doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Ruger Red Label 28g - good guns???

Are Ruger Red Label 28gs decent guns? Saw one the other day that looked OK.

Any issues with them?

Thanks

OWD

Some people complain about recoil in Red Labels, and a lot heap second-hand scorn on the guns. My only experience is with the 20 ga. version (two of the early blued receiver, fixed-choke jobs) and the guns have been faultless in function. I have had one of the guns in question since about 1975 and it has somewhere between 50k and 75k rounds through it. Good materials. Most will be on the heavy side in whatever gauge. The finish is consistent at fair to good; wood stands very proud but fit to metal is good, and some exterior surfaces are excessively buffed and rounded. Outstanding factory service if you ever need it. If you like 28 ga. guns and the looks of the Ruger, what's to hold you back?

Love 28s and for my O/U I shoot a Ruger, have not had any problems with it what so ever. Enjoyable for clays or hunting. Comes with 5 Briley tubes, so covers most all needs. I have the 28" barrel version. The 28 is under 6 lbs, just a little, would have to dig out and weigh. They are made on a true 28 ga. frame.

The best deal going in a 28 bore o/u. As stated previously, they are built on a small frame. A nice trim shooter ESP. Nice in the grouse woods.

Thanks for the feedback. Is one worth $1200?

It looks pretty clean and in excellent good shape. 28" bbls.

How are the triggers? Reliable? Do they break like a thick, wet stick? Or are they crisp and decent?

OWD

I'd try to dicker a bit, on the $1200 price. How much are they new, now?

The people who have the 28ga version seem to like them.

Expect to need trigger work. Ruger is scared to death of lawyers, and they ship guns with heavy triggers.

I have three Rugers, one in 28g/28". I love that gun. If you are going to hunt with it, there is no better handling 28 O/U at any price. Light, easy to carry, pretty, reliable, good service if you ever need it. My trigger is fine. What's not to like?

If the gun you are looking at has the English grip, jump on it at $1200 because that is a relatively scarce combination. If it's a PG gun with nice wood (some are exceptional, some are pretty plain), the $1200 is OK because the nice wood brings a premium. If it's a more ordinary example, try to dicker down to $1050-$1100.

If I had to sell all my 28's, the last one to go would be a tossup between the Red Label and my RBL with 30" barrels.

interesting... as stated I have seen a lot of ppl heap ill will on the Red Label but I have a 12 that I have put a few thousand rounds through with no issues. Likewise, they do seem generous with their wood selection... I have seen MANY that I would call 3x with no upgraded pricing. I have been looking for a 28 gauge for the wife (glad to read such good reviews about it) and would agree you can find them for under $1200 if you are willing to dig around. I missed a English stocked one that sold for under $800 and that is what really got me looking into them as a very reasonable nice O/U for the wife. Given that one was a steal.

If I could get one for my wife, I'd make the trade.