9mm Blackhawk convertibles.....

I've had this convertible Flat Top 9mm for about 10 years......I've never fired a single round of .38 or .357 through it and I either sold or gave away the .357 cylinder years ago.

I have another convertible .357/9mm Blackhawk that shoots way better with 9mm , it must have a little tighter bore. I still like this Flat Top though. It's seen several 1000 rounds of Tulammo back when that stuff was 90 bucks per 1000.

It's dead nuts up to about 15 yards......then accuracy falls off. This target is from 25 , with a two hand hold. It will put up a decent cluster then it's like "here's a flyer!"

At 15 it will put them on top of each other. Oh well , honestly it's inconsistency at 25 keeps it interesting. I have played around with having it opened up for .38 Super but I probably won't bother unless I get a wild hair up my butt about it.

I've sandbagged it, the best it will do is about a baseball sized group at 25.

Some guns just need to be shot close up I guess

Have you experimented with different loads?

Ride1949 said:

Have you experimented with different loads?

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I tried lead 9mm thinking it would "bump up" , but I got the opposite effect...they keyholed

9mm +P isn't any better, and I've probably run most major brands through it.

I'd guess the nominal .357 bore of the revolver vs the .355 9mm bullet, just doesn't give it the fine "spin" a 9mm barrel would and it's staying barely on the edge of stable. Somewhere around 20 yards it loses a little spin and stability and the bullets find their way into a "cluster".

Ironically I put a Bowen target rear sight on it and a brass front blade, so I have the best of the best rear sights to blast my patterns

My other convertible Blackhawk, which I recently fired, will at least drop a maybe baseball sized group into the "head" of one of these Q-Targets at 25 yards , from the bag, it will do a little better. It's by no means ready for a 25 yard Bullseye match but gives usable accuracy to 25 and more than good enough for lazy range day paper punching with the cheapest 9mm I can find. The bore probably just happens to run a bit tight, I've never mic'd it, but just guessing based on the performance.

Ruger has made these 9mm conversions for decades and everyone I've asked that owns one says the 9mm accuracy is "plinker grade" at best. Which is fine, not every gun needs to be a tack driver . 9mm is the lowest cost centerfire option and .22 get old after a while, at least with 9mm I can feel some pop when I punch paper and I enjoy shooting a Single Action vs one of my soul less auto chuckers

I've spent many a nice range day using this Flat Top as basically a big bore .22 , popping steel or aluminum case 9mm into targets and it works well for this, I slicked up the action and it's just a pleasure to shoot and I know not to expect tight groups. I haven't really had it out in a few years, so I recently rediscovered it.

For people looking to get into a Ruger convertible, any of my 2 .45 ACP Vaqueros or my .45 ACP/LC Bisley Blackhawk will punch ragged holes at 25 yards, with ease. And I'm no world class shooter. The .45 ACP conversions are just so much more accurate. But also more $$ to feed and I'm less likely to just plink with .45 ACP.

And my same revolver in 4-5/8" shoots marvelously well. It never is mated to the .357 cylinder.

Prior to this NM Flattop, I had a full size NM Blackhawk convertibe. It was also phenomenal with 9mm's, but it sure was a big and heavy revolver for such a tiny cartridge.

My 45/45 BH is the same. Never had a box of Colt ammo through it. But it does live on a steady diet of ACP loads, and it shoots them well. Easily my favorite revolver.

I hope you can find a load to help your 9mm to shoot well.

My .45Colt/ACP flattop convertible is accurate with either cartridge. I love the way these medium frame guns handle. It seems to fit my short fingered hands perfectly.

My bore might be just a hair bigger than most

If TK Customs can ream the cylinder to .38 Super it might turn into a gem

A convertible .357/9mm Vaquero is still high on my list

Everyone I've contacted has refused to do a .38 Super rechamber on this , SSK just emailed me "it would be an exercise in frustration since most Ruger chambers are out of round and not straight"

Well, ok

I guess this will continue on as a 9mm

My flattop seems to do just fine with .357 (cartridges with 158gr SWCs loaded down to around 1100fps). The 9mm cylinder has only seen one box and that was just to make sure revolver 'functioned' with that cartridge. The 9mm cylinder has not (nor will) see the light of day again as .357 reloads is all it will ever see. Same with my flattop .45 Colt/.45 ACP revolvers. Those revolvers will only get .45 Colt reloads. Not sure what the .45 ACP cylinder is really for . Ha! Note I did test a bunch of .45 ACP loads, but then it dawned on me ... Why? .45 Colt does it all and more, ... no need for the stubby semi-auto cartridge. Reloading cost is a draw ... So why bother.

Sorry to hear your .357 flattop doesn't do well out at 25 Yards.

I'm going to ask about a different angle. Have you tried to identify if you have a single hole or two in the cylinder that shoots worse than the rest?

It's not a 9mm convertible. It's a .357 convertible (therefore shoots .38 Special, same caliber, different cartridge) with a 9X19 cylinder ... which is a different caliber and cartridge.

semantics, when one has a Blackhawk with a 9 mm cylinder, as the other he said is lost or sold or just plain gone what is left to us is a 9mm Blackhawk that once was a convertible and he did state in his OP, the second line, he has another 357/9mm convertible.....

".....and so it goes...Wil Terry " RIP

Maybe semantics, but still sold as a .357 'convertible'... The 9mm cylinder is just an 'add-on' to allow you to shoot the semi-auto cartridge in the BH. The barrel bore diameter is 'set' for shooting .357/.38s, not 9mm.

You might want to explore sending your cylinder out to Fermin Garza to true up the cylinder mouths. The one flyer situation might be from one tight chamber.

Rclark said:

My flattop seems to do just fine with .357 (cartridges with 158gr SWCs loaded down to around 1100fps). The 9mm cylinder has only seen one box and that was just to make sure revolver 'functioned' with that cartridge. The 9mm cylinder has not (nor will) see the light of day again as .357 reloads is all it will ever see. Same with my flattop .45 Colt/.45 ACP revolvers. Those revolvers will only get .45 Colt reloads. Not sure what the .45 ACP cylinder is really for . Ha! Note I did test a bunch of .45 ACP loads, but then it dawned on me ... Why? .45 Colt does it all and more, ... no need for the stubby semi-auto cartridge. Reloading cost is a draw ... So why bother.

Sorry to hear your .357 flattop doesn't do well out at 25 Yards.

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I'm not setup for hand loading , and probably won't be for a long time. The intent of the convertibles was to allow cheaper practice with pistol rounds or to have "commonality " with another pistol.

Like yesterday , I brought my other 357/9mm convertible and my P89 to the gun club. A single action and an autochucker, threw a 200 round Winchester 9mm "range pack" in my bag and off I go

My main "range fun" go to guns are cap and ball revolvers , I just enjoy the whole process with them so my Ruger cartridge guns like the convertible Blackhawks are mainly just for range shooting and fun , with a cheaper cartridge

Dan in MI said:

I'm going to ask about a different angle. Have you tried to identify if you have a single hole or two in the cylinder that shoots worse than the rest?

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Out of two convertible Blackhawks I own, both shoot very well at 15 and open up at 25. If there is a bad chamber or two it only reveals itself at ranges where accuracy is marginal anyway

GasGuzzler said:

It's not a 9mm convertible. It's a .357 convertible (therefore shoots .38 Special, same caliber, different cartridge) with a 9X19 cylinder ... which is a different caliber and cartridge.

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The only people who will care about what it left the factory as are the people who will be trying to sell it after I'm gone when someone tries to load a .38 or .357 and it doesn't chamber, they will be aware it is a 9mm .

It only has a 9mm cylinder so it's a 9mm, it no longer has any ability to convert. I could send it to Ruger for fitting of another .357 cylinder, but given that I have other options to shoot .357 I'd never bother with it . Proper nomenclature really only matters if it's something rare or someone is trying to sell a gun.

I also have a .45 ACP Vaquero. I have not and won't use the LC cylinder, I have no need. I have fired 1000s of rounds of .45 ACP through it so it is my .45 ACP Vaquero. When I think to myself "what should I take to the range " I'm not like "I'll grab my .45 Long Colt / .45 ACP Convertible stainless 5.5" New Vaquero" , I'm like "I'll roll with the .45 ACP Vaquero"

Edit: I fired exactly 1 box of .45 LC through the 45 LC/ACP Vaquero

Klondike Mike said:

You might want to explore sending your cylinder out to Fermin Garza to true up the cylinder mouths. The one flyer situation might be from one tight chamber.

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I haven't seen any flyers at the closer ranges, it seems like at 25+ every round pretty much becomes a flyer

I have plenty of other guns if I need to shoot tight groups at 25-50+ yards, I'm basically just reconfirming that this gun is pretty much a 10 yard plinker which is fine with me

Stantheman1986 said:

I haven't seen any flyers at the closer ranges, it seems like at 25+ every round pretty much becomes a flyer

I have plenty of other guns if I need to shoot tight groups at 25-50+ yards, I'm basically just reconfirming that this gun is pretty much a 10 yard plinker which is fine with me

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I don't have a 9mm revolver and probably never will But,,,,,,, I think your attitude is spot on for your expectations of the cartridge in a hand gun.
9mm never was designed or expected to shoot at distances. (Except maybe some tangent sighted military handgun/carbines and they were not much good at it)
Even the guys shooting the 9mm carbines with scopes and all are getting minute of refrigerator at long distance.