1860 Army Blackhawk

Try foot worked fine and will serve as a template for the working foot. Over to the junk box and pull out an old Makata router wrench......router burned up but the wrench is still good steel and the right thickness to allow me to bend and fit up a sturdy working foot for the mainspring.

The head cut off and the screw hole drilled on center.



Its good thick metal so heat and bend to follow the Try Foot as a template.



After the bend a double hole is drilled and then worked with jewlers files to make a slot for the mainspring strut.



First trial fit of the roughed in working foot....all seems well but it needs some thinning and shaping.





After some shaping and thinning of the foot and the brass mounting point, the mainspring is closer to the lower loop and with it all assembled, I'd say this part of the job is 90% and time to see about fitting in a trigger return spring.

So far so good. The interweb nayslayers be dayumed. With luck and a bit of skill I'll be marchin forward with some kinda mounting spot for the trigger return spring in the next few days. Though it might be good to check the fit of the fat bottomed bisley hammer first.

For the evening, I sat down and finished shaping the top strap a bit. Just breaking over the long edges back to front. I also refined the nose a bit so it looks a bit more like a ring around the barrel with the top strap growing out of the ring. I got a bit more work to do with the jewelers files then put the rounded nose on the buffer and smooth it up. Its one spot where a buffer with a cutting abrasive is friendly.....compound shapes like a bull nose in a tight spot.

Compared to the original hammer, the Bisley hammer is like a lead sled, wide, fat and low. Most will grind the Bisley hammer to the shape of the Blackhawk hammer in an effort not to have to refinish a anodized aluminum grip frame. Nice, and it allows switching between tall and low hammers but.....I'll fit the brass grip frame to the bisley hammers fatter bottom.



While the Bisley hammer is lots bigger in the butt, its not much metal to remove from the grip. Some rough outlines to start with.



Finishing up, from the underside, not only a slot opened for the hammer, a groove inlet for the hammer strut.



The initial fit is not bad. The 1860 Army Colt backstrap being just a whisker lower than the aluminum ruger and a touch of the tail of the hammer is uncovered. But its not a bad look and at this point, pretty much gotta live with it.





Good range of motion on the Bisley hammer with the new mainspring mounting so I believe the Bisley hammer install is now 90%. We'll get a lot of 90%'s. It'll be all the lil 10% to close the project that will cost all the effort and time.

Using the scissors drill jig to find the center.....a chore on a tapered piece of trigger guard....I spot and drill successively larger holes to make a spring seat for the trigger return spring. Final hole is just at .3" diameter and about .2" deep.



Then, using the same jig a series of overlaping #29 holes are drilled about .1" deep to plow out the initial trough for the trigger return spring. From here its several hours of tedious filing to open the trough and widen the trigger slot (The New Model Blackhawk trigger is a fat girl compared to the Colt trigger.)

This 90% took mosta the day. A mill or lathe with cross slide woulda been wonderful. But its handwork. A lot of it, makin room for the trigger return spring and widening the colt trigger slot for the giant fat ruger trigger.....think I'll thin that dude down a bit, where it rides below the brass....its huge! I think next one I'll investigate a home made jig to drill a single hole and install the old model style pin and spring trigger return. But, this'll work. A bit of effort is still needed inside to pretty up the spring way and then I'll drill and install the trigger return spring cross pin. But for now, everything goes back and forth without a bind.



Stays back, no binding.



Fired position.



The package coming together. Time for clean up and supper and a break. Its been a long day of fit and try. Will finish the trigger spring up (both ends) a couple nights this week I think.

I can't wait to get wood on the grip. Thumbin the bisley hammer back and hell, I wrapped a balla tape around the grip tonight.....this ones gonna be a pointer I think.

The springway is now completed. Cross drilled tonight for the retention pin and installed the try spring. Its sits in good and dosn't bind or pinch.



For assembly and test function, the current main components of the grip. Two piece grip frame and two of the three springs needed to function the weapon.



Install the trigger guard with the return spring on the pad of the trigger.



Install the mainspring and its foot.



Install the back strap.



Even without a permanent anchor point for the trigger return spring, we have perfect function. Now to decide on the shape and size of the returnspring rear anchor and whether to silver solder or affix it to the back strap by another means. Also I have two spare springs so I'll try making up a one legged spring for better trigger pull.

Won't be too long now and I'll be able to ditch some of the old parts!

For the nonce, no fancy silversoldering or making up extra brass widgets to afix as the trigger return springs rear mount. Ruger uses a pin and hooks the legs over. I decided to use two simple holes in the backstrap. Clip the ends of the spring and once the strap is in place, slightly bend and put the spring legs in their respective holes. They are always under tension. The angle and location for them to mount up is just slightly higher up than the factory grip.





Some test firing is in order. I suspect with the tension and depth of engagement, there will not be any slip out. But if there is any doubt later I'll solder on a pin and hook the legs over it ala factory mounting point.

In any event, two spring legs and an unburnished hammer notch gives me a pretty consistent 4.5 lb break on the trigger with positive reset each time.

One spring to go and one hole to fill/relocate and its lookin like I'm going to have to order bluing and screws and grip wood here pretty quick.

Well. Bungholio and Von Stinkenheimer both said it couldn't be done. Glad I didn't listen cause here it is. Last Ruger Spring assembly in place in the 1860 Army Colt brass two piece grip frame, installed and initial function checks completed. Full function, complete rotation, lock up, unlocking with loading gate, no hitch in the trigger or hammer assembly, I see no reason not to pronounce the adaptation of the 1860 Army Colt grip frame to the New Model Ruger Blackhawk a "Success So Far" and predicting successful trials with dummy and live ammunition in the future.

For now.....bloodwood and Pilkingtons is inbound. Short of one hole in the brass triggerguard to relocate, there is nothing left to do on this gun but tweak mechanicals and commence cosmetic restoration.

Drilling the cylinder stop spring hole was an exercise in multiple angles. It is a 1/8" hole deep into the front bow of the triggerguard. Once located I drilled successive hole diameters adjusting angle of attack as I went to approximate the lean to the right and to the rear of the Ruger spring and plunger assembly.

In these photos you see its pretty close....given the successful function, close seems to be close enough.





The third and final ruger coil spring to be installed on this old flat spring grip frame....



Cylinder stop held upwards under spring power!



Many cycles of the now fully assembled 1974 Blackhawk with the 1860 Army Colt grip frame and the boltstop and every part functions as intended!



Finally, a well deserved tipple. And thank the Gungods I didn't listen to the Doomsayers.

Stainless steel is great. It holds a polish nearly for ever. It holds scratches nearly forever too. After a good buffing, a dull factory hammer comes up to a mirror shine and is ready for jeweling.









And a simple but functional modification to the loading gate. Its a thick chunk of metal....rather like an acorn with a hinge. A bit of work on the backside makes room for the thumb to be inserted and flip the gate open. Its not a visible modification, just one that helps guide the thumb in to place to positively get it open....its nice when you are wearing gloves on a cold day.

Excellent job sir,
enjoyed the write up.

Really impressive work. I am loving everything, but the jewling of the hammer. It seems too garish for what you are creating and somehow out of place with the 1860 backstrap. But, that is just one fool's opinion and you are certainly a craftsman no matter what and should create to your vision of esthetic, not others. TD

Jewling almost always looks TOO strong at first. If a touch of oil and dirt dosnt tone it down a light buff with a loose muslin wheel mutes it very nicely.

I spose I can start polish and blue on the small parts and cylinder this weekend. The sauce is in and so are the studs needed for the ejector rod housing. But the bloodwood could be from 5 to 21 days from order before it even ships. Slow boat from South America I spose. Got some finish work to do on the brass triggerguard too so, might as well get a bit of synergy by working two issues at once.

Now that this fusion of Italian parts to the ruger is dooable....looking around at other potential options is amazing.

Just in Uberti and Pietta alone (and mostly well under the cost of a powers grip frame and w/o the delays waitin for ruger backlogs.) I see the uberti coil spring trigger guard, 1851 and 1860 colt army, Colt P frame, Bisley, Birds Head and Thunderer, brass and steel option and if you combine the 1873 P Frame steel trigger guard with a brass or steel Bisley backstrap = Instant you did it faux Keith #5 Grip frame.

Ruger parts are cast. There are parting lines. On the hammer, they are left on the face. Where the nose rests on the frame and where the step impacts the transfer bar. The left side is taller than the right. That means the frame and transfer bar is hit by the left half of the hammer each time it falls. I'll even it out so that it doesn't eventually pound a dent in the left side of the impacted parts.

Here it is....the face of the hammer, as received from Ruger is the only part of the hammer not machined...its left as cast on the replacement parts. (On my factory hammer, the nose and step are polished/fitted for an even blow) You can see the mold parting line down the center of the nose and step. It has sharp edges which would need dressed down anyway.



About half way thru the stoning of the hammer and we see, the left is taller than the right (The low spot is in the center). I'll stone it down even and then do final checks for transfer bar pinch and firing pin protrusion and make any needed adjustments to either or both of the nose and/or the step.

And the hammer stoned to the 90% level. Shortened the nose a bit to improve firing pin protrusion and no pinch. Last steps will be to pull the hammer and make a few swipes on an Arkansas stone to even it up and final spot check it into the frame/transfer bar with a touch of Prussian blue.