Ruger Pumps the Brakes: Blackhawk, Redhawk, GP100 Production Suspended

Look, I've been telling my customers for years that a quality revolver is worth having around. Simple, reliable, no springs to worry about in a magazine. Now comes news that Ruger is suspending production on a whole lot of their most iconic wheel guns.

According to a distributor update, Ruger is immediately pausing production on the LCR, SP 101, GP100, and Bearcat revolvers. But it gets worse—final production runs through the end of the year will also finish out the SR1911, PC Charger, Redhawk, Super Redhawk, Blackhawk, Super Blackhawk, Vaquero, No. 1 rifle, and most of the 77-series rifles.

If you're looking for a new Ruger revolver, your options just got real limited. The Wrangler .22 LR single-action is about all that's left in their lineup.

Now, Ruger's being cagey about whether this is permanent. They say they've done this before with other models and eventually brought them back as market conditions changed. That's the company line, anyway. They claim some of these might return with "new designs and innovation."

Here's my take: if you've been eyeing a GP100 or a Vaquero, now's the time to either find one in stock or check the used market. These aren't going to become collector's items overnight—there are millions of them out there—but availability is going to tighten up. If Ruger does bring these back, it might be years before we see them on shelves again.

For my shop, this means I need to have a real conversation with customers about what they want and what's actually available. The good news? Ruger's always been solid about standing behind their products, and the guns that are out there are quality pieces that will last generations. The bad news? New inventory of some classics just dried up.