New Ruger Redhawk

WRD,

A longer barrel is not always the fix, cylinder gap, among many other things come into play.

A while back I was able to convince club members to loan me 7 44 Magnums to shoot across my chronograph with factory ammunition, reloaded lead and reloaded jacketed.

A 3inch power ported snub nose turned in greater velocity than a 6inch non ported revolver and the 6inch had a tighter cylinder gap than the 3inch.

Long review but plenty of data and pictures, I actually did not expect it to turn out this way and shot the 3inch 4 times across the chronograph.
http://www.dayattherange.com/?p=2925

Sometimes package size is more critical than ballistics. A 2.5" .454 Casull gets ballistics similar to a 7.5" .44 magnum. Either will kill a bear or mountain lion, only one of those is relatively concealable. Efficiency of powder charge utilization vs size efficiency.

A .454 Carbine encroaches on a .45-70. Likewise a .357 can get close to .30-30 energies out of a carbine with the right loads. Of course there are diminishing returns, but where someone decides to pick their balance point between size and horsepower is up to them. I think 3" is about a perfect size for a .357 in my book.

I will own one!

It looks like it's meant for carry, but Redhawks I've handled weighed as much as the anchor on the USS GHW Bush. But, for a cool grand, maybe it's titanium?

I'll pass.

I'll have to get one in my hands and see if I can reach the trigger. The round butt and compact stocks may fit someone like me. The Hogues on a Redhawk would certainly make it too durn' big for my hands. I'm very familiar with the GP100 and SP101 but have never even held a Redhawk.

This revolver shows real promise! It could serve for both carry / self-defense and for hunting or trail carry. I've been wanting a DA revolver in my favorite caliber -- .45 Colt -- for a long time, but I also love the ability to shoot cheaper and more available .45 ACP. I hope Ruger sells a lot of these!

Edited to add:
As a kid, I wanted a S&W M1917, but never found one in good shape that I could afford. The Model 25s looked great, but I was always short of cash when one crossed my path. The ability to fire both the most popular .45 semiauto cartridge and the most popular .45 revolver cartridge makes the Ruger very appealing to me. Perhaps this is the one that will follow me home.

Regards,
Dirty Bob

Just awesome.

I've wanted a .45 ACP Redhawk for some time. Really neat how .45 ACP can be used, which is far cheaper than any .45 Colt in my area, but .45 Colts can be used when more power is needed and up to and including .45 Colt "magnum" loads.

The round butt grips look really good... but are we stuck with these? Does anyone make grips for round butt Redhawks? I personally prefer grips with some meat to them, I think I'd have to hold one of these new Redhawks in my hands to see how it fits me before taking the plunge.

I believe that bird is a Raven on the Gunsite Logo!

jrod said:

I believe that bird is a Raven on the Gunsite Logo!

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Yes.

Since when does a rather generic blackbird symbol automatically= Nazis?

Back on subject, I'm currently researching defense loads in .45 Colt for the new Redhawk I'm about to buy, and it's THIS Redhawk!!

This new revolver caught my eye as well. I've been lusting after a 5.5" Redhawk for some time now, and the versatity that this gun offers has definitely got me interested.

The round butt grips look really good... but are we stuck with these? Does anyone make grips for round butt Redhawks? I personally prefer grips with some meat to them, I think I'd have to hold one of these new Redhawks in my hands to see how it fits me before taking the plunge.

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As far as I know, the factory grips are the only option at this time. The Redhawk has used the same square butt grip frame since 1979. In the past some have grinded the corners off the grip to create a round butt profile, but there hasn't been a factory round butt offering till very recently.

Mr.Revolverguy said:

A 3inch power ported snub nose turned in greater velocity than a 6inch non ported revolver and the 6inch had a tighter cylinder gap than the 3inch.

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Your findings are certainly interesting, but before abandoning Newtonian physics, I'd want to know more about that power port, and, regardless, would want all variables between not just one set of guns but multiple sets to be the same except for barrel length.

Of course, people choose the guns they do rarely for ballistics alone, especially since the ballistics of most guns are just fine for most purposes.

Not abandoning any of Mr. Newton's logic. I clearly state it was not a scientific test.

All I am saying is that more than a longer barrel is at play. You actually drove my point by mentioning yourself

would want all variables between not just one set of guns but multiple sets to be the same except for barrel length.

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Each will be different!

This thing is an ounce lighter than my 6" full lug adjustable sights GP100.

Also, with the shorter half-lug barrel, I bet it balances quite a bit better. The only thing I'd change about this gun is the checkering pattern on the grips and the "Redhawk" laser engraving on the frame. I think it looks sort of out of place.

My heart is throbbing the more I look at this gun...

So many guns, so little time... and so little MONIES!!!

That is not a Nazi emblem.