Ruger Wrangler Burnt Bronze 22 LR Revolver 4.62 in. 6-Shot – Superb Single Action

Description

The Ruger Wrangler Burnt Bronze is Ruger’s answer to the question of how cheap a single-action 22 can get before it stops being a Ruger. The answer turned out to be a long way down, and the Wrangler has been hard to keep in stock since it arrived.

Six rounds of 22 Long Rifle, a 4.62-inch barrel and thirty ounces in the hand. The Ruger Wrangler Burnt Bronze wears Cerakote on the frame and barrel with a black cylinder and black checkered polymer grips, which is a better-looking combination than the price suggests.

What you get for the money

• A Ruger single action at a price that competes with the budget end of the market rather than the Single-Six.
• Cerakote on the frame and barrel, which is a sprayed ceramic finish and considerably tougher than bluing.
• A black Cerakote cylinder against the bronze, which is where most of the visual appeal comes from.
• Black checkered polymer grips, which are grippier than the smooth wood on most guns at this money.
• Thirty ounces, which is heavy enough to hold steady and light enough to carry on a belt all day.

Shooting a single action 22

• The Ruger Wrangler Burnt Bronze loads six rounds one at a time through a gate on the right side, and eject the same way with the rod under the barrel.
• The hammer must be thumbed to full cock before every shot; there is no double-action pull.
• Fixed sights: a blade front and a groove in the topstrap, regulated for standard-velocity ammunition.
• Read Ruger’s manual on how to carry it loaded and follow it exactly. Single actions vary in this respect and the manufacturer’s instructions are the only ones that matter.
• A 22 revolver will digest everything from CB caps to high velocity, which no semi-automatic will.

Ruger Wrangler Burnt Bronze specifications

• Caliber: 22 Long Rifle
• Capacity: 6-shot cylinder
• Barrel length: 4.62 in
• Weight: 30.0 oz
• Finish: Burnt Bronze Cerakote frame and barrel, black Cerakote cylinder
• Grips: black checkered polymer
• Sights: fixed
• Action: single action, exposed hammer
• Manufacturer part number: 2004
• UPC: 736676020041

22 Long Rifle is a standardized cartridge with dimensions and pressure limits published by SAAMI. A revolver asks nothing of the cartridge except that it fire, so the Ruger Wrangler Burnt Bronze will shoot standard velocity, high velocity, subsonic and CB caps without complaint. That is a real advantage over a semi-automatic 22, which needs a certain power level just to cycle.

For an afternoon of cans and steel with the Ruger Wrangler Burnt Bronze, a 1,500-round jug of Winchester Wildcat 40 gr is the cheapest way to feed it. Armscor 36 gr high-velocity hollow point is the step up for small game.

Within the Wrangler range, the 3.75-inch Birdshead in bronze and the 3.75-inch Birdshead in silver are the shorter, handier versions, and the Super Wrangler 250th Anniversary is the convertible with an extra cylinder. If you are cross-shopping, the Heritage Rough Rider is the other obvious candidate at this money.

A note on the Cerakote finish of the Ruger Wrangler Burnt Bronze: it is a sprayed coating rather than color molded through the material, so a deep scratch will show metal underneath. That is true of every Cerakoted gun and is not a criticism of this one.

Why the Ruger Wrangler Burnt Bronze earns its place

• A genuine Ruger single action at a budget-gun price.
• Cerakote inside and out rather than a finish that rusts if you look at it wrong.
• Eats every kind of 22 ammunition made, including the quiet loads a semi-auto will not cycle.
• Thirty ounces, which steadies the hold without becoming a burden on a belt.
• Ruger parts and service behind it, which is not something every gun in this bracket can say.

Set expectations properly. The Ruger Wrangler Burnt Bronze is a plinker and a teaching revolver. The sights are fixed, so you adjust your hold rather than the gun, and the trigger is what a trigger costs at this price. If you want precision from a rimfire wheelgun, the Single-Six is the Ruger to buy and it costs considerably more for reasons you can feel.

What this does is make an afternoon disappear for very little money, and teach hammer discipline to anyone who needs it. It is the revolver that lives in a range bag and gets handed round, and the Cerakote means it still looks decent after a few years of that.

In stock now at MAG5 Firearms in Collegeville, Pennsylvania. Transfers to your FFL, and we answer the phone.