Ruger Security Six Range Report

Picked up a blued Ruger Security Six (SS) with 2” barrel recently. Why? Because I like 357s and I like snubbies.

Ruger stopped production of the SS sometime in the 80’s and replaced it with the GP100 and SP101. Sizewise, it’s almost identical to the GP100. The front sight on the GP100 fits in a dovetail whereas on the SS the base of the front sight is part of the barrel but the blade is replaceable. Furthermore, the GP100 lug extends all the way to the end of the muzzle, whereas the lug on the SS ends just past the ejector rod. Here’s a picture of the SS alongside a GP100 and SP101, for size comparison.



And here’s a closeup.



Whenever I buy a revolver I wish to work it over to achieve a smooth and light trigger pull. The first part proved to be a bit of a challenge with the Security Six. Unlike on the GP100 and SP101 (where it’s part of the trigger group) the cylinder lock/latch on the SS is a seperate, cast piece fitting into the underside of the receiver, pivoting in a recess of the receiver and sprung by the cylinder crane pivot. See here.



The problem is that since it’s a cast piece, the bearing surfaces are not necessarily polished. The lock is moved down by downward pressure of a hook on the leading edge of the trigger assembly, and though the trigger hook can be polished fairly easily, the lock surface can’t be easily polished because of the angles involved. A 1/4” diameter felt pad and jeweler’s rouge finally did the trick. Here’s a pic of the bearing surfaces.



Finally, a snip of one loop off the hammer spring lightened the trigger pull to where I like it.

It followed me to the range on Saturday, along with the GP100 and SP101 for comparison, to try out some accuracy experiments using three loads. I’d forgotten to bring my tiny screwdrivers so the gun was shooting to the right and I couldn’t adjust the POI. No big deal.

I tried three loads, all fired from 15yds, offhanded, shooting one-handed.

(1) Ranier 158g RN over 15.2gr of Win 296


(2) Winchester 158g JHPP over 15.2gr of Win 296


(3) Remington 125gr JHP-GS over 17.4gr of Win 296


My overall impression is that the gun is pleasant to shoot, and reasonably accurate. Considering the short barrel, achieving headsized groups single handed is a snap, and as typical of shorties, heavier bullets group better than lighter bullets. The tiny stock combined with the weight of the gun, however, allows the gun the move quite a bit between shots when shooting one-handed, requiring frequent grip readjustment. A Hogue rubber finger-groove mono-grip would help here.