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My first Blackhawk, an "old model" in .41 Magnum and questions

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2.4K views 18 replies 15 participants last post by  ikar  
#1 ·
Hello all, my first post here and this is my first Blackhawk. I've been looking at them for a while and was able to buy this one out of a local estate from the son of the original owner. He said his father bought it brand new in the early 70s and never fired it. He had about half a dozen others but I could only afford one. He is getting me the original box and papers on Tuesday which are currently in a storage unit.

It's definitely a late model 3-screw, the Ruger site says 1973, but it has a couple of features that are interesting. Most obvious is the steel grip frame shaped like a Super Blackhawk, and the top strap is drilled and tapped for some sort of scope mount. Whoever did these modifications was a professional, and it honestly looks to be factory work. Could these be custom Ruger factory mods? And what type of scope mount would fit such a hole pattern? It has not been "upgraded" to the transfer bar safety and I don't plan to.

Either way, I bought it to shoot so it will be used. It has a very smooth action and very nice trigger pull. Better than any newer Blackhawk I've looked over at gunshops. Should be a great woods gun.
 
#9 · (Edited)
Congrats on your unique and very nice Blackhawk!
Especially so since it's a .41 mag. which happens to be one of my favorite cartridges. The .41 mag. bug "bit" me in 1971 and hasn't released its grip yet!
If you don't already reload, you should seriously consider it now. Feeding a .41 mag. with factory ammo will get spendy very quickly!
Enjoy that revolver - you've latched onto a classic revolver in one of the best cartridges ever made. Just remember to carry it with an empty chamber under the hammer.
 
#13 ·
He is getting me the original box and papers on Tuesday which are currently in a storage unit.
Make sure he keeps his eyes open looking for the scope mount the gun was drilled for. Bet it's there somewhere, hopefully in the box when he finds it.
Mounts can be very difficult to match up to holes if they get separated from the gun.
Great gun to start your Blackhawk journey with but listen to Skyhunter 308 about reloading .
It's the only way to have happiness with a .41.
 
#15 ·
"lunch pail" guns were coming out of the ruger facility every now and then. it might be worth the few bucks to see if ruger can letter the gun. i remember going to the bigger national gun shows back in the day and rcs members would usually set up elaborate displays there. a few members specialized in these lunch pail guns and some of the examples they had were mind blowing. not unusual to see super blackhawk frames fit to blackhawk models. barrels longer than any cataloged models would turn up. all the examples i've seen were very well done and only limited to a guys imagination. it just might be....
 
#16 ·
That’s an interesting idea, I think I will get the Ruger letter to go with this one and see what it left the factory as. I do know it’s a very late “old model” so perhaps it could have been something made with parts left at the end of the line. The bluing absolutely looks to be factory Ruger when I compared it to a few others in the guy’s collection I was looking at.
 
#17 ·
VERY nice gun.... Had a mid-70s vintage NM .41 that I had the SBH gripframe put on by an ex-Ruger employee... Handled very well...

Lots of .41 information here:


My favorite revolver round....Bob