Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc., better known by the shortened name Ruger, is an American firearm manufacturing company based in Southport, Connecticut, with production facilities also in Newport, New Hampshire;

Mayodan, North Carolina Mayodan is a town in Rockingham County, North Carolina, in the United States. It is a manufacturing site for Sturm, Ruger & Co., Bridgestone Aircraft Tire, and General Tobacco (ceased operations 2010). Washington Mills Company, later Tultex, o ...

; and Prescott, Arizona. The company was founded in 1949 by Alexander McCormick Sturm and William B. Ruger, and has been publicly traded since 1969. Ruger produces

bolt-action Bolt-action is a type of manual firearm action that is operated by ''directly'' manipulating the bolt via a bolt handle, which is most commonly placed on the right-hand side of the weapon (as most users are right-handed). Most bolt-action ...

, semi-automatic, and

single-shot rifle Single-shot firearms are firearms that hold only a single round of ammunition, and must be reloaded manually after every shot. The history of firearms began with single-shot designs, then multi-barreled designs appeared, and eventually many cent ...

shotgun A shotgun (also known as a scattergun, or historically as a fowling piece) is a long gun, long-barreled firearm designed to shoot a straight-walled cartridge (firearms), cartridge known as a shotshell, which usually discharges numerous small p ...

semi-automatic pistol A semi-automatic pistol is a type of repeating single-chamber handgun ( pistol) that automatically cycles its action to insert the subsequent cartridge into the chamber (self-loading), but requires manual actuation of the trigger to actuall ...

s, and single- and double-action

revolver A revolver (also called a wheel gun) is a repeating handgun that has at least one barrel and uses a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold up to six roun ...

s. According to the

ATF The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE), commonly referred to as the ATF, is a domestic law enforcement agency within the United States Department of Justice. Its responsibilities include the investigation and preven ...

statistics for 2015, Ruger is currently America's largest firearm manufacturer, as well as the second largest pistol and revolver manufacturer (behind Smith & Wesson) and rifle manufacturer (behind Remington) in the United States.

History

Sturm, Ruger & Company was founded by William B. Ruger and Alexander McCormick Sturm in 1949 in a small rented machine shop in Southport,

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

. Just prior to their partnership, Bill Ruger had successfully duplicated two Japanese "baby" Nambu pistols in his garage, from a captured Nambu that he acquired from a returning

Marine Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean. Marine or marines may refer to: Ocean * Maritime (disambiguation) * Marine art * Marine biology * Marine debris * Marine habitats * Marine life * Marine pollution Military * ...

, at the close of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. When it came to designing their first semi-auto

pistol A pistol is a handgun, more specifically one with the chamber integral to its gun barrel, though in common usage the two terms are often used interchangeably. The English word was introduced in , when early handguns were produced in Europe, an ...

, Ruger decided to incorporate the looks of the German 9mm Luger and the American Colt Woodsman into their first commercially produced

.22 caliber .22 caliber, or 5.6 mm caliber, refers to a common firearms bore diameter of 0.22 inch (5.6 mm). Cartridges in this caliber include the very widely used .22 Long Rifle and .223 Remington / 5.56×45mm NATO. .22 inch is also a popular ...

pistol (see Ruger Standard), which became so successful that it launched the entire company. 1970 Ruger Sports Tourer in yellow, front left (Lime Rock)

1970 Ruger Sports Tourer in yellow, front left (Lime Rock)

Ruger is a dominant manufacturer in the

.22 LR The .22 Long Rifle or simply .22 LR or 22 (metric designation: 5.6×15mmR) is a long-established variety of .22 caliber rimfire ammunition originating from the United States. It is used in a wide range of rifles, pistols, revolvers, smooth ...

rimfire

rifle A rifle is a long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting, with a barrel that has a helical pattern of grooves ( rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus on accuracy, rifles are typically designed to be held with ...

market in the U.S., due primarily to the sales of its Ruger 10/22 semiautomatic rifle. The 10/22 is very popular due to its reputation for being relatively inexpensive and of high quality. As a result, a wealth of after-market accessories and parts were made available for it, which has further increased its popularity. The availability and variety of after-market parts makes it possible to build a 10/22 using only these parts; most of which are marketed to target shooters and hunters. Ruger similarly dominates the .22 rimfire

market with the

Ruger MK IV The Ruger Standard Model is a rimfire semi-automatic pistol introduced in 1949 as the first product manufactured by Sturm, Ruger & Co., and was the founding member of a product line of .22 Long Rifle cartridge handguns, including its later ite ...

, a descendant of the Ruger Standard pistol. Like the 10/22, the Mark Series is supported with a wide variety of after-market accessories. The 22/45 is similar to the Ruger Standard family of pistols but features a different grip angle, that of the Colt 1911 (as opposed to that of a Luger utilized in the Ruger Standard). Ruger is also renowned for the production of high-quality revolvers, such as the

GP100 The GP100 is a family/line of double action five-shot (.44 Special), six-shot (.357 Magnum, .38 Special, & 10mm Auto), seven-shot (.357 Magnum & .327 Federal Magnum), or ten-shot (.22 Long Rifle) revolvers made by Sturm, Ruger & Co., manufacture ...

and Redhawk lines. They also have some presence in the semi-auto pistol market, with the SR1911 and SR lines of handguns. From 1949 through 2004, Ruger manufactured over 20 million

firearm A firearm is any type of gun designed to be readily carried and used by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see Legal definitions). The first firearms originated in 10th-century China, when bamboo tubes ...

s. The company is headquartered in Southport, Connecticut, and maintains manufacturing facilities in Newport, New Hampshire, Prescott, Arizona, and

. Ruger's subsidiaries are Ruger Precision Metals LLC in

Earth City, Missouri Earth City is an unincorporated community located in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States, along Interstate 70, near the Missouri River. It is bounded by the city of Bridgeton on the east and north, the city of Maryland Heights to the sout ...

, Pine Tree Castings in Newport, New Hampshire, and Ruger Sportswear & Accessories in Mayodan, North Carolina. Ruger's Pine Tree Castings division makes ferrous, ductile iron, and commercial

titanium Titanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ti and atomic number 22. Found in nature only as an oxide, it can be reduced to produce a lustrous transition metal with a silver color, low density, and high strength, resistant to corrosion in ...

castings. Ruger had a division known as Ruger Golf, making steel and titanium castings for

golf club A golf club is a club used to hit a golf ball in a game of golf. Each club is composed of a shaft with a grip and a club head. Wood (golf), Woods are mainly used for long-distance fairway or tee shots; iron (golf), irons, the most versatile class ...

s made by a number of different brands. Sturm, Ruger stock has been publicly traded since 1969 and became a

New York Stock Exchange The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed c ...

company in 1990 (NYSE:RGR). After Alex Sturm's death in 1951, William B. Ruger continued to direct the company until his death in 2002. In September 2020, the company bought the

Marlin Firearms Marlin Firearms Co. is an American manufacturer of semi-automatic, lever-action, and bolt-action rifles. In the past, the company, now based in Madison, North Carolina, and formerly based in North Haven, Connecticut, made shotguns, derringers, ...

company from bankrupt

Remington Outdoor Company Remington Outdoor Company (ROC) was an American firearms manufacturer and holding company. The company had notable brands under its umbrella, such as Bushmaster, DPMS, Remington and Marlin. History On August 15, 2017, James Marcotuli announced ...

Statistics

Ruger was ranked the number one U.S.

firearms manufacturer The following list of modern armament manufacturers presents major companies producing modern weapons and munitions for military, paramilitary, government agency and civilian use. The companies are listed by their full name followed by the short ...

from 2008 to 2011. In 2011, Ruger manufactured 1,114,687 firearms, as their promotion, the "Million Gun Challenge to Benefit the NRA", played a significant role in the company maintaining its top U.S. manufacturer status. The company has set a new goal of 2 million firearms produced per year. From 2009 to 2012, Ruger was the top-seller of

handgun A handgun is a short- barrelled gun, typically a firearm, that is designed to be usable with only one hand. It is distinguished from a long gun (i.e. rifle, shotgun or machine gun, etc.), which needs to be held by both hands and also braced ...

Products

Ruger breaks down its products into nine categories: *

bolt-action rifle Bolt-action is a type of manual firearm action that is operated by ''directly'' manipulating the bolt (firearms), bolt via a cocking handle, bolt handle, which is most commonly placed on the right-hand side of the weapon (as most users are r ...

s * autoloading rifles * lever-action rifles *

s *

s * centerfire pistols * rimfire pistols *

double-action revolver A revolver (also called a wheel gun) is a repeating handgun that has at least one barrel and uses a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold up to six roun ...

s *

single-action revolver A trigger is a mechanism (engineering), mechanism that actuates the function of a ranged weapon such as a firearm, airgun, crossbow, or speargun. The word may also be used to describe a switch that initiates the operation of other non-shooting ...

Rifles

Bolt-action rifles

* Hawkeye M77 * Gunsite Scout Rifle * Model 77/22 * American Rifle * American Rimfire * Ruger Precision Rifle * Ruger Precision Rimfire

Autoloading rifles

* Model 44 (discontinued) *

10/22 The Ruger 10/22 is a series of semi-automatic rifles produced by American firearm manufacturer Sturm, Ruger & Co., chambered for the .22 Long Rifle rimfire cartridge. It uses a patented 10-round rotary magazine, though higher capacity box ma ...

* 10/17 (discontinued) * SR-22 *

Mini-14 The Mini-14 is a lightweight semi-automatic rifle manufactured by Sturm, Ruger & Co. Introduced in 1973, it is based on the M14 rifle and is essentially a scaled-down version chambered in 5.56×45mm NATO. It is made in a number of variants, inc ...

* Mini Thirty *

XGI XGI Technology Inc. () is based upon the old graphics division of Silicon Integrated Systems (SiS) spun off as a separate company, and the graphics assets of Trident Microsystems. It existed from 2003 to 2010. History Founded in June 2003 and h ...

(not produced: development halted) * Police Carbine (discontinued) *

Ruger PC Carbine The Ruger PC-9 Pistol Caliber Carbine is a blowback centerfire semi-automatic pistol-caliber carbine manufactured by Sturm, Ruger & Co., designed as a companion to certain Ruger Pistol-Series semi-automatic pistols, using the same 9 mm Pa ...

* Deerfield Carbine (discontinued) * AR-556 * SR-556 (discontinued) * SR-762 (discontinued)

Lever-action rifles

* Model 96 (96/44, 96/22 and 96/17 discontinued)

Single-shot rifles

* No. 1 *

No. 3 ''No. 3'' () is a 1997 Koreans, South Korean Kkangpae, gangster comedy film starring Han Suk-kyu as the titular no. 3 man of a gang who's aspiring to rise up the ranks and become the leader of his own gang. It was writer-director Song Nung-han's ...

(discontinued)

Shotguns

Gold Label Gold Typhoon Group is a Chinese entertainment company. Gold Label was founded in 2004 in Hong Kong, launched with the support of EMI, and acquired EMI Music Taiwan / EMI Music China (Typhoon Records) in 2008, reforming to Gold Typhoon. On 1 Jan ...

(discontinued) * Red Label (discontinued)

Submachine guns

* MP9 (discontinued)

Handguns

Centerfire pistols

* Hawkeye (discontinued) * P-Series (discontinued) * SR-Series (discontinued) * American Pistol * Security-9 *

Ruger MAX-9 Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc., better known by the shortened name Ruger, is an American firearm manufacturing company based in Southport, Connecticut, with production facilities also in Newport, New Hampshire; Mayodan, North Carolina; and Presco ...

* SR1911 * LCP * LCP II * LCP Max * LC9 * LC380 * LC9s * Ruger-5.7

Rimfire pistols

68-577-B Pistol, Cal 22, US, Ruger MK1 (7516155658)

* Standard (MK I) (discontinued) * MK II (discontinued) * MK III / 22/45 (discontinued) * MK IV * SR22 * 22 Charger

Double-action revolvers

* Security-Six/Service-Six/Speed-Six (discontinued) * SP101 *

* Redhawk *

Super Redhawk The Super Redhawk is a line of double-action magnum revolvers made by Sturm, Ruger beginning in 1987, when Ruger started making weapons using larger, more powerful cartridges such as .44 Magnum, .454 Casull, and .480 Ruger.Taffin, John (2002) '' ...

* Super Redhawk Alaskan * LCR

Single-action revolvers

Bearcat The bearcat, also known as the binturong, is a viverrine mammal from Southeast Asia. Bearcat or bearkat may also refer to: Entertainment * ''Bearcats!'', a 1971 American TV series * ''The Bearcat'', a 1922 film starring Hoot Gibson * "Do the Bea ...

* Single-Six * Blackhawk * Super Blackhawk *

Vaquero The ''vaquero'' (; pt, vaqueiro, , ) is a horse-mounted livestock herder of a tradition that has its roots in the Iberian Peninsula and extensively developed in Mexico from a methodology brought to Latin America from Spain. The vaquero became t ...

* Wrangler *

Old Army Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Mai ...