Welcome, channel fans and family, to Slav Guns. We’ve already covered a lot of Ruger on this channel, from the very hot and popular Ruger 57 to the Ruger LCP II in .22, which is a great handgun for anybody getting started. But a while back Ruger started really upping its game with custom and semi-custom guns under the Ruger Custom Shop name.
In early 2020 I stopped by the Ruger booth and talked with Mark Gurney from Ruger about the latest Custom Shop guns: the Super GP100 revolvers (including the new 9mm), a carry-size officer-style 1911 in .45, and two high-grade Custom Shop 10/22s. This is a booth first look, not a range review. Ruger’s own pitch for the Custom Shop is simple: same standard guns, a lot more attention to detail. “We make good guns greater.”
TL;DR
- Super GP100: built on Super Redhawk frames, eight shots of .357, a sleeve-and-shroud barrel held in tension for accuracy, and a slicked-up action from the factory.
- New 9mm Super GP100: shorter, lighter cylinder that rotates faster, fully adjustable rear sight, fiber optic front, smooth Hogue grip.
- Officer-style 1911 in .45: hand-fitted frame and slide and a crisp trigger, a carry version of the Custom Shop competition 1911.
- Custom Shop 10/22s: billet receiver with an integral extended rail, barrel clamped from the top and bottom, nitrided billet bolt, BX trigger, two-tone fluted barrel, Ruger comp, and stocks carved in Ruger’s own wood shop.
- No MSRPs in the video. Check ruger.com for current pricing.
The 1911 that made me pay attention
The year before this video, the Custom Shop 1911 completely impressed me. We came to the Ruger booth at the end of a range day, and the close targets were already knocked over. The only ones left standing were at 100 yards. Somebody at the booth started apologizing, and I said don’t worry about it, I’ll just shoot at 100 yards. Six out of eight shots hit a steel popper at 100 yards with a 1911. That’s mind-blowing for a gun at a reasonable price.
Since then Ruger has expanded the Custom Shop “just a little.” By this point the lineup had grown to three 1911 models, two revolvers, and three 10/22 rifles.
Super GP100: a Super Redhawk frame in disguise
There’s a little play on words in the name. The Super GP100 is actually built on Super Redhawk frames, and it holds eight rounds of .357. Here’s what makes it a Custom Shop revolver:
- Sleeve-and-shroud barrel. The barrel is put in tension, which improves accuracy.
- Eight-shot cylinder.
- Slicked-up action from the factory, so you get a very nice trigger stroke and a very crisp single action.
The new 9mm version
The one in the thumbnail had just come out at SHOT Show 2020: a 9mm Super GP100. Look at the cylinder and you’ll see it’s shortened. 9mm doesn’t need a long cylinder, it only needs to be long enough for the cartridge. A shorter cylinder is lighter, and a lighter cylinder rotates faster, so you can get between shots faster.
You still get the tensioned barrel and the slicked-up action, plus a fully adjustable rear sight and a fiber optic front. The grip is a Hogue design that comes in both a rubber and a wood version. It’s super comfortable, and notice that it’s smooth. If you shoot a lot of revolver, you’ll actually appreciate smooth over coarse checkering.
Officer-style 1911 in .45
The 1911 I shot at 100 yards was the 5-inch Custom Shop competition model. But what about carry? For that, Ruger has an officer-style 1911 in .45. The frame and slide are fitted, the lockwork is great, and the trigger pull is nice and crisp. It’s a top-quality, hand-fitted 1911, just built as a carry gun instead of a competition gun.
So how “custom” is the Custom Shop?
Ruger is known for taking guns straight off the production line and having them run without issues. So I asked what’s different for the Custom Shop guns. The honest answer: they’re the same parts and the same people, but the guns are channeled off and given more time and more attention to detail when the slide and frame are fitted together. It really is a production-line gun with a higher level of fitting precision. Ruger calls it Custom Shop because that’s a name people understand. I appreciate that honesty more than a fancy marketing story.
Custom Shop 10/22s
The 10/22 is where the Custom Shop started, and this one is a serious upgrade over a standard 10/22:
- Billet receiver. It’s machined from billet instead of the cast receiver Ruger normally uses.
- Integral, extended rail built right into the receiver.
- Second barrel clamp. A standard 10/22 uses a two-screw clamp that only clamps from the bottom. This one clamps the barrel from the top as well, and the barrel is free floated.
- Billet bolt, nitrided, for a very smooth action.
- Ruger BX trigger.
- Fluted barrel that’s nitrided before the outside is ground, which gives it that great two-tone look.
- Ruger’s own comp on the muzzle.
- Stock carved in Ruger’s own wood shop.
It’s a really nice high-grade 10/22 without the super big money of the boutique brands. It costs more than a standard .22, but it’s not super expensive.
The second 10/22 uses the same barreled action in a more sporter-style stock, with one feature you might recognize: the cheek piece from the Ruger Precision Rifle. If you’re running a fairly tall optic, you raise the comb and get a comfortable cheek height. Small thing, but it’s exactly what people want.
If you’d rather build your own, I went through my setup in Before You Buy a Ruger 10/22: My Azimuth, FAB & BX Trigger Build. And for a newer Custom Shop rimfire, check out Ruger’s Custom Shop 10/22 with a carbon fiber barrel and grey birch.
Why doing it in-house matters
We’ve seen rifles from Savage and other companies where, instead of doing the work themselves, they partner up with other manufacturers. Ruger is vertically integrated and does most of the work itself. That means its own design, its own quality control all the way through, and its own supply, so it isn’t beholden to anybody for parts. Most importantly, nobody else has to make money off it, and that helps keep the cost reasonable.
Accuracy, pricing, and availability
Accuracy: Ruger wouldn’t quote an exact number, and that’s fair. Accuracy depends on your ammunition, and some guns like some ammo more than others. The tangible benefits are the fit and finish, the consistency, and the whole barrel system, which adds up to a better-made gun.
Pricing: I won the “stump the Gurney” contest. Nobody had the MSRPs memorized at the booth, so check ruger.com for current prices.
Availability: Ruger said these were in production and in stock when they launched. Ruger doesn’t like announcing guns that don’t ship for a year and a half. When a Ruger is hard to find, it’s not because they aren’t making them. Their example was the Wrangler, with production running five shifts, 24/7. Keep in mind this was filmed in 2020, so check what’s currently in the Custom Shop lineup before you go shopping.
Bottom line
The Ruger Custom Shop isn’t a mythical one-off build program. It’s Ruger’s production guns given extra fitting and better parts. For me that’s the appeal: the 1911 that rang steel at 100 yards, a Super GP100 with eight shots and a slick action, and 10/22s with billet receivers and BX triggers, all from a company that builds them in-house and actually ships them. With Ruger there’s always more new stuff on the wall than I have time to film, but the Custom Shop is worth a look if you want a step up without boutique money.
Want to see one long term? Read my Ruger Custom Shop Precision Rifle 2-year review.
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Keep squatting.
Super GP100 in 9mm or .357, officer 1911, or a Custom Shop 10/22? Which one would you take home? Let me know in the comments.
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