Ruger .44 Super Blackhawk
- Thread starter ruger357
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P95Carry
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ruger357 .... you will like this gun .. a lot! I reckon the MagTech .44 mag loads are pretty good .... not quite a stiff as some of my homeloads but - a very reasonable round.
I have the blued SBH, albeit with a longer barrel .... but find it'll take all the punishment you may wish to inflict .. probably more than your hand might agree with!
I added a B-Square mount to mine and threw on a cheapo red dot ... so far it seems to have taken punishment and still hits the spot .. quite a small cost addition really. Enjoy.
I have the blued SBH, albeit with a longer barrel .... but find it'll take all the punishment you may wish to inflict .. probably more than your hand might agree with!
I added a B-Square mount to mine and threw on a cheapo red dot ... so far it seems to have taken punishment and still hits the spot .. quite a small cost addition really. Enjoy.
shooter.45
Member
ruger357,
Better hold on tight..
Better hold on tight..
Stainz
Member
I bought mine back in June - $389 new. I ordered a QPR Bird's Head grip frame and adapted it. I have shot mine with .44 Russians, .44 Specials, and even mild .44 Magnums with the same result recoil-wise... a roll. Of course, by extrapolation from the various rolls, a really hot .44M round would result in a skyward muzzle upon firing!
The SBH frame was the basis for the 'Maxine' sized D-Max (now Magnum Research BFR) offerings. It is a stout design. I may have to get another one to add a Bisley grip frame to... naw, I'll just get a Bisley SBH Hunter... and live with that longer barrel. That 4.62" barrel is 'just right' - especially after removing that Ruger instruction manual...
Stainz
The SBH frame was the basis for the 'Maxine' sized D-Max (now Magnum Research BFR) offerings. It is a stout design. I may have to get another one to add a Bisley grip frame to... naw, I'll just get a Bisley SBH Hunter... and live with that longer barrel. That 4.62" barrel is 'just right' - especially after removing that Ruger instruction manual...
Stainz
Imaginos
Member
Relax and Enjoy
I have a stainless SBH, and it is my all time favorite handgun.
A bit of advice. Don't put rubber grips on it. I made that mistake, and they tore the skin off the web of my hand after only 70 rounds of standard Remington 44 Mag JSP. Stick with wood or ivory grips that let the gun roll in your hand. That is how the grip is designed to work. Don't mess with perfection.
I think you will find that the Mag and the Specials will throw to different points of aim.
I have a stainless SBH, and it is my all time favorite handgun.
A bit of advice. Don't put rubber grips on it. I made that mistake, and they tore the skin off the web of my hand after only 70 rounds of standard Remington 44 Mag JSP. Stick with wood or ivory grips that let the gun roll in your hand. That is how the grip is designed to work. Don't mess with perfection.
I think you will find that the Mag and the Specials will throw to different points of aim.
I put a Hogue Monogrip on mine and it works well; personally, I've never had a problem w/torn or abraded skin, but YMMV. The stock SBH grips were another matter. Maybe when I was 9 or 10 years old the grips on Rugers or other single actions would have fit my hand, but the stock grips let the SBH bang the crap out of my hand, esp. behind the trigger guard. I also prefer rubber b/c when I'm shooting heavy stuff, I want the gun staying put in my hand. And I like full-length grips b/c/ I want all my fingers on the gip, not wrapped under or dangling when the gun goes goes off.
Apart from velocity diffs between mags vs. specials or reduced vs. full power loads, bullet wt will also have a huge effect on POI. Mine shoots Fed 300 gr Castcores abt 2.5 in higher at 25 yds than it does full power 240 gr.
Apart from velocity diffs between mags vs. specials or reduced vs. full power loads, bullet wt will also have a huge effect on POI. Mine shoots Fed 300 gr Castcores abt 2.5 in higher at 25 yds than it does full power 240 gr.
444marlin - I'm sorry, but I don't. I do have a nice digital camera, but I'm pretty technilogically inept and it'd take me days to figure out how to post one.
Here's a pic from Hogue, tho.
I will tell you that it's an ugly thing, as you can see, but it made all the difference in shootability for me. I especially appreciate the way it fills in between the grip and the handguard. I also put one on my Single Six so that I could practice with it and replicate the feel, if not the sensation upon firing, of the SBH. The downside to having a rubber grip with a solid hold, rather than letting it "ride up", is that your hands and wrists take all the recoil impact. One wrinkle is that the retaining device, or as Hogue calls it the "stirrup" is too dang short for the Ruger frame on both that I've installed, and I had to file a notch in the retaining pin to get them to fit. It's pretty simple, tho.
Here's a pic from Hogue, tho.
I will tell you that it's an ugly thing, as you can see, but it made all the difference in shootability for me. I especially appreciate the way it fills in between the grip and the handguard. I also put one on my Single Six so that I could practice with it and replicate the feel, if not the sensation upon firing, of the SBH. The downside to having a rubber grip with a solid hold, rather than letting it "ride up", is that your hands and wrists take all the recoil impact. One wrinkle is that the retaining device, or as Hogue calls it the "stirrup" is too dang short for the Ruger frame on both that I've installed, and I had to file a notch in the retaining pin to get them to fit. It's pretty simple, tho.
JNewell
Member
Chiming in here with Treeprof and 444Marlin. The only loads I change the grips for are full-house 300+ gr loads. For those, I have a set of the rubber Hogues. Yes, I hate the look. Yes, it makes a big difference in how the gun treats me -- and how fast I can get back on target. Not a big investment -- worth a shot IMO. 
Tex did you change the grip out yourself to the bisley? I have never cared for how the bisley looks but have heard it is much better for recoil. that is why alot of the custom guys use it on their bigbore sixguns. If you did it yourself where did you order it from and how hard of a job was it to change?
I bought a new complete Bisley .45 Blackhawk, but I do know Brownell's sells the Bisley grip frames and related parts, and I have heard of guys changing them out.
The Ruger Bisley frame indeed works better for me for recoil; I had a Super Blackhawk in college, and it was no fun with full power loads. This Bisley works fine with hot loads, so yeah, I would definitely recommend it.
The Ruger Bisley frame indeed works better for me for recoil; I had a Super Blackhawk in college, and it was no fun with full power loads. This Bisley works fine with hot loads, so yeah, I would definitely recommend it.
JNewell
Member
I have thought about ordering the parts several times from Brownells, but the price (they sell a "kit" of factory parts) always seems a little spendy. Be advised that there is also generally some fitting required (i.e., removing metal) to match the parts.
Jim March
Member
Remember: Ruger does ship a lemon once in a while. Linebaugh has discussed seeing stock Ruger SAs with various out-of-spec elements on a number of occasions...sometimes so far off, even he can't set 'em right .
If you have an SBH that you KNOW shoots well, then changing the grip frame out will never make that worse. The "accuracy elements" aren't affected, unless you screw up the trigger pull somehow and that can always be fixed (unlike a basically mis-aligned frame holding the barrel cockeyed to the cylinder).
So ya, you'll spend just over $200 for the Bisley conversion bits. And you won't get that back in resale. But if this is a gun you want to keep and was made on one of Ruger's "good days"...it'd be worth it to me!
Oh, and QPR is working on a BRASS Bisley grip frame project. They've got some already but in limited numbers and sorta "beta test mode" so they're selling them installed only. Once they get the installation bugs out and the quantity up, I would expect this to be both cheaper and easer to home-install (softer brass is easier to work with hand tools than steel).
.If you have an SBH that you KNOW shoots well, then changing the grip frame out will never make that worse. The "accuracy elements" aren't affected, unless you screw up the trigger pull somehow and that can always be fixed (unlike a basically mis-aligned frame holding the barrel cockeyed to the cylinder).
So ya, you'll spend just over $200 for the Bisley conversion bits. And you won't get that back in resale. But if this is a gun you want to keep and was made on one of Ruger's "good days"...it'd be worth it to me!
Oh, and QPR is working on a BRASS Bisley grip frame project. They've got some already but in limited numbers and sorta "beta test mode" so they're selling them installed only. Once they get the installation bugs out and the quantity up, I would expect this to be both cheaper and easer to home-install (softer brass is easier to work with hand tools than steel).
JNewell
Member
One nice thing about SS and brass is that most shadetree types can get a good metal finish on it after they do the fitting. Harder with blued parts.
Well I got to shoot it today. All I can say is WOW. Seems like the gun shot more point to aim with .44 spls than the .44 mags. It was the first time I shot .44 magnums and I think I'm really hooked. The recoil was not as bad as I thought. The Ruger rolled in my hands nicely with the Buffalo Horn grips. Can't wait to shoot her again.
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