Poorly-fitting grips from Hogue and Pachmayr for 2016 New Model Blackhawk

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MillCreek

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I picked up and installed the Hogue 83000 monogrip. I am underwhelmed with the fit and the difficulty in installing it. I found a video on the Hogue site suggesting using two business cards as shims while installing it, but there is still a perceptible gap at the backstrap insofar as the grip sits lower than the backstrap. I am puzzled by this insofar as I have several Hogue monogrips on my Ruger DA revolvers and they fit quite well.

I then decided to try the Pachmayr grip. It was a waste of money. The Pachmayr grip does not fit with the existing pin at the base of the grip frame, near the front of the frame. Try as I might, I could not close the 3/8 inch gap of the rubber grip at the base of the front grip frame. There were no directions saying that the pin has to be removed, and I did not try to drive the pin from the frame.

Bottom line: if you have a recent manufactured stainless New Model Blackhawk with a pin near the bottom front edge of the grip frame, this grip will not fit.

I should have paid attention to the Amazon reviews describing exactly these issues. I thought that since my Blackhawk was manufactured only a few months ago, I would not have these same issues. I was wrong.

So to recap my experience, the Hogue Monogrip fit poorly, the Pachmayr Presentation grip really did not fit at all and I have reinstalled the rosewood grip panels to the handgun. At least the stock grip panels fit.
 
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I tried the monogrip on a Redhawk. Like you say, it was very underwhelming. Poor fit and hollow feeling. Later I switched to a Bantam grip, also from Hogue. Night and day difference. It is more difficult to install but it is far superior in all other aspects. Do they make such a grip for the Blackhawk?
 
I picked up and installed the Hogue 83000 monogrip. I am underwhelmed with the fit and the difficulty in installing it. I found a video on the Hogue site suggesting using two business cards as shims while installing it, but there is still a perceptible gap at the backstrap insofar as the grip sits lower than the backstrap. I am puzzled by this insofar as I have several Hogue monogrips on my Ruger DA revolvers and they fit quite well.

I then decided to try the Pachmayr grip. It was a waste of money. The Pachmayr grip does not fit with the existing pin at the base of the grip frame, near the front of the frame. Try as I might, I could not close the 3/8 inch gap of the rubber grip at the base of the front grip frame. There were no directions saying that the pin has to be removed, and I did not try to drive the pin from the frame.

Bottom line: if you have a recent manufactured stainless New Model Blackhawk with a pin near the bottom front edge of the grip frame, this grip will not fit.

I should have paid attention to the Amazon reviews describing exactly these issues. I thought that since my Blackhawk was manufactured only a few months ago, I would not have these same issues. I was wrong.

So to recap my experience, the Hogue Monogrip fit poorly, the Pachmayr Presentation grip really did not fit at all and I have reinstalled the rosewood grip panels to the handgun. At least the stock grip panels fit.
There are 4-5 different grip frames for Blackhawks, and yours probably isn't one intended by this grip model.
 
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I had the exact same experience. It's not a wrong grip frame issue. I've tried every conceivable Pachmayr and it's a no-go. I thought maybe since my Stainless Blackhawk convertible was a distributor special, maybe it was different. Plus sometimes the stainless guns were different in the past. So I called the Ruger factory and the guy looked up the part number on the bill of material for the grip frame on my specific revolver by my serial number and confirmed it was the one the Pachmayr was supposed to be for (KXR-3).

I'm thinking of having a gunsmith do a Bisley conversion....
 
I had the exact same experience. It's not a wrong grip frame issue. I've tried every conceivable Pachmayr and it's a no-go. I thought maybe since my Stainless Blackhawk convertible was a distributor special, maybe it was different. Plus sometimes the stainless guns were different in the past. So I called the Ruger factory and the guy looked up the part number on the bill of material for the grip frame on my specific revolver by my serial number and confirmed it was the one the Pachmayr was supposed to be for (KXR-3).

I'm thinking of having a gunsmith do a Bisley conversion....
It COULD BE a grip frame issue, because the grip pattern Hogue was given (by Ruger) no longer matches what is on the newer guns. It is not nice to move the goal posts. I have 4 of the possible grip frames on NM Blackhawks, New Vaqueros and Single 6/7/10 and suspect the gun in question is a mismatch for the intended models.
 
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A follow up this morning from Ruger, responding to my question about purchasing black rubber or plastic grips as you find shipped on the current manufacture blued New Model Blackhawks:

Good morning Michael,

We do not currently offer black hard rubber plastic grips that fit your model. Thank you for your e-mail. Kyle


So the New Model stainless with no internal lock, manufactured in 2016, must be sufficiently different from all the other Blackhawk models. I wonder if it is the size or location of the roll pin at the bottom front edge of the grip frame, or that the stainless XR3-RED frame is larger in some dimensions, as I have read on the Net.
 
A limited data set...

I bought a 44 Special Blackhawk a year or so ago and went through the same issues with Pachmayr grips as the OP. I learned that the grip frame is not the same as a standard Blackhawk, its a bit smaller. I changed the grip frame so that I could use the Pachmayr grips.

I know, not a desirable option for many folks.

Except for my Single-Six, all of the centerfire Blackhawks I have are just plain unpleasant for me to shoot with smooth, hard, typical single action gun grips. The trigger guard raps my fingers.
 
A limited data set...

I bought a 44 Special Blackhawk a year or so ago and went through the same issues with Pachmayr grips as the OP. I learned that the grip frame is not the same as a standard Blackhawk, its a bit smaller. I changed the grip frame so that I could use the Pachmayr grips.

I know, not a desirable option for many folks.

Except for my Single-Six, all of the centerfire Blackhawks I have are just plain unpleasant for me to shoot with smooth, hard, typical single action gun grips. The trigger guard raps my fingers.
Before I start to shoot 41 Mag, 44 Mag, or heavy 45 Colt in a NM Blackhawk I put a Bandaid over my off hand middle finger knuckle that will rest behind the trigger guard.
 
I have a blackhawk in .41. It, too, is a 2016. The monogrips were a lifesaver to my hands. I have a taurus 357 (model 66) and they were fantastic for it too. Are they made for my specific gun? Nope. The odd boot clip, screw hole alignment thing is annoying, I get that, but they work well. They're way better than presentation grips that come on blackhawks, they don't rub blisters into my hands like the original grips on the taurus, and they're inexpensive. For those tradeoffs, I'll take them.
 
I have still been unable to find either Hogue or Pachmayr grips for my new model flattop 44 special. Is there such a thing and what is the manufacturers part number. Thanks from a frustrated old guy with a lumpy knuckle.
 
I have still been unable to find either Hogue or Pachmayr grips for my new model flattop 44 special. Is there such a thing and what is the manufacturers part number. Thanks from a frustrated old guy with a lumpy knuckle.
That would be a no-go for me. I would sell the gun and go double action, for which the type of grip you seek is common. I am shooting the Flat Top in 44 Special, 41 Magnum, and 44 Magnum and only need the BandAid on the leading knuckle. The rubber grips appear to me to lower the grip and effectively raise the bore axis, creating a rather different gun. Instead of driving into your hand, the gun now could buck considerably.
 
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They work fine for me on my NM Blackhawk and Super. 72 year old knuckles battered by sixty years of big bore handgunning. Have a padded sleeve for shooting trap and skeet. Doesn't let me grip the single action correctly.
Thanks.
Double actions I have all have H, or P grips or at the least a T grip.
 
They work fine for me on my NM Blackhawk and Super. 72 year old knuckles battered by sixty years of big bore handgunning. Have a padded sleeve for shooting trap and skeet. Doesn't let me grip the single action correctly.
Thanks.
Double actions I have all have H, or P grips or at the least a T grip.
The disadvantage with a lower grip would only really show up with magnums and other higher powered ammo. I am not really picturing any real trouble with moderate 44 Specials, but the Flat Top/Vaquero size grip frame could be an issue, and ones grip on the gun can weaken over time. It helps to pull in and relax after a couple shots rather than fatigue holding a sight picture for a full cylinder.
 
The new 44 Special flat tops have a different grip
frame from a "standard" Blackhawk. At least Pachmayr does not make a grip that fits the flat top grip frame.

I do not know about Hogue. My guess is "no".

Seems there is less of a market for soft rubber grips for single action guns and a greater variety of grip frame. Makes marketing difficult.
 
I will figure something out. That flat top is the perfect woods gun for down on my little farm.
 
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