GUNS & AMMO
and wood.From an aesthetic standpoint, I think this is
one of the coolest-looking guns I’ve ever owned. It looks
even more impressive next to other guns to provide a
sense of scale. I personally like the look of the short barrel with a full-length ejector rod housing as well. My gun
shipped with no obvious rough areas of machining and a
very consistent finish. I was impressed. Even internally,
the gun is smooth all-around.
Operation
The Blackhawk’s manual of arms isn’t as simple as a
modern pistol, but that’s part of the charm, and Ruger’s
design has made it as simple and safe as it can be without compromising the old-school fun of loading gates,
ejector rods and thumbing the hammer. Unlike Colt’s
Single Action Army design, the Blackhawk’s guts are
modern. Purists may scoff, but the added transfer bar
safety that allows for loading to a full six rounds makes
this gun great for those more concerned with shooting
than historical recreations.Here’s my only true complaint
about shooting this model of SBH: the relatively short
length of the barrel does limit the ejector rod as well.
Sometimes, the ejector rod can’t completely clear a
case from the cylinder, necessitating a manual extraction. A minor inconvenience at worst—and this is the
worst thing about the gun I can come up with. The Blackhawk shoots wonderfully. Cocking the hammer requires
an light amount of force, after which a very light, crisp
trigger with no creep or take-up to speak of takes only
about six pounds of pressure to set off your favourite
.44 magnum load. From the factory, the trigger is very
good. I don’t doubt a talented gunsmith could make it
otherworldly, but for my use, this is more than adequate.
It’s also something of a cliché, but it’s true that the plowhandle grip shape helps the gun roll in your hand with
recoil. Combined with the weight of the SBH, it’s comfortable to shoot loads that would feel rather punishing in
most double-action revolvers. My wife detests even light
Magnum handgun loads, but even she likes a mediumpower .44 Magnum cylinder occasionally from the SBH.
The Blackhawk’s sights are another departure from the
common gutter-and-halfmoon fixed sights. Here, you
get a modern set of sights adjustable for windage and
elevation with a small flathead screwdriver and a tall
front post. They allow for quick and accurate shooting.
When adjusting, it provides positive clicks and can cover
a broad range of elevation, allowing for the full range of
.44 Magnum handloads. I have yet to load something up
I can’t make shoot to point of aim at 25 yards with these
sights. Speaking of handloads, I’d also like to mention
two things to potential Blackhawk owners: one is that
this is truly a cartridge chemist’s ideal platform, able to
eat up just about anything you want to throw at it. I’ll
load mouse-fart .44 Specials and then, using a pre-recorded adjustment to the sights, switch up to blasting
fireball-belching magnums in the same range session.
This revolver rewards your consistent handloading with
repeatable performance.The second is that when load-
ing for the SBH, you have to be diligent about seating
primers deep enough. The gap from the backplate to
the cylinder is very tight, and a poorly-seated or raised
primer will cause the gun to lock up. When you’re done
blasting, tearing down the SBH for clearing is a snap. My
revolver’s topstrap and cylinder gap are getting pretty
murky from a consistent diet of lead bullets, but the performance is unaffected, and the parts that need cleaning
most are easy to take care of. In thousands of rounds
ranging from super-light target loads to heavy lead slugs
that punished steel plates with authority, I can’t think of
my Blackhawk ever failing to perform—and it’s consistently one of the most fun guns to shoot I own.
Big-bore fun
Normally, I categorize firearms by function, and recommend them to a specific audience. No gun is really
great for everything or everyone. But, assuming you
have a pulse and the money, I recommend the Super
Blackhawk to anybody even a little interested in singleaction revolvers. It’s just such a well-built gun I cannot
imagine any owner lacking pure joy over this purchase.
I sometimes get lost in either the utility or competitive
aspects of shooting, but the SBH always takes me back
to why I love shooting in the first place—it’s good, clean
fun!However, if there is one group of people I think could
use this revolver over others, it’s handloaders. This
weapon is a handloader’s dream. The .357 Magnum is
my favorite cartridge, but the .44 Magnum will provide
a great platform to learn on as well, and also accommodates a huge range of recipes to make the type of
round you like best. It also provides a huge financial
incentive to start handloading—factory .44 isn’t cheap!
Others could certainly use this gun for handgun hunting or wilderness protection, but to be honest, those are
secondary in my book as there are better options in my
opinion. My feelings aside, the SBH would work fine if
pressed into those roles. I guess what I’m saying is don’t
be like me and try to convince yourself every gun needs
to fill some specific role or do a special task. Some guns
can just be for fun, and this one is about as fun as it gets.
Overall
I think my enthusiasm for this revolver should be obvious. If it’s not, I’ll quickly recap everything here with a list
of pros and cons.
PRO:
Superb construction
Aesthetically pleasing
Mechanically sound
Great accuracy
Badass
Handloading delight
Fun for the whole family
CON:
Sometimes the ejector rod comes up slightly short, and
you have to manually pull a spent case out of the chamber part of the way
In conclusion, you be the judge.
49 | BOOM