Is the Ruger Blackhawk 45 LC any good?

[Marlin Hunter]

There is a USED Stainless Ruger Blackhawk in 45 Long Colt at a local gun shop. I think it has a 7 or 8 inch barrel. I really don't like Rugers, but this one seems to call me every time I go into the shop. I always ask to see it. I looked on the Ruger website and can't find anything. There website is a mess. There are also too many Ruger single action revolver models for me to know exactly which one it is.


They are asking $550 for it. Is this a good price? What do you think of these revolvers?

[IllinoisCoyoteHunter]

I own a Blackhawk in 357 mag and love it. It is a great shooter. $550 for a used one seems kinda high, but I may be wrong. I judge prices by online gun stores and the going rate online for a plain jane 7.5" blackhawk in 45 colt is about $420 (impact guns.com). Stainless....add about $100. Hope this helps!

[spqrzilla]

If you want to play with the .45 Colt cartridge, which can be great fun with heavy bullets, then the Ruger Blackhawk is a great platform to shoot it in.

I might balk a bit at the price myself too however. I came close to buying one blued for $400 recently but ended up with the 4 5/8 inch barrel.

[stubshaft]

It's a great gun! I have put thousands of rounds through my 4 5/8" BH. It IS high priced. You could get a NIB Lipsey special for $485 + S&H.

[buck1]

It's a great gun! I have put thousands of rounds through my 4 5/8" BH. It IS high priced. You could get a NIB Lipsey special for $485 + S&H.

GREAT GUN! So so price. It will out last you, your kids and thier kids!

[MT Gianni]

I think you could get a new one for that. IMO it would be worth it.

[hickstick_10]

short of freedom arms, you wil be hard pressed to find a better 45 colt at ANY price compared to a ruger blackhawk

[44man]

You might have to lap the throats on a .45 but the Ruger will shoot as good as any revolver on earth.
For the price, I would just buy a new one. The barrel will be 7-1/2", perfect all around length. 5" is good for a backup gun.

[timkelley]

Price pretty high.

[Thumbcocker]

I bet you could get a convertible with the .45 acp cylnder for less if you shopped around. The .45 acp is a good plinking load for the blackhawk.

[Marlin Hunter]

I forgot to mention that I live in California, and we can't buy new handguns were the manufacturer has not PAID A FEE to have their guns tested by the DOJ and put on a list of "safe" guns. The listing method is ridiculous. ANY slight change in the gun causes it to be considered another model and needs to go through another test (and fee). It doesn't matter what the change is. If the barrel is a different length, if there are different colored sights or night sights, if the finish on the gun is dull or shiny, everything is a change and makes it a new gun. I believe the test costs $10,000 each. not too many manufacturers want to pay $10,000 for each model the sell in this state. The Ruger I was looking at is not on the list. Old guns that were here before the list went into effect are OK to sell, but only face to face transfers at the dealer. Older hanguns sell for 20-30% higher in this state than they would in any other state. A friend of mine just sold a brand new (1988 era) Colt King Cobra .357 6" barrel for, I think, $1200.

From the list, these are the new Rugers that come close to what I was looking at. Expiration date is shown at the end, then another extortion fee must bee paid.


KRH-455 / Stainless Steel Revolver 5.5" .45 Long Colt 12/31/2010
KSRH-7454 / Stainless Steel Revolver 7.5" .454 Casull 12/31/2010


http://certguns.doj.ca.gov/

[Daves1]

Bought a used Blackhawk in .41 mag for $375.00 recently, you can do better.

[Crash_Corrigan]

I have a Ruger BH new model with a 4 5/8 bbl and an extra .45 CAP cylinder. The seller claimed that it was original. It came with a brass frame and stag grips.

The price was reasonable ($325) and I bought the gun. Too late I tried to use the extra cylinder and it does not work in this gun. I called Ruger and with the serial number I found that the gun was shipped from the factory with a 7 1/2 bbl and a blue steel frame. It was not a convertible. It did not have a brass frame. It did not have a 4 5/8 bbl.

All that being said it is a great shooter. The chambers measure .454 and the forcing cone is in good shape and measures at .453. The cylinder gap is only .004 and the thing is dead nuts accurate with cast boolits cast sized to .452. I use straight ww's and they squish up enuf to prevent gas cutting and this gun does not lead up at all if I keep the velocity reasonable.

The only down side is that the grips are huge for my dainty hand. I need to get this thing sanded down some and maybe send it back to Ruger to have the cylinder fitted to the gun. Another long term project.

The price that your seller wants seems a bit high. If it was an Old Model with the good trigger and no transfer bar I might consider it but if it is a new model with the transfer bar and less than stellar trigger I would go buy another.

[Wireman134]

But the 45 Colt is a fine chamber for a sixgun. That is what you pay for in Cal., seems $100 too much for used. The shop probably got it for $350 or less in a trade. Haggle with the seller...

[462]

Marlin Hunter,
I live in California, too. Last year, I bought a 30-year-old, 6 1/2", blue .357 Blackhawk from an out-of-state seller for $300. Transfer went through my local dealer.

Check the auction sites, as that one is priced wrong.

[JDFuchs]

for Christmas I got a brand new blued 357/9mm black hawk. And I don't think ill ever let it go. Cost only about $550 hear in CO

[ReloaderFred]

Marlin Hunter,

Single action revolvers are exempt from the DOJ approval process in California. Boyd Davis, the owner of EMF, lobbied hard with the various attorney generals to get them exempted, and he was successful. If your dealer is telling you otherwise, he's misinformed. You can check the CADOJ website for the list, and it says SA revolvers are exempted.

You can buy new Ruger Blackhawks in California.

Hope this helps.

Fred

[RayinNH]

Marlin, a little confusion on my part here. Your opening post you mentioned a Blackhawk. That price is too high for a used Blackhawk. In one of your other post you gave stock numbers for Redhawk revolvers. That price for a used Redhawk is okay, not terrific, but okay. The Blackhawk is a single action, the Redhawk is a double action. In any case the .45 Colt in a Ruger is a very good combination...Ray

[Gee_Wizz01]

Here in NE FL pistols are higher than most places in the south, but a NIB Ruger Blackhawk Convertible in 45 Colt/45ACP are going for 549 +tax in blue. A convertible in Stainless was $125 more. So your price seems high. They are great pistols and are safe to carry with 6 rounds in the cylinder. Mine are a lot more accurate than I am capable of shooting. I noticed the prices you quoted in your later posts are for Redhawks, and that is a fair price for a good used Redhawk.

G

[HammerMTB]

I have a NM BH in .45 Colt 4-5/8" bbl.
Love the gun. I was in line to go in a gun show and an old gent showed up with it. He had the brass from the only box of shells it had fired. He had bad arthritis, so it hurt him to shoot it. He sold it to me for $400.
I already had a handcannon, a 9-1/2" SRH, but this is so much more packable. And it will shoot loads from gentle cowboy to heavy magnum

So the SRH is set up to do longer range work (scope) and the .45 fits nicely in a piece of leather on my hip.

Find another one, tho. That price is WAY too high.