A friend of mine has a Ruger Gold label he wants to sell me. Any downsides to this gun?

Thanks

No parts. Out of production. Early or late style makes a difference. Most are early ones. Fine for limited hunting roles but no great for high volume shooting. Better choices out there. Now if it is a 28 gauge that’s a different thing. They are in very high demand. Bringing more used than they listed for new. 12 and 20’s I don’t even look at anymore.

Gauge? Model? Configuration?

The standard 12s are heavy, but some have marvelous wood. The 28s are wonderful, especially with 28" barrels, and if you have one with the factory (Briley) .410 tubes, you should jump on it. The 20s with blued frames and fixed chokes usually have great wood and are desirable. The Sporting 20s with 30" barrels are great handling guns, and I prefer my RRL to my Silver Pigeon II as a shooter, although the Beretta looks better. The Woodside 12s are very nice, as are the engraved guns. The waterfowl version would be a good choice as a duck gun. Lots of variables to consider.

Edit: Ignore everything I posted. OP originally asked about a RED Label and has now changed the question to GOLD Label.

I had a 12 gauge for a couple years.

The barrel set is heavy.

It has an unusual 'loose' feel when carried open like you would at a target range.

The triggers ain't great.

I didn't have any mechanical issues, and wouldn't be concerned with 'high volume' shooting. They seem to be plenty stout.

If the price is right, go for it. They are saleable when you get tired of trying to push the thing to the target.

It would be a 12 gauge hunting gun and he says it weighs 6lb 6oz.
He's wants $3800. Too much??

Does not add up.

No 12 gauge RED Label weighs that little.

Is this a GOLD Label?

And a RED Label should sell for well under $1K.

Most of the above could be said about an L.C. Smith, Parker, and many other doubles.

Shotgunjones is right about that price.

My bad sorry. Yes this is a Gold label

sorry not sure why I said red label I knew it was a gold label. I had a red label and it was ok for hunting.
I've always wondered about the gold labels.

That price is a $1000 more than what I would even consider starting to look at one.

If you do work out a deal, make sure you can shoot it first and determine if the barrels are reasonably regulated. The Gold Labels were hit and miss in that category. Most are fine, but there is a significant percentage that are grossly misaligned.

They didn't make a lot of them.

The gun had point of impact problem from the start, and the project was abandoned when SR&C couldn't find a way to make barrels that shot to point of aim, at least not that would return a profit.

You might search the forum for other Gold Label threads.

Well that sucks. I'm lookingnfor a decent light weight 12 gauge with choke tubes to use out west hunting and i was hoping the gold label would be it.


Thanks for all the info

Unless you want one in order to show and say "here's the only side-by-side Ruger ever made", look elsewhere for a shooting sxs.
JR

Fellow in our skeet club used one for about six months. Decent shooter who became a below average shooter. Thought it was because the gun was so light. Point of impact was off but I never heard by how much. He sold the gun and bought a browning sidelock. A much nicer gun in my books.

Some of the guys here misread the initial post as RED Label. It's Gold--the short-lived sxs. Only ever produced in 12ga.

$3800 doesn't look out of line for asking prices on Gold Labels . . . not that I'd pay that much. If you're looking for a good modern boxlock for that kind of money, you should be able to find a Parker Reproduction in 12 gauge. Much better gun, and offered in various configurations.

We didn’t misread anything. His original post asked about a RED Label, then he edited the post.

Shoot it first and then decide. If there's no issue with the barrel regulation and its at a reasonable price, Its an otherwise nice double. On the lighter side for a 12Ga too.

If OP does not need 3” chambers, think about a nice Sterlingworth for under $1K and add choke tubes if necessary, Heresy? Maybe.

The price is stated clearly as $3800. There's nothing reasonable about a Gold Label 12 ga. at that price, IMO.

SRH

The regulation was so bad on some of them that free would be too much to ask.

Best,
Ted

Ruger is not a shotgun maker. Shotgunjones mentioned the "loose feel" of the gun when open. This is a function of the basic design, which should have been addressed on day one of the drawing phase. The Red Label has some of the same disease. Oh, well. We may eat our words fifty years from now when they are still working. Or maybe not.

My comments were directed at the Red Label since that was the original title of the thread.

If it turns out to shoot straight and you like it make an offer.

Gun trading with friends can ruin that friendship, but as the guys have said friends don't let friends pay $3,800 for a GL.

Aha. I missed the original version.

I owned one . . . briefly. The problem, IMO, wasn't so much the light weight, but rather the weight distribution. (I've owned Brit 12ga game guns in the 6 1/4- 6 1/2 lb range.) But one way Ruger reduced weight on the GL was by milling metal out of the receiver. The result was a relatively light 12ga that was also barrel heavy. Had a strange feel to it.

I thought I really needed one of these for my first double. And then I picked one up. I didn't know what I was looking for or expecting, but I knew for sure, that was not it.

Didn’t see his post with the asking price, but I agree that $3800 is too much.

Replacement’s approach is more sound, unless one really wants a Gold Label.

I've had 2, still have 1.

I enjoy it, especially when it's too crappy out for my vintage guns or I have to shoot steel.

I really don't see a comparable gun for a comparable price...

BSS Sporter; SKB100, 200, etc.; Pietro Bernardelli Europa; FabArm Classis; Beretta 626 Onyx.
The Beretta would be my choice, but I already own the BSS Sporter (a bit heavy) and the PB Europa (great value). Don’t need another 3” SxS for steel.

And let’s not forget the Daly and Miroku 500s, if a 2-3/4” gun fits the bill.