Type Semi-automatic rifle Designer William B. Ruger Manufacturer Sturm, Ruger | Place of origin United States Designed 1961 Produced 1961–1985 | |
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The Ruger Model 44 is a semi-automatic rifle chambered in .44 Remington Magnum. It was built with a 4-round tubular magazine and produced from 1961 to 1985.
Contents
History
Designed as a close range carbine for deer hunting in dense woods, Ruger released the Model 44 Carbine in 1961 as the "Deerstalker", a moniker it used until 1962 due to a lawsuit brought by the Ithaca Gun Company. The design influenced the smaller and more popular Ruger 10/22 model chambered in .22 LR that would debut in 1964. The rifle was discontinued in 1985 due to high production costs.
A near-clone of the Ruger Model 44 was introduced in 2000 and produced until 2006 using a gas system closer to the Ruger Mini-14 and known as the Ruger Deerfield Carbine.
Design
The standard model featured a walnut stock and a barrel band similar to the Ruger 10/22 and the M1 Carbine, but using a solid top receiver. The front sight was a gold bead and the rear sight was a folding leaf-type. The receiver was drilled and tapped for scope mounts. The rifle was fed via a fixed 4-shot tubular magazine.
The chief complaint of the rifle was that the gas ports quickly fouled when using lead ammunition. This became less of an issue as manufacturers of .44 Magnum ammunition offered jacketed rounds instead of traditional lead.
Ruger offered several variants including the RS model that had factory sling swivels and a rear peep sight close to the rear receiver lug. The International Model was similar, but lacked the rear peep sight and had a Mannlicher-type stock. The Sporter was the same, but made use of a Monte-Carlo style of stock. These three variants were dropped from production in 1971. In the final year of production, Ruger offered a "25th Anniversary Edition" that featured a Ruger medallion embedded in the stock.