Ruger Blackhawk in 45 Colt

I have had a hankering for a single action revolver in 45 Colt. A local shop has a used New Model Blackhawk in 45 Colt. The barrel is 4 5/8". Super clean. Anyone have any experience with the Blackhawk in this caliber? Thanks folks.

I have one. I recommend getting a convertible, .45acp is a great way to plink.

I've had a Ruger Vaquaro Bisley in 45 Colt since 1999..bought it new and sent a lot of lead downrange over the years. I reload for it so ammo has never been a problem. Here's what I'm talkin about. Rich.

That's a great revolver. The Blackhawk can be loaded strong enough to match a .44 Rem Mag, but weighs about a quarter pound less. If you don't reload, try ammunition from Buffalo Bore or Underwood...the load in the link below is a superb all-around cartridge.

45 Colt (Long Colt) 255 Grain Lead Keith-Type Semi-Wadcutter Gas Check - Underwood Ammo

I second the convertible in acp... enjoy mine...

Way back in the early 70s I had a Ruger 3 screw 4 5/8" convertable
but I sold it to buy a Super Blackhawk .44 mag which I still have. If you
handload the 45 Colt you would likely get little use out of the ACP cyl
unless you have a good stash of ammo you want to burn up. Point of
aim will differ between the two. The new model Blackhawk is built on
a midsize frame that is smaller than the old large New model Blackhawk
and won't take the very heavy handloads so make sure you know
which model it is. The Ruger Blackhawk .45 Colts are by far the best
SAs on the market for the money. I had been thinking about getting
one of the new .45s on the mid size frame recently when I went into a
LGS to look around. I walked out with a barely used 4 5/8" stainless
Vaquero in the box with all papers for a very good price. The new
models are said to have .452 throats so I plan to use my carbide
.45 ACP dies to load cast bullets as soon as I get some .45 Colt brass
and a shell holder.

This one started out as a 4 5/8" .45 Blackhawk convertible. Became a winter project a couple years later with a Super BH frame and hammer.

Blackshirt said:

That's a great revolver. The Blackhawk can be loaded strong enough to match a .44 Rem Mag, but weighs about a quarter pound less.

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That is generally true for the old large frame Blackhawks like
the Bisley pictured but not the new mid size frame .45 Colts.
Loads for the smaller frame guns need to stay within .45 ACP
+P pressure level, 23,000 psi.

101Voodoo said:

This one started out as a 4 5/8" .45 Blackhawk convertible. Became a winter project a couple years later with a Super BH frame and hammer.

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...I have a 45 Blackhawk that I've wanted to modify like you did yours...except mine has the 7 1/2 inch barrel...and those mods would make it very close to the two Super Blackhawks I already have...decisions...decisions...

101Voodoo said:

This one started out as a 4 5/8" .45 Blackhawk convertible. Became a winter project a couple years later with a Super BH frame and hammer.

Click to expand...

Your Blackhawk looks much like my .41 MAG. I do like the extra length of the Super BH frame.

I have a .45 Colt Blackhawk that mostly gets used as a load test mule. Experiments get done first in the Ruger, then, if OK, get moved onto the S&Ws. Nice rugged, accurate single action. About which I care nothing.

I've owned two over the years. One was a 7 1/2" and the other was a 4 5/8" convertible. The convertible is the way to go. I absolutely love .45 Colt, but being able to shoot the .45ACP was very convenient. Far more convenient than I thought it would be. I'd definitely recommend the convertible.

I currently don't have a .45 BH, but I do still have a .41 Mag, and a .45 Colt New Vaquero. The NV is a nice gun, and I never really hot rodded .45 Colt so it's working out for me fine.

Blackhawks are great guns. You won't be dissappointed.

Once upon a time I had a NM 4 5/8 45 convertible. I did not like it. That barrel length did not balance in my hand.

I now have a pair of 5 1/2" Bisley Blackhawks. I like them immensely. Part of it is the Bisley grip (which I thought was really dumb until I held one), but mostly it was that extra 7/8" of barrel. Changed the entire balance of the gun.

I have an old model 3 screw Blackhawk convertible that I shot for the first time yesterday. The 45 ACP shot a tighter group even though it has .457 throats. The Blackhawk is a well made workhorse. If the price is right, buy it.

I've had this one since 1977. Very nice pistol and fun to shoot. Expensive to feed if you don't reload. 45 ACP is much cheaper if you can find a convertible model.

Over many years I've owned about 10 Ruger Blackhawks, half of them in 45 Colt. I found them all with one exception to be well made, and modestly accurate. However, the one above did not live up to expectations and took me while to get straight. It started out to be a practice gun for me to get back into SA shooting while I waited for John Linebaugh to build me a full house 500 Linebaugh. But the gun as purchased new would not shoot better than 8" at 50 yards regardless of the load tried and John could not make it do any better. The solution was for him to fit a Wilson target barrel 4.75" long with a straight taper .800" in diameter. This is what the gun can now do at 50 yards with the right heavy load, 300 grain LBT LFN plain base over 13.0 grains of HS-6.


He also did a complete action job (e.g., oversized base pin, oversized bolt, .002" B/C gap, zero endshake, free spin pawl, etc.), but kept the springs factory strength. Last, he did his signature grip frame modification which removes steel from the front strap immediately behind the trigger guard. This gives my large hands more room during recoil without changing the trigger reach. Combined with the modified grip frame are a custom set of grips with presentation grade French walnut. They are wider in profile with a broader, flatter rear face that spreads the recoil over a larger portion of my hand. The difference is startling. My first Blackhawk in 45 Colt was a five shot high power gun built by John Gallagher in the mid-90s. I never could even approach the power level was designed to handle due to the extreme discomfort of the factory Bisley grip. In sharp contrast, I shot John's personal 500 Linebaugh with his modified grip and found the gun very easy and comfortable to shoot. The load was a 450 grain load with 16 grains of HS-6, his go to everyday load, about 1100fps.

You should also notice the long range front sight with two silver inlays which really aid in holding accurately on targets well past spitting distance. Like the full size (6'X9') steel buffalo targets at 1000 yards (they're the little black dots on the far ridgeline.


Keith

My Bisley with 7" barrel is my backup gun in the woods. Mostly I carry it in hopes to get a shot at a bear. Not that the 300 savage won't knock a bear down, but I want the bragging factor of shooting one with that 300 grain lead plug. I can still dream.

Ruger

palmetto99 said:

I have had a hankering for a single action revolver in 45 Colt. A local shop has a used New Model Blackhawk in 45 Colt. The barrel is 4 5/8". Super clean. Anyone have any experience with the Blackhawk in this caliber? Thanks folks.

Click to expand...

I have owned two of the 45 colt Blackhawks since the 70's, the 4 5/8 is my holster gun when I am hunting, camping, or whatever in the woods. It has been my companion on many hunts, and twice has been dunked along with me in rivers when dumped out of a raft.
I load it with my cast SWC over a healthy dose of Unique. It has done everything over the years that I asked it to. I was in a deer stand yesterday and the Ruger was there for moral support.
The 7.5" is one of my "go to" deer harvesters. I load it with a heavy 45 caliber bullet, a dose of 296 that mimics 44 mag performance and it has put many a deer in my freezer.
They are great guns, built like a tank and will provide decades of service.

Confession:
I have a Ruger Blackhawk .45 convertible 4 5/8" which I have never fired.

I have two Bisleys, a 5/12" and a 7". I love them both. The longer one has a 2x scope on it. I much prefer the Bisley grip to the standard one.