9mm Blackhawk, Why?

[TreeDoc]

I'm having a hard making up my mind on buying a new blackhawk convertible and was wanting some opinons to help push me one way or another. I don't reload yet and have a single six for plinking and sometimes run 22 mags for extra umph and varmits. The Blackhawk will be for target, range and occaisonal woods gun, maybe go on a hunting trip as a backup. I have a 9mm G17 that shoots very well. So, what would the 9mm cylinder really be used for? As I understand it, the 9mm accuracy in the blackhawk can be spotty. I think I've answered my own question, now that I typed it down. What's your veiw. Thanks

 

[CajunBass]

Because back when Ruger first introduced the convertable Blackhawk, surplus 9mm ammo was cheap.

It added a degree of versitility to the gun also. You could find some kind of ammo, somewhere, most anywhere you went. 9mm might not have been ideal in it, but it worked.

 

[flyingtiger85]

How about that 9mm is a high pressure powerful round and it's $9.99 for a box of 50 and 38-special is $18.99 a box of 50.Also I remember here in Nevada all the ammo was blown off the shelf for almost a year.That's not the case now but a gun that shoots different rounds like the blackhawk convertable is kind of cool.357/38/9mm.It's something to think about.The Flying Tiger.

 

[Smaug]

Agree w/ Flyingtiger

If you're going to reload, there's no need for the convertible.

Another benefit of reloading for revolvers is that you can load 38 Special level reloads in 357 cases. VERY easy to shoot, very accurate, brass lasts for ever, doesn't beat you up. Oh, and you're largely unaffected by shortages of commercial ammo.

 

[HGUNHNTR]

The idea of a handgun that can fire 9mm, 38 spl, and .357 is very appealing. If accuracy was your key concern stick with the 38 and 357, if ammo availability is an issue you have the most common handgun round in the world to fall back on.

 

[HankR]

I used my 9mm cylinder quite a bit. I'm not the best shot in the world, but I didn't notice any serious lack of accuracy. Offhand it was just as good at spinners and tin cans as the .38 and .357. My groups on paper were nothing to brag about, but I don't remember them being any worse w/ the 9mm. I had expected, due to the bore difference, for there to be lots of flyers w/ the 9mm but this wasn't the case.

It was one of my first revolvers, and I used it to teach new people to shoot. Non-shooters thought "9mm" sounded cool, and it was a step between the plinker .38s and the full house mags and (as mentioned above) the 9mm was dirt cheap back then. To save having to clean the rings out of the cylinder, I would use 9mm and .357 (no .38s).

 

[Remllez]

As stated earlier....Versatility plus the 9 isn't nearly as loud. The 9 is the cheapest shooting of the 3 calibers if you don't reload. Plus it's way cooool!!!

 

[bayhawk2]

I have the .45 Colt/.45 ACP (new version)and love it.
I shoot more .45 ACP than Colt due to it haveing enough snap
and just plain fun to shoot.I reload for both,but the
.45 ACP is cheap to reload and the brass is plentiful at my range.
One thing however.I had to ream out the throats on the Ruger
cylinders.My cast bullets would not fit in the cylinder holes.
You'd think Ruger would have got the cylinder throats right.
After doing the throats,it became my number one fun gun at the
range.B/H

 

[RidgwayCO]

I've got a 4-5/8" Blackhawk Convertible in .357/9mm. I purchased it for its versatility and it hasn't disappointed me. .38 Special, .357 Magnum, and 9mm all shoot pretty well. Since it's a Ruger Blackhawk, I sometimes use it for testing 9mm Luger handloads that may be a touch "energetic." I wouldn't want to take the chance of messing up any of my semiautos, so the initial tests are in the Blackhawk.

To my way of thinking, buy two Ruger Blackhawk Convertibles and you can shoot .38 Special, .357 Magnum, and 9mm Luger in one, and .45 Colt, .45 Schofield, and .45 Auto in the other. Six different cartridges in two guns. Pretty nifty in a SHTF scenario.

 

[PapaG]

Absolutely the stupidest trade I ever made was a six inch original Python for a Ruger convertible 357/9mm. Surplus ammo was dirt cheap, I reloaded the longer rounds and I thought I'd have the world by the tail. Sometime around '68 or so. The nines dried up, the python's value went up about 1000% and the Ruger shot neither worth a crap. I love Rugers but that Python was my best ever.
Dumb, dumb, dumb. A friend told me to never trade or sell a gun. Can't say I always follow his advice but my bulging vault says I try.

 

[76shuvlinoff]

9mm out a solid Blackhawk is like shooting 22s. Other than just being cheap and fun it's something my wife can enjoy with me when I'm plinking. It's not competition grade but it'll stay on a paper plate at 25+ yards.

Oughta be dead on the length of the hallway.


.

 

[DWFan]

Put the 9mm cylinder aside and save up to have it sent to Gary Reeder. Have him rechamber it to his .356 GNR. The .356 GNR is a .41 Magnum necked down for .357" bullets and delivers ballistics equal to the ultra-pressure .353 Casull (180gr bullet @ 1700 fps).

 

[sixgunner455]

Cheap factory ammo that is quiet and low recoil. And then there are weird things you can do with it to make it shoot really hot loads, like DWFan suggested. Versatility. It's a good thing.

 

[Jeb21]

Perfect Y2k end of the world type gun. One gun three calibers.

 

[GRIZ22]

If you find yourself out of 38 and 357 you can use your Glock ammo.

 

[Gryffydd]

Put the 9mm cylinder aside and save up to have it sent to Gary Reeder. Have him rechamber it to his .356 GNR.

This might be a cool idea for some people, but it literally has exactly opposite benefits and drawbacks from the 9mm cylinder. So I guess ultimately it just highlights the ultimate flexibility of this gun.

 

[dagger dog]

I owned a NMBH Convertible 357 Mag., 38 S&W, Special,9mm Para,
5 1/2" , at the time I hadn't started handloading, and was shooting jacketed bullets. The 9mm was really that accurate.

Now that I cast and handload I would like to try the 9mm again, but hind sight is 20/20 and like every one, I wish I would never had traded thet gun off.

Go ahead and get the convertible !

 

[Saragosa]

3 calibers in one gun and, if you want, the cheapest retail handgun ammo this side of a .22. Can't ask for more than that. I love my Blackhawk convertible.

 

[PO2Hammer]

I had the 9mm/.357 convertible and the 9mm cylinder shot very well for me. I had many group under 4" at 25 yards standing.
My .357 cylinder was bad, had one charge hole that threw magnums wild, LRN .38's shot well though.
Even if you are going to reload, the 9mm cylinder is nice for those times when you don't have any hand loads made. It's not much more than the standard Blackhawk.

 

[Trikerider]

I love mine, shoots 9mm better than my old eyes can see. Haven't even had the 357 cylinder in it yet. I reload also, but have lots of 38/9mm ammo, so will shoot some of that up first. trikerider