45 Colt Blackhawk,

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Joined
Dec 19, 2001
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Alaska, Idaho USA
My memory may be failing me but I picked up a 4-5/8" stainless 45 Colt blackhawk yesterday. I don't remember Ruger cataloging a 4-5/8" model in stainless (although they have in blue) for years. Am I confused or is this a non-cataloged model? If this is a distributor model, who secured them and how many were made?
Thanks for any insight, if you can clear up my confusion.
 
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Joined
Mar 22, 2013
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Chama, NM-Our little piece of Heaven.
I bought mine from a member here a few years ago. This model is mid-frame, a special run Lipseys, I believe. They are nice handguns.
Blackhawk45.jpeg
 

jasper661

Bearcat
Joined
Apr 6, 2017
Messages
45
I bought a Blackhawk .45 convertible in 1975, it had the 7.5 in barrel, I sent it back to Ruger and had them install the 4 5/8" barrel. When it came back it had the barrel with the "Made in the 200th year of American Liberty" stamp on top of the barrel. A year later I put a super Blackhawk grip frame on it. When not in use it lives in the original red cardboard box, and the "other" cylinder is in it's little red felt bag, and I have the original 7.5" barrel.
 

Hondo44

Hawkeye
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Apr 3, 2009
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People's Republik of California
I bought a Blackhawk .45 convertible in 1975, it had the 7.5 in barrel, I sent it back to Ruger and had them install the 4 5/8" barrel. When it came back it had the barrel with the "Made in the 200th year of American Liberty" stamp on top of the barrel. A year later I put a super Blackhawk grip frame on it. When not in use it lives in the original red cardboard box, and the "other" cylinder is in it's little red felt bag, and I have the original 7.5" barrel.
Was the original 7.5" barrel also marked "Made in the 200th year of American Liberty"?
 

257heaven

Single-Sixer
Joined
Oct 15, 2011
Messages
239
Location
TX
My memory may be failing me but I picked up a 4-5/8" stainless 45 Colt blackhawk yesterday. I don't remember Ruger cataloging a 4-5/8" model in stainless (although they have in blue) for years. Am I confused or is this a non-cataloged model? If this is a distributor model, who secured them and how many were made?
Thanks for any insight, if you can clear up my confusion.

2017. Not sure if cataloged or not. I bought one and sure wish I could have foretold the future.

 

TomC321

Bearcat
Joined
Mar 24, 2003
Messages
83
Location
Port Republic, MD, USA
I bought a Blackhawk .45 convertible in 1975, it had the 7.5 in barrel, I sent it back to Ruger and had them install the 4 5/8" barrel. When it came back it had the barrel with the "Made in the 200th year of American Liberty" stamp on top of the barrel. A year later I put a super Blackhawk grip frame on it. When not in use it lives in the original red cardboard box, and the "other" cylinder is in it's little red felt bag, and I have the original 7.5" barrel.
I find the "other" cylinder very useful. For mild range loads, I prefer to use .45 AR brass. I had the cylinder trimmed to headspace .45 AR. I use the same ammo in my NMBH and S&W 625.
 

jasper661

Bearcat
Joined
Apr 6, 2017
Messages
45
The .45 AR in a good heavy frame gun is the "Undiscovered Country", it is more efficient with smokeless powder than the .45 Colt. The caveat here is that the .45 Colt in the heavy frame guns with the newer slow burning powders and bullets beyond 255 grains, will meet the requirements of the most demanding handgunner.
 

Ride1949

Hunter
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Dec 4, 2021
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Oregon
I bought one of the first 500 run of Lipsey's stainless steel .45 convertibles 4 5/8 barrel. Nice little revolvers.
 
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vlavalle

Single-Sixer
Joined
Apr 10, 2022
Messages
261
Location
Chandler, AZ
I also have the Ruger Lipsey's .45 Convertible Flattop Blackhawk. The handle is not as nice as my Ruger .357 Mag from the '60s (3 screw gun). My .45 is SS, as you can see here in the attached pic, and I think that all of these were 5 12" barrels. But I do like it and have learned how to hold on to it when I shoot it, for I cannot move my hand all the way up the grip - I have keep it towards the bottom a bit. I have no issue with the handle on my Ruger .357 Mag Blackhawk (not a Flattop). I shoot a lot of .45ACP, and less .45LC, mainly due to the cost difference. I do buy the .45LC remanufactured loads from LAX Ammo which have been perfect, and at about a 10-15% lower cost than their new ones, which are already lower cost than most other ammo reseller/outlets.

Since this is a flattop, I cannot shoot the most powerful .45LC loads made (Buffalo Bore 3K/20) with a power of 1.344 ft. lbs, but I have shot the Buffalo Bore lower powered ammo of 1,214 ft. lbs (Buffalo Bore 3C/20). These are so powerful already that I would not want to shoot the higher powered ones with this gun. I am currently looking for a .45 double action revolver, and preferably another Ruger, and I would prefer it to be able to shoot both .45LC as well as the .45ACP round. Ruger does make such a gun, but I think its barrel is quite short, around 4.2".

One more note - notice the gun in its original container that came with the gun from Ruger, with no cylinder mounted. I keep my revolvers this way, with the cylinders stored in another place since I do not have a big expensive gun storage cabinet. And when I travel, the cylinders go with me. I do this so if anyone breaks in and steals them, and ransacks my house they cannot use them at all! If I get a double action revolver, I guess that I will have to use a lock on the trigger.
 

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Joined
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I bought my convertible in 2003 or their about. I also had the cylinder trimmed for the AR. ACP shown next to AR in the cylinder. I was worried about the small amount of the ACP case not being supported but so far I can't tell any difference.
 

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