Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.3 4.3bsd-beta 6/6/85; site jade.BERKELEY.EDU
Path: utzoo!decvax!ucbvax!jade!jkh
From: jkh@jade.BERKELEY.EDU (Jordan K. Hubbard)
Newsgroups: mod.rec.guns
Subject: Ruger XG1 as Vaporware?
Message-ID: <1410@jade.BERKELEY.EDU>
Date: Fri, 10-Oct-86 01:59:07 EDT
Article-I.D.: jade.1410
Posted: Fri Oct 10 01:59:07 1986
Date-Received: Fri, 10-Oct-86 23:48:50 EDT
Organization: University of California, Berkeley
Lines: 44
Approved: jkh@ucbjade
Author: Will Martin -- AMXAL-RI <wmartin@almsa-1.arpa>

Article: 10:17

Hi!
The 1987 GUN WORLD Annual arrived in the mail the other day, and in it,
in a photo caption on a picture of Ruger's XG1 scaled-up Mini-14 (the one
in .308 and .243), it said (paraphrased): "At press time, we just heard
that Ruger has discontinued their XG1 rifle."

I was wondering if anyone else had heard anything about this, or seen 
anything in print with any details behind such a decision? As far as I
knew, the XG1 was never in actual production and distribution -- I'd seen
literature from Ruger about it, and magazine articles mentioning it for
many months, but I never saw it listed in Shotgun News ads among Ruger guns
actually available for sale. (Though there have been a lot fewer references
to Ruger in Shotgun News over the past year or so than there used to be;
did they change their distribution methodology or somehow act to reduce
the competitive dealer-price-level marketing of their products?)

If this is true, it is sad -- the XG1 was supposed to be the most
reasonably-priced .308 paramilitary-type rifle around, and I was intending
to get one when they became readily available. The next issue of Soldier
of Fortune was supposed to contain a review article on the XG1; I hope
they leave it in and don't pull it out because of this news (or rumor).
[If there were only a few preproduction XG1's made, it certainly will be
one of the primo Ruger collectibles!]

Speaking of .308 semi-autos, there seem to be quite a few competing
models of semiauto-only-receivered M-14's being marketed these days, in
addition to the original Springfield Armory commercial M1A. Anyone have
any info on comparisons between these, and relative ratings of their
quality? I haven't seen any writeups of these in any of the magazines
yet, except for the reviews of the M1A, now some years past. I'd sure
like to see the wild and crazy guys at "Pistolero" magazine do a
side-by-side comparison test of these... (If you don't recognize that
name, that is one of the magazines put out by Engledrum [I think] 
publishing -- they accept no ads from gun manufacturers, and buy all
their test guns from regular dealer stock. Their reviews mre certainly
fun to read! They put out various magazines containing their test
results at irregular intervals. They emphasize handguns but also cover
riot shotguns and assault rifles at times.)

Regards,
Will Martin
wmartin@ALMSA-1.ARPA   (on USENET try ...!seismo!wmartin@ALMSA-1.ARPA )