Been looking at the Ruger Blackhawks in 30 carbine , any oppinions on them good or bad. Thanks Jeff
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Been looking at the Ruger Blackhawks in 30 carbine , any oppinions on them good or bad. Thanks Jeff
I've heard mostly favorable reports on these, except....speaking of report, most guys say the muzzle report of these is particularly ear-splitting, so be prepared for this. Otherwise...it should make a fine plinker.
lathesmith
Quattros Gun Shop in Pleasant Valley, NY has a used one for sale.
+1 What Lathesmith said. They are definitely alot of fun to plink with and have a horrendous muzzle blast!Quote:
Originally Posted by lathesmith
I acquired two new Blackhawks last year. The primary issue with the carbine is the casing overall length. Typically fired brass is too long and will bind the cylinder unless trimmed. I already had the
Lyman .311359 but found that the boolit had to be deep seated or else the boolit itself would prevent the round from completely chambering. I also have a Lyman .313226 that I have used with some success. Still working with a Lee mold as well (soupcan?)
I don't find the muzzle blast to be a big issue as I load these at pistol levels. It will bark if you use FMJ factory or surplus ammo. I also use pistol primers, usually magnum primers, depending on the powder.
I think Beagle has a good write-up on the M-1 carbine in Cast Pics.
The other Blackhawk is a .45 convertible. The .45 acp cylinder does not seem to be as fussy as the carbine. Mostly I use the .45 Colt cylinder because of the variation in point of impact.
Read Beagle's article for starters. I have found that using .32-20 data with lee soupcan of 120 rn's works ok. Be careful with the taper crimp. Too much crimp and the rounds go in too deep and no bang. The .30 carb BH is very flat shooting and super accurate but it has it's own rules and you can't fudge on them much.
The .45 acp cylinder in the BH will shoot well but seating depth is critical. 200grn swc's with 5.5 or so of 231 works for me. Less lead and powder used.
FWIW
And...Handloader magazine just had an article last month on it.
IMO, it's one of the most accurate pistol rounds made and the noisiest as well but you have to do a lot of adjusting on your handloads with cast to get them to shoot right.
I've had two and the first one (Late 60s) was a bear to load for. I never got it to shoot right before I dumped it prior to a trip to VN.
The second one does well.
Now, what we need is a Blackhawk with interchangeable cylinders in .32 Mag, .32-20 and .30 Carbine...or a straight walled rimmed case with the strength of the .30 Carbine case.
Very acurate, economical cast bullet round for light game, targets or plinking./beagle
Lots of fun to shoot; especially at night. It is an absolute bear to load for. You have got to get the case length just about exactly right. If you are too long, you will bind it up. Too short and you will light strike the primers. I would definitely use pistol primers since they are softer.
I bought a .30 carbine BH because it was a good deal. Was going to trade it but got attached
to it quick. Its just fun to shoot I use unique for light loads and 2400 or H110 for full power.
The brass is pretty stout I lube a case every six or seven even with carbide FL die.
As previously stated using GI Ball ammo or commercial stuff; the muzzle blast will knock the ears off a stone horse. In loading for it one has to watch a few things or problems will occur. Length is critical. Too long=no chamber and/or binding on the recoil plate. Too short=too far in and no bang. Seating depth is also important as not deep enough=too long and no chamber and or binding again on the recoil plate. I was using RCBS 120 grain RN with GC and did well. GC is really not necessary, I lucked out and snagged an H&G #254 which was made for the 30CB and it works fine. So always watch the trim length and the COL. I've used a slight taper crimp effectively. As for powder and charges, a number of different combos work well. I settled on IMR 4227 in and around 14.0 grains which has worked reliably for me. Definitely a very accurate revolver-cartridge combo. Reading Beagle's article is absolutely a must!! I got hooked on his development and use of 32-20 cases and had a grand time working with entire concept. 32-20 cases being rimmed really solve the seating and chambering issues associated with the carbine cases and the grouping/accuracy is really good. Its a blast (pun intended) to shoot and a lot of fun to plink or shoot target with; a good companion to carry when you're toting your regular carbine around. Definitely recommend as a solid gun that's worth the money and the time working with it. Good shooting. LLS
VERY, VERY L O U D !!!! A friend finally sold his because he couldn't
stand the noise. It was accurate, but he just could not get enough hearing
protection to be comfortable.
Bill
the noise is just a matter of using lots of slow burning powder with a light bullet. Load the 3220 the same and it will be just as loud. Load the .30 with faster buning powder or a tad heavier bullet and its no louder then anything else. Its the factory ammo that gives that gun its loud reputation and not to many here are useing factory ammo in there guns. Only advantage i can see to the 3220 over the 30 are a better selection of good handgun molds and the fact it headspaces on the rim. the 30 can be a bit finiky if overal length and crimp arent just right.
The 30 Carbine and 32WCF can both be earsplittenloudenboomers as Lloyd points out. I'd still buy the dream gun Beagle mentions. Fun guns.
The only handgun I've ever had stolen was a Ruger Blackhawk in 30 carbine. It was loud, obnoxious, and accurate as all get out. I'd sure like to have that gun back, if I ever stumble across a deal on one I'll buy it in a heartbeat.
I've got an Old Model 3 screw in .30 Carbine, but have never shot any .30 Carbines in it. I found a New Model cylinder that fit it and started shooting 32-20's with it. The Old Model cylinder has recessed rims while the New Model doesn't, so you can use the rimmed cases in it. Due to the bullet I wanted to use, I had to trim the cases a little, and use a .311 bullet, as the bore is .308-9", but it shot very well with that setup. Reloading took a little longer as I had to add an extra step to the process, but was still able to do them on a Dillon 550, so it wasn't too time consuming. Finally had a dedicated cylinder made up for it in 32-20, and it shoots great with 14.5 grs of H110 and a 115 gr gas checked bullet.
McLintock
NOISE lol. Let me see if I can put this another way. If you shoot one you would think that you just shot a 30-06 Deer Rifle lol. That is with GI Ammo. And the fire ball out of the barrel well you would just have to see it lol. But you can see the fire ball in the day light of at least a foot long. :)
So as other have said you really do need to handload for the .30 Carbine
Now, don't fall into the pit that a lot of people do in loading for the .30 Blackhawk. Open about any loading manual and look at the data for pistol and rifle and they seem to regurgitate the same data.
For goodness sake, it's a revolver and you can run it at any velocity and noise level you want. You don't have to load it at max all the time. Loaded down it makes a nice, flat shooting little plinker with a 110 grain cast./beagle
I tend to load mine to the firewall -- and then some. :-) 1700+ fps with 100 grain commercial cast bullets, and I get insignificant leading if even that (I don't understand it.) The most shootable loads were when using 2400 and backing off just a little. 12.0 grains, from memory.Quote:
For goodness sake, it's a revolver and you can run it at any velocity and noise level you want. You don't have to load it at max all the time. Loaded down it makes a nice, flat shooting little plinker with a 110 grain cast./beagle
Best boolit I've found is a .312 RNFP resized down to .309, but I still have too many boxes of commercial bullets to use up first before I buy a new mold.
for my 30 i got tired of messing with the 30 brass and just went to 32-20 brass cut them back enough to fit my boolit in the cylinder where it just missed the throat by almost but not touching.
the boolit is the rcbs 98 gr 32 cal sized to313 to help it sit square in the cylinder.
i just use lighter 32-20 data [3.5 of 700-x ] mainly cause i had a lb of it and the lee dipper i picked up first holds that much.
accurate yep flat shooting too. i finished off a deer that had a broken leg with it at 70 yds.
through and through penetration.