The May edition of GunBroker.com’s Top Selling Report presented by GunGenius.com, continues to tell the tale of how a four-year-old company with a brand new gun model unseated a 98-year-old company with an 80-year-old gun model. The former is Ruger and their Single-Six; the latter is Colt and their Single Action Army. All these years later, the Single-Six continues to outsell the Single Action Army in the used revolver market.
For the first half of the 20th century, if you wanted a new single-action revolver, you bought a Colt Single Action Army. Of course, “new” was subjective, as Colt hadn’t produced any new Peacemakers since before World War II and announced in 1947 that the model would not be coming back. In 1953, Ruger would fill that hole in the market and force Colt back into the game in 1956.
When Ruger’s Single-Six revolver debuted, the company sought to capitalize on history with the tagline: “The time honored virtues of the single-action revolver are combined with improvements resulting from present day metallurgy and precision manufacture.” With a cylinder that held six rounds of .22 Long Rifle ammunition, it was – and still is – smaller than a Colt Single Action Army, but at that time, consumers didn’t care. They wanted a new single-action revolver and jumped at the chance to get their hands on Ruger’s new offering.
Single-Six production is broken down into two distinct categories: Old Model and New Model. Old Model guns were produced between 1953 and 1972 and were available in .22 Long Rifle and, starting in 1959, .22 Magnum. During that time, the guns were much like Single Action Army revolvers in that there was no safety mechanism in their design. This meant that carrying a full cylinder posed a risk of accidental discharge in the chamber that was in line with the hammer. More than 700,000 Old Model Single-Six revolvers were made in four different barrel lengths, four different grip materials, and three different finishes.
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Guns made from 1973 through to current production are considered to be New Model guns. When introduced, the gun was touted as being “without question, the most durable single-action ever produced.” These guns weren’t just more durable, they were safer. The addition of a transfer bar safety meant that all six chambers of the cylinder could be loaded and carried safely. The New Model Single-Six guns were a hit. During the following 20 years of production, almost 1.1 million were sold – that’s a 47% increase over the Old Model guns. Today, the Single-Six is available with ten SKUs offering different finishes, grips, and barrel lengths.
Now in production for 72 years, Single-Six sales both new and used are as strong as ever. July’s sales charts show that Ruger’s Single-Six moved up two spots while Colt’s Single Action Army fell three spots. Sam Colt may have made all men equal, but Bill Ruger ensured the spread of that equality.
Top Selling Guns Sold in July 2025
Source: gungenius.com/top-selling/
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To learn more or shop for any of the guns listed, visit Gun Genius at www.gungenius.com/top-selling.
Editor’s note: In the report, guns are rated from one to five within each category, with the number one gun being the most popular that month. The numbers are color-coded to show any changes in the ranks from the previous report.
Black = Steady
Green = Up
Red = Down
Source: gungenius.com/top-selling/
To learn more or shop for any of the guns listed, visit Gun Genius at www.gungenius.com/top-selling.
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