most expensive box wins. Revolvers are also more tolerant of soft or dirty ammunition than semi-automatics, which is one of the quiet advantages of this design.

If you prefer a warmer finish, the Ruger Wrangler Birdshead in Burnt Bronze is the identical revolver in the other color we hold in depth, and there is nearly two hundred of it on the shelf.

Who the Ruger Wrangler Birdshead Silver suits

• Anyone who wants a packable .22 for a pack, a tackle box or a truck, at a price that makes it a tool rather than an investment.
• New shooters, because a single action trigger is the easiest trigger in the world to shoot well.
• Cowboy action shooters wanting a cheap rimfire understudy for practice.
• Anyone put off by the bronze, since the silver and black two tone is the more traditional look of the two.
• Small game and pest control close in, where a rifle is more gun than the job requires.

The Ruger Wrangler Birdshead Silver is not a Single Six and is not pretending to be one. It is a genuinely well built single action with the expensive parts substituted rather than removed, and the parts that keep it safe and accurate are the same ones Ruger puts in guns costing three times as much. Specifications come from the distributor record and from Ruger’s own Wrangler model listing.

This is a serialized firearm and ships to a licensed dealer for transfer. Ruger’s current line-up no longer lists the Birdshead configuration, so the 115 we hold of this finish will not be restocked once they are gone.