Author Topic: Ruger New Blackhawk 45 Colt is a shooter (Read 2685 times)

Redhawk1 · « **on:** February 28, 2007, 04:34:58 PM »

I went to the range today and put 100 rounds through my new Ruger Blackhawk 45 Colt. Man I am impressed by the accuracy of the gun. Now my buddy's a little up set with me though. We were at an indoor range and he was shooting next to me, we had our targets set at 25 yards. One I was out shooting him and second, I shot the close pins off his target that holds the target in place.

He is a newer handgun shooter and he gets frustrated very easy, I have to tell him, I have been shooting handguns for a lot of years. I have been working with him for about 6 months now, he is getting better but still needs a lot of work.

But I love this Blackhawk.

Lloyd Smale · « **Reply #1 on:** March 01, 2007, 01:09:06 AM »

glad you got a good one. Ruger 45s have been pot luck for me. Some have shot and some not. Most can eaisly be made to shoot but ive had much better luck with ruger 44s out of the box.

Lloyd Smale · « **Reply #2 on:** March 01, 2007, 01:10:28 AM »

Now go work up some heavy loads for that thing and kill something with it so you can get rid of that 460!!!

Redhawk1 · « **Reply #3 on:** March 01, 2007, 01:47:22 AM »

Sorry Lloyd, the 460 is here to stay...... I will get ride of it when you get rid of your 500...

Lloyd Smale · « **Reply #4 on:** March 01, 2007, 08:40:54 AM »

come on now you know your just holding on to that thing so you dont have to admit i was right!

Redhawk1 · « **Reply #5 on:** March 01, 2007, 09:55:50 AM »

I like the 460, it's a keeper. Now that don't mean I can't get other guns.

Now I will be loading some of them 300 gr. hard cast gc bullets in my 45 Colt. I want some thumpers.

Camel 23 · « **Reply #6 on:** March 01, 2007, 02:40:55 PM »

Glad to hear you got a shooter. I love my Ruger 45's too!

Redhawk1 · « **Reply #7 on:** March 01, 2007, 03:20:23 PM »

I'll be back at the range with it next week also.

CJ · « **Reply #8 on:** March 01, 2007, 06:33:38 PM »

Keep it up and you will be changing your handle! LOL

Redhawk1 · « **Reply #9 on:** March 02, 2007, 01:07:13 AM »

CJ, I know. LOL

The funny thing is, I never chose Redhawk because of the gun though. It is a Native American thing.

Racer X · « **Reply #10 on:** March 02, 2007, 02:36:02 PM »

Glad your's shoots. My SBH Hunter in 45 Colt did not when I got it. Had I known all the aggrivation I would have with it, I would have gotten the 44 Mag version. Dave Clements is fixing mine to make it shoot.

Camel 23 · « **Reply #11 on:** March 02, 2007, 04:15:13 PM »

Quote from: Racer-X on March 02, 2007, 02:36:02 PM

Glad your's shoots. My SBH Hunter in 45 Colt did not when I got it. Had I known all the aggrivation I would have with it, I would have gotten the 44 Mag version. Dave Clements is fixing mine to make it shoot.

That's goofy! My SBH Hunter in 45 Colt is the best shooting handgun that I have ever fired. Shoots great with what ever load I put in it.

Lloyd Smale · « **Reply #12 on:** March 03, 2007, 01:41:39 AM »

Ive shot camels 45 and its probably the most accurate out of the box ruger ive ever seen! Some of the groups hes showed me are almost scary!. Only thing i dont like about it is its got one of those tubey things on top of it. Kind of like a carrying handle that you can look through to spy on your neighbors wife!!!! But that being said ive had a bunch of ruger .45s and its about pot luck with them. Ive had them that shot one inch groups and had them that i had to really fight to get to shoot and wouldnt do 2 inch on there best day. Ive also got to say that ive yet to see a ruger 44 that wasnt a shooter. Usually throating the cylinder and recutting the forcing cone is about all it takes to fix them though. Another thing ive noticed with my .45 rugers is they all have shoot better with heavy bullets. I dont usually like posting a generic load because every gun does well with something different. I dont like posting specific loads but if a ruger .45 wont shoot a 300 rcbs swcgc bullet with h4227 it usually isnt going to shoot. You can get a powder weight from about any loading manual.

Quote from: Camel23 on March 02, 2007, 04:15:13 PM

Quote from: Racer-X on March 02, 2007, 02:36:02 PM
Glad your's shoots. My SBH Hunter in 45 Colt did not when I got it. Had I known all the aggrivation I would have with it, I would have gotten the 44 Mag version. Dave Clements is fixing mine to make it shoot.

That's goofy! My SBH Hunter in 45 Colt is the best shooting handgun that I have ever fired. Shoots great with what ever load I put in it.

Camel 23 · « **Reply #13 on:** March 03, 2007, 07:14:29 AM »

Hey Lloyd, I found out that the carry handle comes off if you loosen those big screws under the see-through handle. I just leave it on to keep your blood pressure up.

I take it off every once in a while.

Lloyd Smale · « **Reply #14 on:** March 03, 2007, 09:13:21 AM »

Hell someday i might be old enough that i have to use one of those spyglass things again myself!

Quote from: Camel23 on March 03, 2007, 07:14:29 AM

Hey Lloyd, I found out that the carry handle comes off if you loosen those big screws under the see-through handle. I just leave it on to keep your blood pressure up. I take it off every once in a while.

CJ · « **Reply #15 on:** March 03, 2007, 11:08:30 AM »

I have BHs in .44, .357, and one of the Accusport .45 colts, my .45 is by far the best shooter of the bunch. Mine didnt come with the carry handle thingy to spy on the neighbors wife though. Is that something you have to add aftermarket?

Cheesehead · « **Reply #16 on:** March 03, 2007, 01:07:53 PM »

I replaced the original grips with a large rubber Hogue grip with a rough texture. It completely changes the way the gun feels and reacts to recoil in the hand. It is not for the single action purist but I love it. I believe it has made it a better hunting hand gun for me and recommend it. It makes the hot 45 lc loads more manageable, for me.

Cheese

Racer X · « **Reply #17 on:** March 04, 2007, 01:57:53 PM »

Quote from: Lloyd Smale on March 03, 2007, 01:41:39 AM

Ive shot camels 45 and its probably the most accurate out of the box ruger ive ever seen! Some of the groups hes showed me are almost scary!. Only thing i dont like about it is its got one of those tubey things on top of it. Kind of like a carrying handle that you can look through to spy on your neighbors wife!!!! But that being said ive had a bunch of ruger .45s and its about pot luck with them. Ive had them that shot one inch groups and had them that i had to really fight to get to shoot and wouldnt do 2 inch on there best day. Ive also got to say that ive yet to see a ruger 44 that wasnt a shooter. Usually throating the cylinder and recutting the forcing cone is about all it takes to fix them though. Another thing ive noticed with my .45 rugers is they all have shoot better with heavy bullets. I dont usually like posting a generic load because every gun does well with something different. I dont like posting specific loads but if a ruger .45 wont shoot a 300 rcbs swcgc bullet with h4227 it usually isnt going to shoot. You can get a powder weight from about any loading manual.
Quote from: Camel23 on March 02, 2007, 04:15:13 PM
Quote from: Racer-X on March 02, 2007, 02:36:02 PM
Glad your's shoots. My SBH Hunter in 45 Colt did not when I got it. Had I known all the aggrivation I would have with it, I would have gotten the 44 Mag version. Dave Clements is fixing mine to make it shoot.

That's goofy! My SBH Hunter in 45 Colt is the best shooting handgun that I have ever fired. Shoots great with what ever load I put in it.

When I sent it to Dave Clements last April, I had him slug the bore. It measured .452" under the forcing cone and .4523" under the muzzle. I would sometimes group ~ 1-1/2" but not predictably. I wanted it to be able to accurately shoot .452" diameter bullets so I wouldn't always have to order custom sized ones. That is, if I got in a pinch and needed some quickly, I could order Cast Performance or shoot the jacketed stuff accurately.

Laundry list of what Dave is doing to the gun:

1) Re-boring a 44 Hunter barrel to .4505" - .451". Barrel will be cut rifled and hand-lapped with a 1 in 18 twist. Forcing cone and muzzle re-crowned also.

2) Linebored/Re-bored SS Super Blackhawk cylinder (not roll marked) with minimum spec chambers and .453" throats.

3) Remove endshake and set barrel/cylinder gap to minimum.

3) Oversized # 5 locking base pin

4) Action Job

5) Free-wheeled cylinder

7) Bowen Target rear sight and one of Clements custom front sights

Black Micarta Grips (Letts) fitted to Bisley gripframe

9) Removing the "Ruger Warning" from the barrel (if engraving is not too deep)

I will probably never scope it, but wanted to have the option if I ever decide I need one. The extra weight is nice.

Racer X · « **Reply #18 on:** March 04, 2007, 02:04:51 PM »

Quote from: Lloyd Smale on March 03, 2007, 01:41:39 AM

I dont like posting specific loads but if a ruger .45 wont shoot a 300 rcbs swcgc bullet with h4227 it usually isnt going to shoot. You can get a powder weight from about any loading manual.
Quote from: Camel23 on March 02, 2007, 04:15:13 PM
Quote from: Racer-X on March 02, 2007, 02:36:02 PM

Lloyd, what velocity are you running with the 300 grain bullets and H4227 and what kind of groups? Dave told me when I get it back not to run alot of H110 or 296 through it because those powders are rough on forcing cones. He recommended 4227 and 2400.

Thanks.

Camel 23 · « **Reply #19 on:** March 04, 2007, 04:17:01 PM »

I haven't put this load on a chrony yet but I expect it to be in the ball park of 1100fps. This is a six shot group @ 25 yards with the 300gr RCBS SWC loaded over H4227.

2 dogs · « **Reply #20 on:** March 04, 2007, 04:38:13 PM »

I'm impressed!

Camel 23 · « **Reply #21 on:** March 04, 2007, 05:36:00 PM »

Quote from: 2 dogs on March 04, 2007, 04:38:13 PM

I'm impressed!

Thanks, I'd love to tell you that was off-hand with open sights but that would be a lie.

Using sand bags and the scope Lloyd hates so much, its a shooter.

Glanceblamm · « **Reply #22 on:** March 05, 2007, 02:52:33 AM »

Redhawk1
It is great to here that you have a shooter on your hands. I have yet to fire even one shot through my new SBH although I do have a couple hundred rds ready to go.
This gun is 35 days old and I don’t know if it will ever forgive me. Maybe I will just look at it and never shoot it

I am just back from a hospital stay. Doctor said I cant be eating tin cans & old license plates anymore because of Divercusomethingorother.

One of these days I will let you guys know how this .44 shoots. My .45’s have set the bar pretty high for it though. Lloyd…I ran the Dragon back trigger guard across the bench grinder, Is this good gunsmithing?

Redhawk1 · « **Reply #23 on:** March 05, 2007, 04:37:19 AM »

Hope to be heading back to the range this week and try some of my 325 gr. reloads in the 45.

snuffer#1 · « **Reply #24 on:** March 05, 2007, 12:07:13 PM »

Congrats on the 45 colt. I've got one in 45 colt also, with a 7 1/2" barrel. I also put hogue grips on mine. It seems the regular grips are too small for me! I shot a box of cowboy loads to kinda get used to it. I then loaded it for hunting loads. I'm using hornady 250 gr. XTPs being pushed by 23.5 gr. of Lil Gun. Boy is it a thumper! And like yours Mine is dead on accurate. It's shooting around 1" groups, at 30 yds.! I've been shooting it soo much, I've got to get some more bullets. I might go with remington this time because the hornadys are a little pricey! I've already nick-named mine already, THE PUNISHER!
thomas

Redhawk1 · « **Reply #25 on:** March 05, 2007, 12:43:48 PM »

I think these 325 gr. hard cast bullets are going to be a little of a handful...

Lloyd Smale · « **Reply #26 on:** March 05, 2007, 12:48:25 PM »

when you going to give me my target back!!!!!!!!!

Quote from: Camel23 on March 04, 2007, 04:17:01 PM

I haven't put this load on a chrony yet but I expect it to be in the ball park of 1100fps. This is a six shot group @ 25 yards with the 300gr RCBS SWC loaded over H4227.

Camel 23 · « **Reply #27 on:** March 05, 2007, 04:17:04 PM »

Lloyd, if it was your target, the grouping would be half that size.

Tom C. · « **Reply #28 on:** March 06, 2007, 02:41:31 AM »

I have one SBH, a SS 5 ½” one and it is spot on. Shoots very well. I have five .45 Colts, four SS NMBH and one SS Bisley. Three of the NMBH and the Bisley are 5 ½”, one NMBH is 7 ½”. All had tight chamber throats to one degree or another, and all had barrel choking where the barrel is tight where it gets squeezed down as it passes through the frame. The cylinders were easy; I just got the reamer and started reaming. The barrels were a little more tricky, but once you take care of those two issues, they have shot well for me. I have also added .45 ACP cylinders to all of them except the Bisley. One of the cylinders was .455” and most were .450”. I reamed them too. The cylinder for the 7 ½” gun is .451”, but shoots so well I am not going to touch it. The .455” cylinder shoots well, too, so I can’t get too worked up about it being oversize.
One thing I have found is that the .45 chambers in addition to being tight also have other minor manufacturing flaws. The throats can be oval, “S” shaped, tapered, anything but cylindrical. The reaming of the throats to .4525” tends to remove the imperfections and leaves a much better cylinder.

COLT45 · « **Reply #29 on:** March 07, 2007, 02:41:55 PM »

You guys seem to be shooting some HOT loads----I understand the BH in .45 Colt is stronger that the Ruger NEW Vaquero and that HOT loads can or will blow up a NEW Vaquero---Any truth to that?