Ruger's Super Blackhawk
(.44 Magnum)
I've always liked revolvers. To me, when you talk of
semi-autos, a pistol is a pistol is a pistol (well, largely),
but a reolver is a gun with character. So when it came time to
buy my first modern six-shooter, it seems natural that I
should have been drawn to Ruger. I will admit that I was a
little aprehensive about handling a .44 magnum considering
that up to that point, the hardest kicking round I had any regular
experience firing was .45 ACP and yes, my fingers still get smacked
by the trigger guard once in a while but it also happens that my
choice of weapon was a furtunate one which substantially helped
provide a relatively gentle introduction to magnum cartridges.
Type: |
Single-Action Revolver |
Caliber: |
.44 magnum |
Capacity: |
6 |
Barrel Length: |
4 5/8 to 10 1/2 in. |
Overall Length: |
10 1/2 to 16 1/2 in. |
Weight: |
45 to 55 oz. |
Sights: |
Ramp Front, Adjustable Rear |
Finish: |
Blue, Satin Stainless Steel |
MSRP: |
$631-$759 |
In the 1950s, the .44 S&W special had been brought to what
was basically the peak of performance by such men as Elmer
Keith and had become the premier cartridge of its day, however
Keith felt that he could do better but didn't have a suitable
cartridge to use as a base for his high power
experimentation. Repeated calls for a more powerful 44 caliber
round had thus far been ignored. Finaly, in 1954, Smith &
Wesson and Remington saw the light and began to produce a new
round 1/8th of an inch longer that the .44 special and a
suitable firearm for delivery. Thus the .44 magnum was born.
Ruger, through whatever means—and there is debate on just
what these means consisted of—got wind of the .44 magnum project
and sought to try to beat Smith & Wesson to the draw, as it
were. Of course, it wasn't all smooth sailing. When it was
developed, the .44 magnum was the most powerful cartridge in
use. Unfortunately, Bill Ruger did not fully appreciate this. It
must also be remembered that the factory .44 special loads were
loaded to much lower velocities than Keith used. Therefore,
being built on a revolver originally designed for the .357 magnum,
it should be no surprise that during initial
testing Ruger's prototype suffered catastrophic failure.
(That means it blew up.)
After further testing, Ruger developed a reinforced cylinder
and frame that would ultimately become known by collectors as
the "Flat-top" model Blackhawk.
Indeed, Ruger had pulled off one of the greatest coups
in firearms history by getting the .44 magnum Blackhawk into gun stores in
some areas of the country before even Smith & Wesson's magnum. By many,
this is viewed as an excellent sixgun with only one major problem:
recoil. It was clear to a lot of people that weight needed to be
added to the frame. Thus came the development of the Super
Blackhawk in 1959. Refinements to the original design of both arms
were made in 1962 with what would become known as the Old Model,
also refered to as the "three screw" models, refering to the three
screws visible on the frame, above the trigger guard. Further
changes were made in 1973 resulting in the current, or New Model
Blackhawk and Super Blackhawk. It is this model which has made its
way into my collection.
Purchased as a Christmas present to myself in December of 2007 (it
was a very merry Christmas and a very well liked present) from my
favorite local gun shop, Guns,
Etc, it so happens that I was able to get it at a pretty
good discount thanks to a sale they were having at the time. Ruger
has always managed to keep the prices of their arms down to
affordable levels while at the same time still maintaining
quality. They may not be the finest revolvers out there but the
reputation for performance and quality that Ruger has built over
the years means that if you want to guarantee it works 100%
correctly 100% of the time, you buy a Ruger.
Impressions
So home I went with my very own Super Blackhawk. I must admit that
my selection of this particular revolver was also heavily
influenced by John
Taffin's book
Single Action Sixguns which I had been reading during that
period. I have a lot of respect for Taffin's writings but more than
that, I was impressed by the feel and handling of this revolver.
While my two favorite grip frames are the 1911 and the Old Army, the
grip on which the present Super Blackhawk is built is actually a
modified Dragoon grip (to better accomodate the recoil of these
more powerful rounds) which is where the Old Army grip originally
came from, and to me just feels good in the hands. In my case, though,
this pistol actually utilizes a later grip frame designed specifically
for the target shooter, the Bisley frame. With a longer grip, missing
the traditional "plow handle" flare, it is designed to make the
pistol more controlable under recoil.
Ruger's Super Blackhawk revolvers are all equipped standard with a
ramp front sight with a fully adjustable square notch rear sight.
With the introduction of the New Model revolvers, all Ruger
revolvers, whether single-action or double-action, are equipped with
a transfer bar safety mechanism. This prevents the hammer from
resting against the firing pin as with older models and, strictly
speaking, makes them safe to carry fully loaded. However, there are
many old timers who still prefer to carry the hammer on an empty
chamber for the sake of safety. To them it is a habit well learned
and eliminates the need to consider, "is this a new revolver that's
safe or an old one that I have to be careful of?" and from that
standpoint is a habit worth following. Another useful refinement is
the interlock of the loading gate with the cylinder lock and
hammer. This means that there is no need to bring the hammer to
half-cock in order to release the cylinder. Simply opening the
loading gate accomplishes this. In fact, while the loading gate is
opened, the hammer is held firmly in place and cannot be drawn
back.
The pistol I purchased is blued with a 7 1/2" barrel,
weighs in at 48 ounces, and has a 3.75 lb trigger. There are
still revolvers being produced using the old Dragoon style
square backed trigger guard but thankfully this is not one of
them. I'm pretty certain that I would be forced to tape my
fingers or risk losing bits of flesh every time I shot this
gun if it were. I think the square backed trigger guard is
fine on an Old Army revolver but feel that such a design is
out of place on a weapon designed for such a powerful round.
Equipped with the standard factory rosewood grips, this pistol fits
well in the hands. I am, however, a little less than pleased by the
fit of the grips to the frame and will more than likely replace
them in the future with something more aesthetically pleasing such
as carved ultra-ivory grips. On more than one of my weapons, I have
given serious consideration to having them engraved but this one I
don't consider a good candidate for that. The pistol just looks too
good with a smooth finish for me to want to change it.
One feature I will almost certainly add would be a free spin
pawl. I have noticed that the timing on this revolver is not quite
right. With the loading gate open, if you turn the cylinder until
you hear the "click", you've gone too far and cannot extract the
spent shell or load a new cartridge. This is not merely something
to do with my particular pistol, it seems to be the case on all
Super Blackhawk revolvers I have examined since. It truely seems
odd to me that Ruger would allow this condition to exist since they
take such great care with the rest of the mechanism but exist it
does.
Things that go BOOM!
The first magnum cartridge I ever fired was a single shot pistol
chambered in .500 S&W magnum which was owned by a friend of
mine. Up to that point, I had been firing mainly 9mm and .45 ACP
in full sized semi-autos and did not yet own any arms of my own. My
friend neglected to provide proper warning to me about the kick so
I spaghetti-armed it. Let this serve as a warning to all shooters
that safety glasses are not optional and that eyeglasses are not
safety rated. If one examines the left lense of the pair of glasses
I was wearing that day, a large scratch will be noted near the
bridge.
This scratch was made by the hammer of the pistol as it screamed
back towards my face. The impact was so great that the lense was
knocked clean out of the frame. That plastic lense is the only
reason I still have two eyes today. So when your range master
suggests you put on your safety glasses, LISTEN! Further,
for those like myself who need perscription glasses to see clearly
beyond 20 feet, remember that eyeglasses are not designed to take
an impact, safety glasses are. Nor do eyeglasses protect
from material entering from the side, safety glasses do. Invest in
a pair that fit over your glasses. In the interests of honesty, I
must say that I have not faithfully followed my own advice in all
circumstances, though I should, not just because of the weapon I'm
firing, but to guard against the guy next to me.
A hint at what this gun can do with better control
Once I had a chance to get this revolver down to the range, I did
not make the same mistake I made earlier and opted for a box of .44
special in order to get used to the pistol before I went for the
magnum rounds. Feeling satisfied that I had things under control,
it was time for the .44 magnum. After loading 6 rounds, I got a
firm grip on the pistol and held my arms steady. I fired, the
pistol recoiled, my finger got squashed. Ow! It was apparent that I
needed a more firm grip. Making the necessary adjustment, I fired
again, the pistol recoiled again, and my finger got squashed
again. Such was the pattern for all 6 rounds. This was clearly
going to take some getting used to.
That first session was not a very productive one for me but it was
a heck of a wakeup call stressing that big bore guns with heavy
loads deserved more respect than I had given them prior to that
time. With practice, I have since become accustomed to the recoil
and only occassionally does my finger get smacked by the trigger
guard, and usually only lightly at that. Having gotten in a decent
amount of practice, I'm interested in purchasing a smaller
Blackhawk with maybe a 4" barrel. Something that might qualify
as "the perfect packin' pistol" as Mr. Taffin likes to say.
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