44 Mag 7.5" SBH's- Bisley VS. Standard grips???

[Oklahoma Rebel]

For heavy recoiling, full-house 44 mag loads, which do ya'll prefer? I didn't know how to do a poll, or even if I could

[str8wal]

Bisley!

[woodsie57]

I tried a standard Blackhawk in 44 mag, always had problems with vertical stringing- my groups might be 2" wide at 25 yds, but 7" tall- traded it for a redhawk, much better-( for me) still love the looks of the Blackhawks, but I gotta go with what works for me! Have fun with whatever you settle on!

[shoot-n-lead]

Depends on the shooter...have to try it and see.

There is no "one size fits all" answer to this question.

[dhom]

The bisley has worked well for me. You have to practice using the same grip all the time for best accuracy.

[44man]

I can't make a Bisley shoot. But like is said, it is best to find a way to try all grips.

[Oklahoma Rebel]

anyone know about indoor ranges and how much to rent both to try?

[Bookworm]

I much prefer the Bisley grip. My Bisley SBH Hunter is much easier for me to shoot than my plow-handle 5.5" SBH.
Of course, the extra weight of the SBHH makes the comparison uneven.

[44man]

My SBH Hunter was here two weeks. Glad it is gone.

[contender1]

If you look at all the truly big bore handguns,,, the Bisley shape is the preferred one to use.

[Blackwater]

Hands and their sizes and conformation, and thickness of fingers, etc., vary as much as personalities do. So the only way to really know is to try them both. One point: dhom above has it right. The ONLY way you'll EVER get accurate with a SA .44 is to learn to grip the gun the same way every time, with the SAME PRESSURE in your grip. Change the pressure on the grip, and the gun will recoil and slide down in the hand at a different rate, producing vertical stringing, and less than satisfactory accuracy. Only when you learn a good, consistent grip, will you achieve accuracy with a .44 SA. And the firmer the grip, the better. Think of a good, firm handshake. That's pretty close to the pressure you need to use for an optimum grip on a .44 SA. The more firmly you grip it, the less variation there'll likely be when changing bullet wts. and loads, which is always desirable. It also tends to kind'a make it easier to grip consistently, too. Take it one evening, and play with how you grip it. Get to know the feel intimately. And try various grips and pressures, and see which you tend to be able to reproduce on demand the most consistently. That's about the right grip for you. As you learn to shoot with a good, firm grip, you'll likely get stronger, and you can tell when that happens because your POI will be a tad lower on the target. Compensate by adjusting the sights, rather than the grip. The more firmly you learn to grip it, the better you'll likely shoot. Hope this helps?

[Oklahoma Rebel]

44man, why are you glad it is gone, and after only 2 weeks? what type of SBH was it. I'd like to hear the story.

[44man]

44man, why are you glad it is gone, and after only 2 weeks? what type of SBH was it. I'd like to hear the story.

I listened to all and bought the SBH Hunter with a Bisley. Another friend only bought a Bisley and I shot them too. Up to a .500 Linebaugh. I shot only one good group with one. I could not get a consistent hold. It beat my knuckle so a shift would throw shots. Then he had fancy, slippery grips that made it worse. He had a big .500 Alaskan revolver with Bisley smooth grips. I would not shoot it. He used padded gloves and put a pile of band aids on his fingers and still got this on his head.Yeah the Bisley reduced recoil! He was getting his trigger finger cut to shreds with the Bisley. But he is stubborn as all get out.
The reason I sold the Bisley Hunter is I shot many, many hog leg Hunters to 1/2" at 50 yards but I could not do it with the Bisley. It is a cult thing with no reason.
The history of the grip was with low recoil target loads to get the sights in a better position for one hand shooting. It was never about recoil at all.

[buckwheatpaul]

I know that I am wading in late but I carried a S&W 29 on the streets for years and shot it well with full power loads....I also had a Redhawk and a Super Black Hawk. The rolling of the SBH gave me problems but it shot well if I did my part. I like the double actions because they do not roll in your hand like the SBH and the felt recoil is worst but the consistent grip made up for the increased recoil.

[6pt-sika]

I had a circa 1957 Ruger Blackhawk in 44 MAG that I liked quite a bit , but with full house loads the trigger guard would eat up the nuckel on my middle finger . I could have remedied that with a set of the Pachmayer rubber grips that get you out from behind the trigger guard and I actually had a set that came with the gun . I just didn't care for the look . Anyway I've had several Redhawks and Super Redhawks in 44 and 480 as well as a couple 629's . I for some strange reason seem to shoot double actions a bit more comfortably (and better) then I ever did with singles . FWIW I "had" a Dan Wesson 357 MAX with an 8 3/8" barrel that someone had bought for silhouette when it was new , anyway it was a nice gun stainless with ventilation ports in the sides of the shroud . Now bear in mind I was NEVER a IHMSA shooter but I could usually clean the chickens and the pigs with that gun offhand but not so much with a Ruger Blackhawk in 357 MAG . Anyway that's my own personal opinion of the question .

[Crazy Carl]

I'm in the Bisley camp. It just works for me & I absolutely love my .41 Bisley SBH Hunter.

I've never shot a SBH with the "Dragoon" grip frame, but it certainly felt nice in the hand. The plow handle's fine & plenty comfortable for .357, but for my .41s, it's Bisley all the way.

[Beagle333]

Bisley. I believe 6 of mine sport a Bisley grip now.

[Lloyd Smale]

I'm a bisley fan. I think there much better at controlling heavy recoil and I just shoot them off hand better. that said the recoil of a 44 mag isn't that severe and ive got both bisley and black hawk gripped 44s and like them both. What I don't like is the dragoon grip on the supers. They beat the $$$$ out of my middle knuckle. Ive got a permanently swelled middle knuckle from the first two 44s I had both supers with dragoons. That was over 30 years ago and the knuckle is still twice the size of the left one. Some don't like the bisley. But go to a linebaugh seminar where guys are shoot HEAVY recoiling guns and id bet to a man theyd prefer a bisley. I remember when I had my 4 inch bisley vaquero 500 built a few of the guys went gaga over it. Came back the next year and kelly brost who was the original owner of cast performance bullets was there with his brand new 4 inch 500 with a Blackhawk grip frame. That thing was brutal to shoot. My bisley was a lot more comfortable with the same loads and everyone that shot both agreed. I can do heavy 44 mag and 45 colt on a Blackhawk grip with no problem but step up to something that recoils more then that and id bet 99 percent of shooters would tell you the bisley is easier to shoot.

[44man]

For me anyway, I never let a gun "roll." But I can't get the same hold with a Bisley or S&W 29. I hate the SBH square trigger guard so I put Pachmeyer grips on all. My .45 Vaquero was so nasty I put Pachmeyer's on it too.
The BFR's come with Uncle Mike grips and are perfect. The BFR has a SBH frame with a round guard. It is a big Ruger cast at the Pine Tree foundry.
I love wood but not on a big revolver, even the Freedom .475 ate my friend so he bought the rubber grips for it.
Somewhere around 1957 I gave up LOOKING at guns and started to SHOOT guns. The old flat top was OK with wood panels but the SBH was not kind at all. I have had blood pour from my knuckle.
Put the fancy wood on for show but change to shoot.

[Spector]

OMG Lloyd. I just had x-rays run on my hands last week. My middle knuckle on my right hand gives me fits anymore. My rheumatologist asked if had trauma to it. I said no. I had forgotten how swelled up it used to get when I shot heavy revolver loads in my Rugers. That finger is starting to bend now and locks up if I grip something small too tightly.

I think you just defined where my problem stems from. That and two kinds of arthritis.

Mike