Medium-framed Blackhawk questions

[Catpop]

That 1967 above was sold by me in 1983 to pay for my wife's cancer treatments. The guy I sold it to came and asked me if I wanted it back in 2008. He had shot 5 rounds through it and put it in a drawer. I paid $50 markup and got the partial box of cartridges that I gave him with it back!

That’s the best of the best!

 

[Fiv3r]

I just got reacquainted with the joy that is the .357 blackhawk. While a medium frame would be nice as the full size blackhawk chambered in .357 is an over built tank, I don't mind the heft.

My first blackhawk was a stainless 6.5" .357. Heavy, but "gnat's tushy" it was in accuracy. I ended up trading it some years later.
I've dabbled in 3 or 4 cowboy guns in the .357 flavor. Very cool, but limited on what it could digest and accuracy to be expected.

Just a few days ago I was shopping for a new single action. I had nearly talked myself into a new .44 magnum Vaquero with a short 3" barrel. It was more than I wanted to spend in a caliber I would find niche at best, but it sure was pretty.
Then in the used case I spied a .357 blackhawk for the fair price of $469. "Used" is the most academic of terms as if you had told me it was NIB I would have believed you. Not a mark on the gun.
The guy behind the counter says, "Ah, I've had my eye on that one. I took it in on trade, and if it didn't sell in a week or two, I was going to buy it...it has a conversion cylinder, you know."
A brand spanking new convertible .357/9mm Blackhawk for under 500? Yes please
When I got it out, I noticed that it was NOT a 6" barrel but 5.5" Lipsey exclusive. SOLD. Shoots like a dream and balanced nicer than the 6/6.5" barrels. Stoked full of 124gr hp 9mm as I type. 158gr .357 jhp for hiking in the woods.
Very happy camper

 

[dickydalton]

dickydalton

That's some good gun karma right there!

The best part is that it is the First revolver I ever owned. I got it at age 15 for $87.50 and it survived our house fire in 1978. that's why the original grips are gone.

 

[bannockburn]

dickydalton

Then it's come full circle and it's now back where it belongs!

 

[MidRoad]

The best part is that it is the First revolver I ever owned. I got it at age 15 for $87.50 and it survived our house fire in 1978. that's why the original grips are gone.

Now thats a gun with a little back story. Seems like it's always coming back to you.

 

[flyingtiger85]

I bought my Blackhawk medium framed 357/9mm last month and checked the auction site I bought it on and they are $60 to $70 more.Don’t wait to long!
My cost for this one was $530.00.

 

[Graywolf686]

Now thats a gun with a little back story. Seems like it's always coming back to you.

 

[styles]

Seeing if this works

 

[TikkaShooter]

Here are a couple of mine; a .357 and a .22/.22 mag Single Six. The .357 is a 1969 and the 22/22 mag is from the early 1960s. The .357 has a Buelher (? spelling) trigger shoe.

 

[Driftwood Johnson]

I understand the adjustable sights are aluminum as well as the grip frame.

Howdy

Here is my old 45 Colt/45 ACP Blackhawk that I bought brand-spanky new for $125 in 1975. This was shortly after Ruger changed over to transfer bars in 1973.






I just took a magnet to it, and sure enough, the body of the rear sight is non-magnetic. So it must be aluminum. The rear sight blade is steel. They tend to be brittle and break easily, that is why Ruger raised the 'ears' on the frame to protect the rear sight blade from breaking. Sorry for the scratches on the aluminum, I have had this revolver for a very long time.






Here is a shot of the Micro rear sight on a Three Screw 357 Magnum Blackhawk from 1962. This one ids built on the medium sized frame. Notice this frame also has the raised ears to protect the rear sight. Sorry, I did not dig it out to see whether or not the body of the sight is magnetic.






Here is the Micro rear sight on a Three Screw 44 Magnum Flat Top from 1956. No raised ears to protect the rear sight.






Another view of the Flat Top 44 Mag rear sight.






Still another view. Notice the 'plum' color of the loading gate. Ruger was having problems with the blue on their Investment Castings back then, they would sometimes turn purple. It turned out they had too much silicon in the steel alloy. Shortly after this, the alloy was changed slightly and the plum colored castings went away.





A shot of the Three Screw Flat Top 44 Mag.






Regarding getting used to the 'Colt style' of setting the hammer to half cock to load: As I said I bought my old Blackhawk with the transfer bar in 1975. It was the only single action revolver I owned for many years. So needless to say I was used to simply opening the loading gate to load six then closing the loading gate. I did not buy my first colt style single action revolver until about 2000 when I started shooting Cowboy Action. It took about an hour or so of playing around with the gun late at night, shooting bad guys on the TV to get used to loading a single action by setting the hammer at half cock and loading one, skipping one, loading four more, bringing the hammer to full cock and lowering it on an empty chamber. Been doing it for almost twenty years now and it is second nature. Now loading a Ruger seems strange. Which is part of the reason why, by the way, that I installed after market half cock hammers in three 'original model' Vaqueros. Now they load just like my Colts.

 

[CraigC]

Everything from the first eared models when they went away from the Micro to just the last few years has been aluminum. It's only been recently that Ruger started building their rear sights from steel again. If it has an eagle stamped on it, it's steel.

 

[bannockburn]

TikkaShooter

Have sort of the same thing with my vintage .357 Blackhawk and .22LR/.22 Magnum Single Six.