Top level USFA pistols? Pricing question

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Streetstar
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Top level USFA pistols? Pricing question

Post by Streetstar »

Well, since i have just added a new(well, old but new to me) Python to my armory -- i cannot really afford a real Colt 3rd Gen SAA in a timely fashion. I am not giving up "the dream" per se', but i just want a nice little 4.75" SA . I saw the Rodeo 2, which is the Rodeo with a matte nickel finish and thought "Thats it!" ---- maybe i can swing it!

Retail on the USFA web site is $690 for the matte nickel Rodeo 2 and $605 for the matte finish Rodeo ---- i was just curious what the street price might be? My preferred dealer is usually pretty good about things, but i thought i'd try to get a ballpark idea here before filling out a 4473 and plunking down a deposit.

I could probably wait, and i will add a Colt to my armory sooner or later, but i thought the USFA would be something that i could use without consequence while still knowing i am not giving up much if anything in performance (basically something i could care less if i gave it a little holster wear ) . I am also itching for a walkabout shortie .45, but really have a hard time fitting a real Colt in the budget this year so far ---- i bought a few nice guns last year, but this years economics are not as favorable to me.
----- Doug
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Re: top lever USFA pistols? Pricing question

Post by Hobie »

I want to say about $575 for the matte finish Rodeo. BTW, the fit is every bit as good as my CCH and dome blue. Great gun! I SHOULD have gotten one rather than the New Vaquero even though the NV cost (street price) $150 less than the Rodeo. They are having a sale on CCH and dome blue .45 Colt/.45 ACP guns with CCH hammer for $995.
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Streetstar
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Re: top lever USFA pistols? Pricing question

Post by Streetstar »

Hobie wrote:I want to say about $575 for the matte finish Rodeo. BTW, the fit is every bit as good as my CCH and dome blue. Great gun! I SHOULD have gotten one rather than the New Vaquero even though the NV cost (street price) $150 less than the Rodeo. They are having a sale on CCH and dome blue .45 Colt/.45 ACP guns with CCH hammer for $995.

Thanks for the straight dope Hobie :D . I kinda figured their margins might be tighter than the competition for their more "budget friendly" models, but heck -- the local dealer is doing blue Ruger BH's for $400 bucks -- a far cry from the list price. But then again, a basic BH, while an awesome firearm in its own right, is not quite the same as a USFA.

This particular dealer probably sells 500 guns a month or more though, and has a different set of salesmen every other time i walk into the place, so i thought i would ask you guys before hitting up the gun store who would rather be selling 2 or 3 XD Springfields or Glocks in the time it takes to special order a USFA for some "weird old man"


That 995 deal for the convertible model sounds pretty good, but its within 200 bucks of Colt territory and i likely would never use the ACP cylinder
----- Doug
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pokey
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Re: top lever USFA pistols? Pricing question

Post by pokey »

if this is the one you are considering,
rodeo2p-4.jpg
i had an opportunity to handle one, maybe purchase cheap caused by some

slight damage/scratches. if you close your eyes it feels nice, but sooner or later

you have to open your eyes, and then you see brown plastic grips and blue screw

heads on a matte silver gun. :roll: just turned me off, ymmv.
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Re: top lever USFA pistols? Pricing question

Post by SAAJim »

I have several USFA SAA guns; two SAAs, two China Camps, and three Rodeos. All fine guns. Were I to buy another USFA SAA of any persuasion, I'd buy it from Long Hunter. He does a full action job on the gun before you ever get the gun and his work is top drawer. The price is not that much more than just buying one at your local dealer and if you look at what he does to the gun, you'll realize it's a great deal. Take a look here - http://www.longhunt.com/usfa/index.htm

Jim
Streetstar wrote:Well, since i have just added a new(well, old but new to me) Python to my armory -- i cannot really afford a real Colt 3rd Gen SAA in a timely fashion. I am not giving up "the dream" per se', but i just want a nice little 4.75" SA . I saw the Rodeo 2, which is the Rodeo with a matte nickel finish and thought "Thats it!" ---- maybe i can swing it!

Retail on the USFA web site is $690 for the matte nickel Rodeo 2 and $605 for the matte finish Rodeo ---- i was just curious what the street price might be? My preferred dealer is usually pretty good about things, but i thought i'd try to get a ballpark idea here before filling out a 4473 and plunking down a deposit.

I could probably wait, and i will add a Colt to my armory sooner or later, but i thought the USFA would be something that i could use without consequence while still knowing i am not giving up much if anything in performance (basically something i could care less if i gave it a little holster wear ) . I am also itching for a walkabout shortie .45, but really have a hard time fitting a real Colt in the budget this year so far ---- i bought a few nice guns last year, but this years economics are not as favorable to me.
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Re: top lever USFA pistols? Pricing question

Post by gak »

Try Trade Creek Trade Company - http://www.tradecreektrade.com - good fellas to deal with. I got an out-of-production NOS .44 Special Rodeo for about $500 NIB this past summer. Great to deal with. Also our very own Gary Granger of both USFA and http://www.frontierclassicfirearms.com always has the skinny on what's what with USFA, what guns are in the pipeline, what options you might look at, etc. Great guy to deal with.

As your tweener gun, the base Rodeo makes the ultimate platform for a DIY antiquing job--since with that plain, matte finish you're not risking messing anything wonderful up or not messing with a beautiful polished gun as your starting point. Screw it up? Start all over again. It'll just add character! DIY or a benevolent local smith can probably save you $200-400 over USFA's own antiqued Gunslinger model. That, or "dry" holster and de-holster your stock Rodeo about a thousand times to give it some honest patina. Don't abuse it but don't baby it either. Speaking of antiquing, when new those factory "rubber" grips (standard on almost all USFAs) aren't quite as harsh as the Ruger's, but can still benefit from 5 minutes of vigorous and judicious 000 wool to knock down those aggressive points and smooth them a hair--a must for an antiquing project, but I'd do it on a stock gun as well.
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Streetstar
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Re: top lever USFA pistols? Pricing question

Post by Streetstar »

Jim and gak, thanks for the links ! That trading company link in particular has a lot of things that catch the eye in their gun list :D


Truly a bunch of enablers on this website
----- Doug
SAAJim
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Re: top lever USFA pistols? Pricing question

Post by SAAJim »

Gak,
I think you got the first company name & url wrong; probably should be TRAIL Creek Trade, not TRADE Creek Trade - http://www.trailcreektrade.com/. Good site; lots to choose from. I have also purchased from Gary Granger and he's great to deal with. The main reason I suggested Long Hunter is that getting the gun from him, it will come with opened up sights (except for the Rodeo II), Ruger-style coil hand spring (a big plus for reliability), wire trigger/bolt spring, a Lee's main spring and a trigger job - all great upgrades for the SAA.

Here are a couple of pics of a Rodeo that I got from Gary Granger and antiqued using a rust treatment I got at the local auto parts store. It does two things: it removes the blue and leaves a rust resistant aged dark gray finish. The more times you treat the metal, the darker it gets. Brownell's sell a browning treatment that could be used on the frame to simulate aged CCH. I like it fine the way it is.

Image

Image

Jim
gak wrote:Try Trade Creek Trade Company - http://www.tradecreektrade.com - good fellas to deal with. I got an out-of-production NOS .44 Special Rodeo for about $500 NIB this past summer. Great to deal with. Also our very own Gary Granger of both USFA and http://www.frontierclassicfirearms.com always has the skinny on what's what with USFA, what guns are in the pipeline, what options you might look at, etc. Great guy to deal with.

As your tweener gun, the base Rodeo makes the ultimate platform for a DIY antiquing job--since with that plain, matte finish you're not risking messing anything wonderful up or not messing with a beautiful polished gun as your starting point. Screw it up? Start all over again. It'll just add character! DIY or a benevolent local smith can probably save you $200-400 over USFA's own antiqued Gunslinger model. That, or "dry" holster and de-holster your stock Rodeo about a thousand times to give it some honest patina. Don't abuse it but don't baby it either. Speaking of antiquing, when new those factory "rubber" grips (standard on almost all USFAs) aren't quite as harsh as the Ruger's, but can still benefit from 5 minutes of vigorous and judicious 000 wool to knock down those aggressive points and smooth them a hair--a must for an antiquing project, but I'd do it on a stock gun as well.
Last edited by SAAJim on Mon Jan 18, 2010 3:27 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Buck Elliott
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Re: top lever USFA pistols? Pricing question

Post by Buck Elliott »

pokey wrote:if this is the one you are considering,
rodeo2p-4.jpg
i had an opportunity to handle one, maybe purchase cheap caused by some

slight damage/scratches. if you close your eyes it feels nice, but sooner or later

you have to open your eyes, and then you see brown plastic grips and blue screw

heads on a matte silver gun. :roll: just turned me off, ymmv.
The brown grips are a "take it or leave it" feature, but the blued screws on a nickeled gun were the ne plus ultra for 19th-Century Colts. I have a laser-engraved Taylor's 5 1/2" gun with one-piece walnut grips and the nitre-blued screws, and it's as handsome a Sin;e-action as you'd ever see...
Regards

Buck

Life has a way of making the foreseeable that which never happens, and the unforeseeable, that which your life becomes...
gak
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Re: top lever USFA pistols? Pricing question

Post by gak »

SAA Jim, good catch. It is indeed www.trailcreektrade.com - wonder how that happened! Good guys anyway. Really like your Rodeo--similar to mine. Really adds character...a completely different gun to behold IMO.
PaulB
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Re: top lever USFA pistols? Pricing question

Post by PaulB »

Great thread, guys! I have bookmarked it for when I go USFA shopping.
SAAJim
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Re: top lever USFA pistols? Pricing question

Post by SAAJim »

So Streetstar,
Have you bought that Rodeo II yet? $695 from Long Hunter including an action job. You should get it and then post pictures for us SAA fans to drool over :D :D .

Jim

Streetstar wrote:Well, since i have just added a new(well, old but new to me) Python to my armory -- i cannot really afford a real Colt 3rd Gen SAA in a timely fashion. I am not giving up "the dream" per se', but i just want a nice little 4.75" SA . I saw the Rodeo 2, which is the Rodeo with a matte nickel finish and thought "Thats it!" ---- maybe i can swing it!

Retail on the USFA web site is $690 for the matte nickel Rodeo 2 and $605 for the matte finish Rodeo ---- i was just curious what the street price might be? My preferred dealer is usually pretty good about things, but i thought i'd try to get a ballpark idea here before filling out a 4473 and plunking down a deposit.

I could probably wait, and i will add a Colt to my armory sooner or later, but i thought the USFA would be something that i could use without consequence while still knowing i am not giving up much if anything in performance (basically something i could care less if i gave it a little holster wear ) . I am also itching for a walkabout shortie .45, but really have a hard time fitting a real Colt in the budget this year so far ---- i bought a few nice guns last year, but this years economics are not as favorable to me.
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