Unboxing: Ruger Red Label Shotgun
What is Unboxing?: Unboxing originated with Unboxing.com, a site dedicated to helping people show off their new techie toys, favorite gadgets, consumer electronics, and more. As their tag line states "Vicarious thrills from opening new gear."
It is hard to believe that the Ruger Red Label debuted back in 1978. Seems like yesterday I was blasting skeet with a blued and fixed-choke model. I guess that dates me. This year I wanted to go all American in the pheasant fields and grouse coverts and the newer Ruger fit the bill splendidly. The design has really proven itself in the field and not much has changed from that shotgun I used at the end of the last century. Today it sports choke tubes—and Ruger isn't stingy with them either—5 tubes in total for every shooting possibility. Choke tubes are a lot like ATM cards and cell phones—I don’t know how I survived with out them. The Red Label has a classic look with its combination of wood, stainless steel and blued steel. I like the fact that the receiver is stainless. That means it is easier to clean, less vulnerable to weather, and, as the most common carry point, the finish will not wear like a bluing. Look at your blued-receiver guns and I’ll bet you can tell how you carry it most often. I’ve always been partial to 12 gauge over-and-unders and this Ruger is a real go-to gun ready for any type of weather and shooting condition. Load it up for pheasant and duck or use milder loads for grouse and woodcock. The weight of the gun is substantial when compared to lithe 16s, 20s and 28s especially if you walk all day, but those extras pounds help lap up recoil. It's what I used this season in cut cornfields and through alder choked thickets, and it complimented Cooper and Bella. Here are the specifications for the Red Label:
- Action Type: over and under
- Caliber: 12 (shown), 20 & 28 gauge
- Barrel Length: 28 in. vent rib
- Front Sight: Bead
- Choke: Choke tubes; full, modified, improved cylinder, skeet (2 tubes)
- Overall Length: 45 in.
- Weight: 8 lbs. (unloaded)
- Capacity: 2 rounds
- Stock: American walnut w/ pistol grip
- Finish: blued barrels & stainless steel reciever
- Action Type: over and under
- Caliber: 12 (shown), 20 & 28 gauge
- Barrel Length: 28 in. vent rib
- Front Sight: Bead
- Choke: Choke tubes; full, modified, improved cylinder, skeet (2 tubes)
- Overall Length: 45 in.
- Weight: 8 lbs. (unloaded)
- Capacity: 2 rounds
- Stock: American walnut w/ pistol grip
- Finish: blued barrels & stainless steel reciever
I love reading the ends of firearm boxes. After the jump, see more of the Red Label.
The red Ruger logo on the white cardboard leaves not doubt which factory this shotgun came from.
All component are secured in separate cardboard section and wrapped in plastic.
Shotguns, unlike rifles and handguns, usually come in pieces—sort of a puzzle. Maybe that makes shotgun shooters more intelligent than rifle shooters?
The non-automatic safety also serves as the barrel selector.
The breech face. You can see I made some noise with the Ruger before taking the images.
The monoblock with ejectors.
Assembled and waiting for shotshells.
The pistol grip cap is tastefully blended into the stock.
The forearm release lever closes flush yet is easy to operate. The checkering was sharp and worked well even in rain.
The recoil pad was fitted with care, a mark of a well-made shotgun. It also lapped up recoil. My preference would be for the original red pad.
The business end of the Ruger. Flush fitting choke tubes for a classic look.
You won't see worn bluing on the Ruger. The receiver is stainless. The receiver was a comfortable carry point balancing the gun nicely.
Taking a bead on an imaginary grouse.
The classic looking Ruger is an all American that begs to be used.
Poets and lawyers both love language and while one uses language to create vivid imagery the other twists it to prove a point. I’ve seen this story and thought I might share it with you about the language manipulations of a defense attorney in NE. The defense attorney for the charged stated the gun the police found was inadmissible as evidence. The American-made revolver was manufactured between 1880 and 1941 and federal code states that the weapon is not a firearm unless it was manufactured after 1896. The said revolver had no marking when it was actually manufactured. It looks like a revolver, disassembles like a revolver but legally it wasn’t a revolver. Look at the image in this post. That’s the alleged revolver. So the prosecutor proved something else. There were two rounds of live ammunition in the revolver when the police seized it, so they prosecuted a felony of a different kind: possession of ammunition. The defendant should get 15 years for the ammo charge and other sundry offenses.
Because of the auspicious circumstances Bella came into our lives I was not too concerned if she was a good hunter. The idea was to rescue a dog, preferable one that no one wanted. Bella fit the bill and would have had her subscription cancelled if we or some one else didn’t take her in. The thought, the musing, the idea that she would be a hunter was value add. She seemed to know her stuff 
You may have noticed that we auction off gear that we have reviewed in 