Welcome to another American Rifleman Gun Of The Week video, and in this episode, we’re on the range with the unique Heritage Rough Rider Rancher Carbine. This fun, little rimfire rifle takes the company’s classic cowboy revolver concept into the world of long guns. Watch our video above to see the Heritage Rough Rider Rancher Carbine in use on the range.
Heritage Manufacturing is known not just for its lineup of affordable rimfire revolvers but also for the fact that the company has some wild takes on this classically styled single-action system. Rough Rider revolvers can be had with all kinds of unique finishes and crazy barrel lengths, including the 16” barreled Buntline. It’s this Buntline model that inspired the building of the Rough Rider Rancher in 2020, pairing the long-barreled design with a stock for an Old West-inspired revolving rimfire rifle.
In this novel design, the Heritage Rough Rider revolver has been expanded into a six-shot revolving carbine, complete with an all-black finish and a classically styled walnut buttstock with texturing at the wrist and a textured polymer plate at the rear. The revolver frame itself is constructed from aluminum alloy, rather than the zinc alloy of the company’s handguns, and is treated with a black oxide finish. The same goes for the rest of the metal parts. Cylinders and barrels are made from carbon steel, and the Rancher Carbine can accept six-round .22 WMR conversion cylinders sold separately on top of its original chambering for .22 Long Rifle.
In keeping with the gun’s Old West origins, the Rough Rider Rancher Carbine is outfitted with a set of traditional sights, to include the quarter-moon-style fixed front sight blade and an elevation-adjustable buckhorn rear sight. There’s also a ring at the mid-point of the barrel that supports a sling mount, along with another mounting point at the toe of the stock. A traditional leather sling comes with the carbine, completing the classic look and making it easy to carry.
Like other models available from Heritage, the Rancher carbine comes equipped with a manual safety located on the left side of the recoil shield. As a single-action firearm, the hammer must be manually cocked for each shot. Loading and unloading is done the old-fashioned way, too, using the loading gate and ejector rod on the right side of the gun.
One of the more unique aspects of the Rough Rider Rancher Carbine is the extended spur below the trigger guard. This is intended to form part of the support grip, as holding the gun out on the barrel, forward of the cylinder, can expose the inside of the forearm to hot gas and lead escaping from the cylinder gap. While this unique hold looks awkward, it’s actually a comfortable and very stable way to shoot the gun. We also appreciated the gun’s light weight, coming in at right around 4 lbs., so not only is this a fun plinking arm, it can also make for a handy, affordable tool to dispatch small varmints around the farm, too.
Heritage Rough Rider Rancher Carbine Specifications
Action Type: single-action rimfire rifle
Chambering: .22 LR (convertible to .22 WMR)
Barrel: 16.12"
Frame: aluminum alloy
Finish: black oxide
Sights: elevation-adjustable semi-buckhorn rear; fixed front
Stock: walnute
Capacity: six-round cylinder
Overall Length: 32"
Weight: 4 lbs., 1.92 ozs.
MSRP: $357
