Super Blackhawk Rescue

cold1

cold1

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I came across this poor abused super Blackhawk for a decent price. Let's see if we can rescue it and learn something too.

This is my first super Blackhawk. I took it out to see how it shot. The first thing was, it smacked the finger behind the trigger guard with every shot. Gotta do something about that. Second, that 10.5 inch barrel doesn't belong on a pistol.

On to pics of the abused pistol

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44mag with a 10.5” barrel, bet it’ll launch some screamers!
 
It's been a few weeks of "learnin" but I have an update.

I have determined that I like the bisley/kieth#5 style grip and I have been working on making my version. I am using a 1860 army steel trigger guard and a bisley backstrap. The kieth#5 is an 1873 and bisley combo, so mine is a little different. The 1860 gives the pinky somewhere to be.

My last attempt at making a bisley backstrap on the Blackhawk 45lc left something to be desired ascetic wise. I have been working on making a backstrap closer to the original. mainly in the upper junction block. I had to buy a few more pieces of tooling but I believe that this is making a better looking junction block.

Here is a pic of the setup while I was decking 20190124_195627.jpg the backstrap.
 
Well, I was going to offer up a new set of hand grips that I’ve had for a Super Blackhawk just laying around.
 
Pink_Vapor said:
1)- Is that crusty cup in the coffee mug thread?
2)- Does it look like someone started to scratch off the sn#?
Click to expand...

#1 what is this coffee mug thread you speak of?

#2 yep, it was a police confiscation gun. My lgs had won the bid on a lot from some LEA. Lots of lorcins and such. I saw the crusty SBH and knew I had to intervene. It deserves a better life even if it needs a little surgery and tlc.
 
I have a RSBH and that square trigger guard is a killer. Talked to Ruger about changing it but would cost more money than I wanted to spend. I ended up getting some over sized grips that filled in the gap between the guard and grips. They worked. Then I saw where Ruger was making rubber grips to fill in the gap. Bought a set but have not tried then out.
 
Its been a while since an update. Shop time has been hard to come by lately. We left off at fitting the backstrap. A few weeks ago i went to the shop to start working on it and i found that one of the welds didnt penetrate as deep as it should have. Also, I wasnt liking how this backstrap was shaping up. The flats were getting too thin and it was throwing the looks off for me. So I started on another backstrap with a few changes.

Here is a pic of the weld crack.


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I decided to do a few things differently. The main thing was to extend the 3/16 X 1/2 flat all the way to the curved mounting block. It was welded on all 4 sides for stability. I also changed the way I was welding the 3/16X1 piece to the mounting block, I beveled the edge and filled in the gap with weld so that I would get deeper penetration. I am not a welder, all of my welding knowledge comes from trial and error, and alot of internet reading. About the same as my Machining knowledge.

I didnt like the way the old backstraps curves were, so I changed that up also on this one. I really need to figure out how to make a bending jig for these so I can get better consistency.

I think you can see the changes i made to the new backstrap in the pics. The old one is on top of the new one.

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Just a quick update. I rust blued the pistol back in May then had to put it aside for the summer months. Now that the weather is cooler I got back in the shop.

I made a set of grip panels out of marble wood that a friend had given me. I'm not sure how I like they way they look. After the grips were on, I had to give it try to see how it handled. It feels so much better. The mild 44mag loads are very comfortable, the hot loads are pleasant to shoot. There is no more trigger guard slap on the fingers. It rolls my wrist instead of snapping it.

I'm not happy with the way the bluing turned out, for some reason the corners are bare metal. I'm assuming I didn't card it correctly. I'm planning on shortening the barrel, 10.5 inches is too long. I also want different sights. I gave eye problems and the factory sights are fine on high contrast targets, but I can't see them in low light.

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I was a little concerned that the fuller curve at the top of the backstrap would create issues reaching the trigger, glad that worked out.

How is the bore? Hate to see you cut the barrel, why not just replace it with something more to your liking?
 
Don't cut that barrel back!

I used to have one just like this. I sold it before the move to SC only because I heard somewhere that max barrel length for handgun hunting in SC is 9". If someone tells me I've been misinformed I'll cry. Only a little because I got a great price for it ($900 :D).

I loved shooting that gun. Yeah, that squared trigger guard would bite you hard if you forget to wrap all your fingers firmly around the grip.

It really liked 17.2 grains of Accurate#9 behind a 300 grain SWC with a gas check (which really reduced leading).

Have a blast!
 
3.5 to 4 in barrel is great for carry, 6 in to hunt.... Looks darker...did you rust it more to deepen the finish?
 
Sharps40 said:
3.5 to 4 in barrel is great for carry, 6 in to hunt.... Looks darker...did you rust it more to deepen the finish?
Click to expand...

Yes, I reblued it. It took about 5 cycles with laurel mountain. I could have probably done it with less cycles if I wasn't putting it on so thick. There seems to be a fine line between THIN and thin for the solution.

The new grip has really changed how it handles. The kids and me put 50 rounds through it and nobody had banged up knuckles or hurting hands.

I did refinish the original grip frame while I was bluing everything else.

I havent cut the barrel yet, I'm trying to figure out what to do for sights. I would like to hunt with it but I have bad eyes so sight selection is important. I hunt on my little piece of land and its thick. Most times the deer only move through my place at dusk and dawn when there isnt good light. I had to scope my 1895 so I could see the game better.

Does anybody have experience with the various scope mounts for the SBH?

I'll get better pics soon. These were just quick pics. They dont show much detail.
 
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Laurel Mountain Forge is good stuff. The finish is coarser grained than Pilkingtons Rust Blue, as such, a bit softer and wears off the edges faster. But its super easy to apply. Nicely done.

Iron Sights, if you cut the barrel, dove tail the barrel and slide in a fire sight or other fiber optic. A Patridge or old school sun spot will slide in too. Otherwise, get the clamp on/single screw scope mount and just remove your rear sight...Weaver 301 is quite solid and you can even select different rings than what comes with it for a nicer look or taller scope height, quadlock rings would look neat.

At this point, the gun is cosmetically finished and I'd not cut it as it will likely require refinishing again. Since you hunt early and late, scope it.
 
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