What a difference the trigger spring mod makes on a Ruger Blackhawk

[MacTech]

I have a Ruger New Model Blackhawk .45 Convertible (.45 ACP/.45 Colt) with 7.5" barrel (and gorgeous custom handmade grips) that I bought used for a princely sum of $350, still in the original yellow cardboard box and with what appeared to be an unused .45 ACP cylinder in the little red cloth bag

It's a great shooter, accurate with either cylinder, and has a glass-smooth, crisp trigger pull, a truly great revolver (and loads of fun with either cylinder fitted)

I've read up about the trigger spring mod, in which you move one of the "legs" of the spring below the stand-off in the grip and it lightens the pull, I was skeptical, there had to be a catch, it sounded *too* easy....

Trigger pull Pre-mod;4#
Trigger pull post-mod; 2.5#
I used my Zebco DeLiar 228 fishing scale, so it may not be 100% accurate pounds-wise, but the fact remains that it took almost half as much effort to release the trigger after the mod

And the best thing is, it's entirely reversible, if I decide to go out handgun hunting with it, it'll take less than a minute to put the trigger back to the safer 4# pull for hunting, as it stands, 2.5# is a bit too "hair-trigger-y" for a hunting revolver, but fine for a range toy

 

[chg]

We've been doing that for years, works great most of the time. Only time they need more is when it's heavy and creepy as once the trigger return spring has one leg dropped it turns to light and creepy. Glad yours worked so well.

 

[Drail]

Dropping one leg off of the trigger works pretty good for "some" Rugers but every one I have ever owned or shot had so much creep in the trigger the only fix was a full blown trigger job where the hammer and sear are worked on. Lightening just the pull weight is an improvement but for absolute trigger control you gotta get rid of that creep. I have a .41 Bisley that was awful when I bought it but now has no creep and has a 1.5 lb. trigger. I will not let anyone who is not familiar with extremely light triggers handle it. At 100 yards it will place every round into a coffee can if the shooter knows what he's doing.

 

[ClemY]

As cheap as I am, I confess I still get the reduced hammer and trigger spring kits. They also include a heavier cylinder base pin lock spring. I smooth the action and smooth the hammer strut, installing the 17 lb spring. I get a very nice action and trigger release when I am done. I save the parts in case I need to send the gun to Ruger for some reason.