thanks, dennismc! Seems to me that the two guns should be equally fast (or slow, if you see it that way) to reload in the field. I do prefer a hammer to the Ruger's non-automatic safety, although I've never had a problem with the Ruger (I used the Ruger open sights while my vision allowed and moved to straight tube fixed power scopes when I couldn't see them any more. Never tried the tang sight conversion; it's for someone more skilled than I).