Heritage Rough Rider .45s
A Pair Of Fun, Accurate Sixguns
John found the Heritage Manufacturing Rough Rider .45 a pleasant and accurate sixgun.
I’ve been a big fan of Western movies ever since I saw my first “B” Western back in the 1940s; however, I have never been able to warm up to what is known as “Spaghetti Westerns.” There are several reasons for this. The acting is usually terrible and overly dramatic, story lines are almost impossible to understand (I never have figured out Once Upon A Time In The West), but most of all it’s the firearms. Today, replica manufacturers do their best to produce authentic reproductions of historical sixguns and leverguns. This was not always the case and every time I saw a brass-grip frame on what was supposed to be a Colt Single Action Army, the movie was over as far as I was concerned.
Sometime around the early 1990s we started seeing Western movies all with very authentic-looking domestic and Italian replicas of historical American firearms from the frontier period. There have been several men and several manufacturers responsible for this and one of those manufacturers is Pietta.
Heritage Manufacturing is importing Pietta parts and assembling “Rough Rider” .45 Colt single-action sixguns in this country that don’t even come close to looking like those Spaghetti Western sixguns from the 1960s. In fact, at first glance these Rough Rider .45s look quite authentic. The only thing which gives them away initially is the fact that due to the use of a transfer-bar safety, the trigger rides farther forward in the triggerguard than found on original single actions from the 19th century. Once the hammer is cocked, you also see the lack of a firing pin on the hammer.
Most of the form of these sixguns is quite right. The hammer spur follows the proper curve, the front sights are not only shaped correctly, they are also made easier to see by the fact that they are not tapered to the top and are also matched up with a rear notch cut square. The sights are traditional single action following the hog-wallow trough through the top of the mainframe. The base pin is of the proper configuration, while the ejector-rod head is of the half-moon variety. The front of the cylinder is nicely chamfered in the old black-powder style as is the front of the ejector-rod housing. For me the only thing that detracts from the eye pleasing character of these revolvers is the warning labels found on both sides of the barrel. I understand why they are there, however, I am not happy with a world which causes such a situation.
The 4-3/4" Heritage Manufacturing Rough Rider .45 in blue with optional case-colored
frame shot well with Black Hills ammo. The 7-1/2" Rough Rider in full nickel plate finish
shot just over the front sight and a little to the left for John.
Grips are 1-piece cocobolo, fitted very well, and although they are a little wide for my taste, they could easily be re-shaped. As far as finish Heritage offers a choice of full blue, blue with a case-colored frame and full nickel plating, as well as a choice of the traditional barrel lengths of 4-3/4″, 5-1/2″ and 7-1/2″. Test guns consisted of a 4-3/4″ blue/case-colored version and a 7-1/2″ full nickel example. Both guns are finished quite nicely with excellent metal-to-metal fit as well as metal to wood.
Finding a sixgun with fixed sights that shoots to point-of-aim with your choice of ammunition, eyesight and method of gripping a revolver, is pretty much hit and miss. Any time one is found the owner should feel very fortunate. The Rough Rider manual mentions the front sights on these sixguns are made tall to be filed in by each individual shooter with the load selected.
The 4-3/4″ example shoots about 6″ low for me with most loads, while the longer barreled version shoots to point of aim or slightly higher; again this is with my loads, my eyes and my grip. These results will not necessarily be the same for every shooter. Both guns also shoot 2″ left for me. This is an easy fix as it just requires the barrel to be tightened slightly. This is so commonplace with fixed-sight single actions that I have a barrel vise which fits in the trailer hitch of my pickup for adjusting barrels in the field. Just about any gunsmith could perform the same operation easily.
Both sixguns shot very well with quite a few groups in the 1″ category. This is especially heartening as testing was done in January. There was a time I could shoot outdoors no matter what the weather, however, January in Southwest Idaho no longer matches well with my fragility. I prefer the temperature to be equal to my age or at least matched up with the caliber of the sixgun tested. All this is just a way of saying I tested these guns indoors where it is a little harder for me to see the sights and I really expect the results to be even better in natural light. They may also shoot closer to point-of-aim with different lighting.
With their transfer-bar action, the Rough Rider .45s can take full advantage of a 6-shot cylinder. Trigger pulls on both guns were right at 3 pounds and are just about where a single action of this style should be set. They seem to be very well built sixguns and the cylinder lock up is exceptionally tight with no wobble whatsoever whether the hammer is cocked or in the down position. The timing has been done correctly. They should give good service, whether chosen for Cowboy Action Shooting or just as an everyday working sixgun, and they look a whole lot better than those original Spaghetti-Western revolvers.
Rough Rider
Maker: F.LLI Pietta, Italy
Importer: Heritage Manufacturing
4600 N.W. 135th St.
Opa Locka, FL 33054
(305) 685-5966
www.heritagemfg.com
Action Type:
Single-action revolver
Caliber:
.45 Colt (tested), .357 Magnum
Capacity:
6
Barrel Length:
4-3/4″, 5-1/2″, 7-1/2″
Overall Length:
13-1/4″ (7-1/2″)
Weight:
39 ounces (7-1/2″)
Finish:
Blue, blue/case, nickel
Sights:
Fixed
Grips:
1-piece cocobolo
GUNS Wheelgunner
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