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.
