New Blackhawk 45LC/45ACP

[Ed_Shot]

So impressed with my recently purchased Blackhawk 357/9mm 6.5" I sold a weapon I wasn't fond of and got a new Blackhawk 45LC/45ACP 5.5" two days ago. Aware of the issues with tight cylinder throats I felt confident I could get things corrected "IF" I a problem.

First thing I did was unhook one leg of the factory trigger spring. I like this trigger pull better that the replacement Wolff spring I put in my 375/9MM.

I did not slug the bore nor try to measure the cylinder throats on the new .45 .... they are what they are.

I have a .452 H&I die for my Lyman 450 and use 2500+ lube. I have Lyman 452374, 452630 and and an NOE 452-210-RF/HP (w/roll crimp grove) which I load for my CZ 97B and the 1911's in the family. I was really hoping to feed the new Blackhawk the same ammo I used with the auto's. Partially successful.... the 452374 w/OAL 1.272 functions perfectly in the Blackhawk. The 453630 SWC which I normally load to 1.245 has to be loaded to 1.220 to chamber (boolit shoulder must be level with case mouth). I didn't even try to shorten the NOE 453-210-RF/HP enough to have it chamber in the 45 ACP cylinder; it was however perfect for .45LC.

I cannot push any of my .452 sized boolits thru the throats of either cylinder by hand.

Just did my first range test hoping for the best but expecting the worst. Fired 50 ea. 45 ACP with 452374 (OAL 1.272) over Promo 4.5 gr. and 25 ea. 45 ACP with 452630 (OAL 1.220) over Promo 4.5. Additionally, fired 50 ea 45 LC with NOE 453-210-HP. The alloy for all boolits for this test was hardball.

I frequently checked for leading in the cylinder throats and barrel.....THERE WAS NONE! It consistantly placed all rounds for both 45 ACP and 45 LC in a B-27 X-ring at 10 yds. Didn't even have to adjust the sights.

After firing I cleaned both cylinders using one wet patch and one dry patch just to see if there was leading I couldn't see....all were perfectly clean as was the barrel.

ALL I NEED TO DO WITH THIS BABY IS SHOOT IT!

[6string]

I've got one of those 45 convertible Blackhawks, too. When I got it, (for $175!!) I was very active in bullseye shooting. I found the Blackhawk to absolutely match grade accuracy-wise, with both cylinders. Since you mention the B27 target, I've used the 45 Colt out to 100 yds, standing bullseye-style, no problem.
The grip and balance have always suited me well, even when the 1911 was my primary match gun.
Fully agree with your assessment regarding leading (or lack thereof), etc.

Glad to hear how much you enjoy yours!

Best regards,
Jim

[contender1]

As a Ruger fan with a few of the OM AND NM convertible 45's I can attest to how good they are. You giot a nice gun there. You may still want to have the chambers checked to see if they need uniforming,,, but it appears you are doing good so far.
My only thought is how you've done the "poor boy" trigger job by unhooking one leg of the spring. I know it is done quite often & many are happy with that. However,,, I have purchased Rugers that the owners were not happy with due to malfunctions, only to find the only thing wrong was the unhooked one leg spring. Replace the spring & all problems solved.
May I suggest a spring replacement WITH the services of a gunsmith in smoothing up the action? A simple polishing of the action parts along with new springs can greatly enhance the shooting feel of that gun. When you unhook one leg,,, that leg can (and has) caused binding of the hammer spring. I once bought a 357 Maximum for $275, because of just that one issue. It caused rough cocking & inconsistent cocking. I also got a NM 45 Colt (not convertible) done the same way for $300, and a Ruger Old Army with a nice holster for $250 that way. All 3 3 had the exact same thing wrong,,, one leg off & binding. Just my experiences in over 40 years of fooling with Rugers.

[No_1]

I do like the Ruger Convertibles and have one of these combination pistols. There is something about a combination pistol that I like.

[Gunslingerdoc]

I love mine! seems to shoot every thing in 45LC from 200 -300 gr. the Lee 200gr bullets make for a very soft shooting load.

[Tackleberry41]

The ACP cyl makes it cheap to shoot, but also run 45 super in mine.

[mozeppa]

what do you mean you "unhooked one leg of the trigger spring"?

did you not hook it back?
does it work with one side unhooked?
is the trigger easier to pull? aka "hair trigger"?

i've never heard of this....is this good? bad?

[DougGuy]

So impressed with my recently purchased Blackhawk 357/9mm 6.5" I sold a weapon I wasn't fond of and got a new Blackhawk 45LC/45ACP 5.5" two days ago. Aware of the issues with tight cylinder throats I felt confident I could get things corrected "IF" I a problem.

First thing I did was unhook one leg of the factory trigger spring. I like this trigger pull better that the replacement Wolff spring I put in my 375/9MM.

I did not slug the bore nor try to measure the cylinder throats on the new .45 .... they are what they are.

I have a .452 H&I die for my Lyman 450 and use 2500+ lube. I have Lyman 452374, 452630 and and an NOE 452-210-RF/HP (w/roll crimp grove) which I load for my CZ 97B and the 1911's in the family. I was really hoping to feed the new Blackhawk the same ammo I used with the auto's. Partially successful.... the 452374 w/OAL 1.272 functions perfectly in the Blackhawk. The 453630 SWC which I normally load to 1.245 has to be loaded to 1.220 to chamber (boolit shoulder must be level with case mouth). I didn't even try to shorten the NOE 453-210-RF/HP enough to have it chamber in the 45 ACP cylinder; it was however perfect for .45LC.

I cannot push any of my .452 sized boolits thru the throats of either cylinder by hand.

Just did my first range test hoping for the best but expecting the worst. Fired 50 ea. 45 ACP with 452374 (OAL 1.272) over Promo 4.5 gr. and 25 ea. 45 ACP with 452630 (OAL 1.220) over Promo 4.5. Additionally, fired 50 ea 45 LC with NOE 453-210-HP. The alloy for all boolits for this test was hardball.

I frequently checked for leading in the cylinder throats and barrel.....THERE WAS NONE! It consistantly placed all rounds for both 45 ACP and 45 LC in a B-27 X-ring at 10 yds. Didn't even have to adjust the sights.

After firing I cleaned both cylinders using one wet patch and one dry patch just to see if there was leading I couldn't see....all were perfectly clean as was the barrel.

ALL I NEED TO DO WITH THIS BABY IS SHOOT IT!



If you think it groups well now, it will certainly please you even more if you size cylinder throats to .4525" so that the .452" boolits are a light drag fit in the throats. Once reamed the throats can be lapped to within .0002" of each other, THIS is the single most important part of the cylinder, how even the throats are with each other. It matters less what their size is, well, to a certain extent, but it matters most how even they are from one to another. No way can Ruger get those even because they use 3 different cutters to throat one cylinder and replace that tooling one at a time instead of all three at a time. Your cylinder is a lucky one, some are better than others..

[Ed_Shot]

what do you mean you "unhooked one leg of the trigger spring"?

did you not hook it back?
does it work with one side unhooked?
is the trigger easier to pull? aka "hair trigger"?

i've never heard of this....is this good? bad?

Read several threads regarding Blackhawk trigger springs on this fourum. Out of the box the trigger on my new Blackhawk 45LC/45ACP was very crisp but a little heavy in my opinion. Took me 2 seconds to unhook one leg of the trigger spring and I consider the transformation fantastic. Now the trigger pull is both crisp and light. I can see where the unhooked leg of the spring "Might" bind with the main spring..... but it does not. Well over 1K dry fires and 300 rds and all is well....I haven't owned it a week yet. If I even suspect a problem it will take 2 seconds to re-hook the leg of the trigger spring. In the mean time I really like the trigger and haven't spent an extra penny.

[Ed_Shot]

If you think it groups well now, it will certainly please you even more if you size cylinder throats to .4525" so that the .452" boolits are a light drag fit in the throats. Once reamed the throats can be lapped to within .0002" of each other, THIS is the single most important part of the cylinder, how even the throats are with each other. It matters less what their size is, well, to a certain extent, but it matters most how even they are from one to another. No way can Ruger get those even because they use 3 different cutters to throat one cylinder and replace that tooling one at a time instead of all three at a time. Your cylinder is a lucky one, some are better than others..

DougGuy, after a lot of research I was concerned about buying the Blackhawk 45LC/45ACP because of all the reported problems but the tipping point was that if I had a problem you could probably fix it. If I had found a problem it would already be in the mail to you. I have only tried one load each with 45ACP and 45LC and it shoots better than I can hold.

[Airman Basic]

Check here for info:
http://www.gunblast.com/Poorboy.htm
Works good on every Ruger I've tried.


what do you mean you "unhooked one leg of the trigger spring"?

did you not hook it back?
does it work with one side unhooked?
is the trigger easier to pull? aka "hair trigger"?

i've never heard of this....is this good? bad?