Henry Rifle Forums

My very good friend’s son went to buy a new .44. He was after a Taurus. Turns out The site he was trying to purchase from was bogus and we were able to stop the purchase. He was a bit bummed because he really wanted a big bore and that one in particular. He asked me about it and I told him if it were me I’d get a Blackhawk and never look back. So by golly he found one - new in the box for a “reasonable” price. He ordered it, then came over to learn how to load some .44 magnum. Used one of BigAl’s recipes and loaded 44 rounds and sent six factory Winchesters along for an even 50. He came by today after work so I could take a look. Sent him home with a poster board with a circle drawn on it told him to take just a couple shots at 20 paces so he’d “know if he spent wisely”.

His first and only two shots so far….

Pretty close together for first shots. Hard to go wrong with a Ruger.

Tell him to check out bear paw grips for that Ruger. They make a world of difference

Not bad, not bad at all.
Blackhawk or Super Blackhawk?
Agree with Ernie, as I have a few myself.

RP

Great shots with a .44 Mag for first time! Were those mild or mid range loads?

Good job on getting him off to a great start. He's much better off with that Blackhawk. Ruger makes a fine pistol, that will last a lifetime. Taurus's quality is improved from past years, but I don't think they are up to Ruger's.

Paul

Good job on having him buy the BH. It will last a life time. Sure like mine. BTW, fine shooting right there!

It’s a standard Blackhawk. The load is a 240 grain Hornady XTP over 19.6 grains of 2400. Winchester standard large pistol primers - so while not “stiff” it’s a good load. He’s very happy with with the BH. Reported it to be smooth and easy to shoot. He was super happy with his first two rounds. We’ll get sit down in the very near future and get it wrung out some. He was patient and attentive when we sat down to load. Pretty sure he’s hooked. If he only had a Henry .44 lever then he’d be all set.

I have both an 8-3/8” Taurus Model 44 and a Ruger Super Blackhawk 10.5” Buntline I converted over to a Bisley. I only bought the Taurus as a project gun to tide me over until the S&W prices came back down out of the clouds. There is no comparison between the two. They do both shoot good though. I gave the Model 44 a facelift as soon as I got it.

After several hours of sanding and polishing and a new set of Hogue grips.
After the Bisley conversion and a new set of Hogue Cowboy Panels. My oldest (14) loves this gun.

How much of a change in felt recoil was there after you put the Bisely grip frame on the Ruger? Do you have large hands? I have a Ruger Blackhawk .45 conv. and a Colt S.A.A. .45 and had to put oversized grips on both. I don't know what Colt was thinking when they didn't put the army grip on the S.A.A. Army instead of the bigger grip from the 1860 Army .