I got a phone call from a friend this afternoon telling me that a local Lawmen’s had taken in some firearms on consignment. One was a Ruger Mark 1. I went over after doing some research. It was a Ruger Mark 1. She had a blue carbon steel finish, a 4 3/4s in barrel. The sights were partridge style, fixed and open, the rear sight mounted in a dove tail. You have to lock the bolt back by using the safety.
Ruger produced these from 1949 to 1982. Guys coming back from WWII wanting to do some range time with a 22LR caliber semi-automatic appreciated the cost of the new Ruger compared to the cost of a Colt, Smith &Wesson or Hi Standard. Back in the late 50’s and 60’s these sold for $25.00.
They were asking $400.00 and these guys aren’t allowed to negotiate. She’s in great shape and I reluctantly shelled out the bucks. I’d done my research before going over and although she had been made in 1973, she was in great shape. A couple of my references list it as starting at $850. NIB, $743. Ex and $572. Gd. These are lowball figures.
I brought her home and popped her apart. Inside I found manufacturers grease that had hardened like wax, in over 40 years of sitting in a drawer somewhere. The barrel is a little dim but she should shine right up. I’ve bought several old guns over the years that folks bought home and for whatever reason never fired.
Adding the Mark 1 or Standard to the collection gives me a Mark I, Mark II and a Mark III 22-45. I got to drag the I and II to the gun range and compare the two. They had a GP100 in 357 Magnum and a Single Six in the same caliber but since I’d just bought a GP100 last week I passed.
