Author Topic: OPINIONS NEEDED ON BLACKHAWK CONVERTIBLES 357 / 9mm (Read 706 times)

tradegun · « **on:** April 12, 2005, 05:57:08 AM »

what is your opinion of the Ruger convertible Blackhawk both the 357 / 9mm and the 45 COLT / 45 ACP models. I have lots of 9mm ammo and some 45 ACP, however I can not seem to fully appreciate the GLOCK pistols I have to shoot it thru. I am thinking seriously of buying a set of blackhawks and I am interested in some honest SHOOTER's evaluations.

Dragon31 · « **Reply #1 on:** April 12, 2005, 07:04:43 AM »

Tradegun:

For a long time I had a Blackhawk 9mm/357. Using the 357 cyclinder it shot as good as any other .357 Blackhawk in my collection. The 9mm cyclinder head spaced the 9mm round on the edge of the case mouth and this caused me some trouble with reloads. The cases were often to long to go into the cyclinder and allow the cyclinder to turn freely. Yes, I could have trimmed the cases but that is not what I wanted to do. Accuracy with the 9mm, was at the best average with 147 gr lead bullets showing the most potential. I lost interest after a while and traded the gun away for a Contender.

Prof. Fuller Bullspit · « **Reply #2 on:** April 12, 2005, 09:59:04 AM »

I have the .357/9mm convertible. When I first got the gun I shot a few boxes of 9mm through it because the ammo was cheap. It worked great. Accuracy for plinking was excellent and I had no problems with the gun or the inexpensive ammo I was using.

Soon after getting the gun I started reloading and found that I stopped using the 9mm cylinder because I could reload my .357 (or .38) brass cheaper than I could buy 9mm ammo.

But, if I had access to a lot of cheap 9mm ammo I would have no problem using it in my Blackhawk. If I wasn't reloading I would probably still be shooting cheap 9mm ammo out of my Blackhawk. Since I reload, I tend not to use the 9mm cylinder at all anymore.

Chris · « **Reply #3 on:** April 12, 2005, 02:32:29 PM »

Tradegun:

I shoot 9mm through a Blackhawk almost ever week...rarely shoot .38 or .357 through it. It's hard to beat $3.99 for a box of CCI 9mm since I'm no better-off shooting one type of ammo over the other.

IMHO, the 9mm is a real plus!

...Chris

Blackhawk44 · « **Reply #4 on:** April 12, 2005, 02:51:51 PM »

Having played with both(and some friends') in three screw models, in 9mm, surplus is OK, reloads a pain. Accuracy is average at best. New Models are too heavy for those cartridges. 45's very different. Usually very accurate. Handloading is no problem. Handy setup, since ACP's run through a progressive loader like water. No .45 single action should leave the factory without an ACP cylinder! Got one for my SAA years ago.

Jamie45 · « **Reply #5 on:** April 13, 2005, 07:11:02 PM »

I have had a 357 Convertible for a long time. My experiences pretty much are the same as Dragon31 and Prof Bullspit. I found performance to be underwhelming and the 9mm cylinder pretty much sits around collecting dust. I have just about decided to ship it off to Gary Reeder Custom Guns to have it bored out to 356GNR.

pharmuse · « **Reply #6 on:** April 14, 2005, 02:07:29 PM »

I picked up a like new convertable last fall and is shoots great. The 9mm are great for cheap plinking. It also came with a 38 super cylander, but I can't justify spending the $$$ on 38 super ammo (the 355's can't shoot with the 357's accuracy wise). It also came with an extra 357 which I may be interested in converting to the 356GNR.

Old Griz · « **Reply #7 on:** April 16, 2005, 06:34:14 PM »

:cb2: Loved mine so much I bought another. Now I love 'em twice as much. Got both barrel lengths, and both of them shoot the 9mm stuff just fine. Since I don't reload I bought a case of the Wolf 9mm and it's great for plinking. They are both dead on with .357 loads. I really couldn't be happier with them.