44 Super Blackhawk
- Thread starter keelbolts
- Start date
KLNC
Single-Sixer
I don't have any problem, but don't shoot full house loads either.
Jim Puke
Hunter
I have no problem with it, the round trigger guard whacks mine a lot worse.
Jim Luke said:
^^^^^^^^^^^^^THIS^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ They all whack my knuckle. Sometimes I wear a glove sometimes I put the pad of a bandaid on the knuckle. I do use the square trigger guard, I just cut the barrel length down to what I actually want. Plus I like that the grip is a little longer.
contender
Ruger Guru
Welcome to the Forum keelbolts.
Your question is not easily answered with a yes or no.
Some people do not have any issues with the square trigger guard, while others do. It all boils down to each individual's hand size, gripping method, and fit. The only way you will get an answer for your is for you to fire one. Use light loads first,, (preferably 44 spls,) then work up to full power magnums. You may find differences depending upon ammo as well.
And if you are not familiar with the proper method & gripping of shooting a SA revolver,,, I'd suggest you get some GOOD instruction. It might help you more than you know.
Your question is not easily answered with a yes or no.
Some people do not have any issues with the square trigger guard, while others do. It all boils down to each individual's hand size, gripping method, and fit. The only way you will get an answer for your is for you to fire one. Use light loads first,, (preferably 44 spls,) then work up to full power magnums. You may find differences depending upon ammo as well.
And if you are not familiar with the proper method & gripping of shooting a SA revolver,,, I'd suggest you get some GOOD instruction. It might help you more than you know.
SweetWilliam
Buckeye
If you shoot full power stuff, especially off a bench sooner or later your knuckle is gonna get smacked. Square or round guard. At least this has been my experience.
SPBhawk
Single-Sixer
When I first shot mine, it hit me a little, and I do have big hands. After shooting it a bit I figured out how to hold it and I don't have a problem. I can shoot full loads just fine with it. They really are a great shooting gun. I have a standard SBH square gourd, I've fired the bisley gun also, it to will hit me to if I don't hold it properly. After shooting both types I think I prefer the square guard plow handle grip.
David Bradshaw
Blackhawk
- Joined
- Sep 11, 2012
- Messages
- 933
keelbolts.... as Contender alludes, people are unique----an individual anatomy for the each of us. The .44 Magnum is a wonderful cartridge. Bill Ruger's first .44 Mag was built on the Blackhawk, which grip mimics the Colt Peacemaker, one of the all-time natural grips. Alas, in 1873 the Peacemaker handle wasn't obliged to tame a .44 Magnum. Talk about a knuckle-splitter, the original .44 Mag Blackhawk! Leastwise, in my hand.
The Super Blackhawk was Bill Ruger's adaptation of his nearly indestructible Blackhawk to the big forty-four. Unfortunately, the exaggerated flare of factory walnut grips accentuates roll on recoil, which may send the trigger guard into your middle finger. (Custom wood stocks should be thicker at the top.) To slow recoil roll, I use a HEAL INDEX grip, wherein the heal of my palm indexes the butt of the revolver grip. This creates an air gap between my middle finger and the trigger guard.
Pachmayr lead the way in aftermarket grip development. Uncle Mike's followed with its own, slimmer rubber stock. Steve Herrett lead the way for a wood alternative to the factory stocks.
A not-so-secret secret of the single action grip----don't fight it if you intend to shoot straight. One learns to ride recoil. Whatever your grip pressure, there cannot be any panic anywhere about it. This is where DRY FIRE comes in. Dry fire tones muscles in the coordinations requisite to CONSISTENCY. MARKSMANSHIP is a child of consistency. No gun in the world takes dry fire better than a Ruger.
And... Yes, the Dragoon trigger guard bumps my middle finger with full house .44s. Back in the raucous days of silhouette, I was about the last shooter dragged to the Pachmayr party, despite having worked the International Championship with factory walnut stocks. Today I shoot that long retired sixgun with one or another set of factory wood, and rather love it. Nostalgia, I suppose.
David Bradshaw
The Super Blackhawk was Bill Ruger's adaptation of his nearly indestructible Blackhawk to the big forty-four. Unfortunately, the exaggerated flare of factory walnut grips accentuates roll on recoil, which may send the trigger guard into your middle finger. (Custom wood stocks should be thicker at the top.) To slow recoil roll, I use a HEAL INDEX grip, wherein the heal of my palm indexes the butt of the revolver grip. This creates an air gap between my middle finger and the trigger guard.
Pachmayr lead the way in aftermarket grip development. Uncle Mike's followed with its own, slimmer rubber stock. Steve Herrett lead the way for a wood alternative to the factory stocks.
A not-so-secret secret of the single action grip----don't fight it if you intend to shoot straight. One learns to ride recoil. Whatever your grip pressure, there cannot be any panic anywhere about it. This is where DRY FIRE comes in. Dry fire tones muscles in the coordinations requisite to CONSISTENCY. MARKSMANSHIP is a child of consistency. No gun in the world takes dry fire better than a Ruger.
And... Yes, the Dragoon trigger guard bumps my middle finger with full house .44s. Back in the raucous days of silhouette, I was about the last shooter dragged to the Pachmayr party, despite having worked the International Championship with factory walnut stocks. Today I shoot that long retired sixgun with one or another set of factory wood, and rather love it. Nostalgia, I suppose.
David Bradshaw
Chuck 100 yd
Hunter
I just put a Bandaid around that area of my finger. I keep a box of them in my range box and never go home with a bloody finger like what used to happen.
I have also found that the Hunter Grip frame is much more friendly in that regard,at least for me.
I have also found that the Hunter Grip frame is much more friendly in that regard,at least for me.
WIL TERRY
Buckeye
NO ! NEVER ! Going back fifty years. This phenomenon is exclusively determined by YOUR hand size, hand shape, hand strength, and experience.
And so it goes...
And so it goes...
daveg.inkc
Hunter
I put Hogues on mine. rubber covers back of trigger guard.
SweetWilliam
Buckeye
And what people consider HOT LOADS are different from guy to the next.
Jason280_2
Single-Sixer
I don't have issues with mine, either, but I just about always wear a glove when shooting off the bench.
Pal Val
Buckeye
I wear a glove when shooting heavy loads. It's mostly prevention, as the trigger guard hits my middle finger only once in a while. It hurts when it does.
I have an easier time shooting .44mags with the Bisley grips. For some reason, the rap on the middle finger is not so much of a problem with them for me.
I have an easier time shooting .44mags with the Bisley grips. For some reason, the rap on the middle finger is not so much of a problem with them for me.
My original Vaquero rapped my knuckle till I figured out how to hold it. My SBH with the round trigger guard has never been a problem. As others have said, the differences in human anatomy, experience, plus the differences in guns, makes for interesting times. 
gramps
gramps
SweetWilliam
Buckeye
So what's this big secret on how to hold a bigbore using full power loads, so it doesn't hit your knuckle?
Some kind of death grip?
Some kind of death grip?
David Bradshaw
Blackhawk
- Joined
- Sep 11, 2012
- Messages
- 933
SweetWilliam said:
Coordination of three components.
1) Revolver
a) make, model
b) grip----stocks
c) sights
2) Ammunition
a) cartridge
b) load
3) Shooter
a) position
b) grip pressure
c) sight picture
d) squeeze & follow through
Since you ask about grip pressure, THE LESS THE BETTER. To put it country simple, use no more pressure than necessary to place your shots. Enjoy your "death grip" while it lasts, which may be from three to five shots, perhaps nine or ten. The .44 Magnum properly stocked for the individual may be shot FREE RECOIL----relaxed grip----for half-hour, an hour or more, with surprising accuracy. A death grip quickly kills consistency. Know & believe champions are measured in CONSISTENCY.
Cannons sporting rocks & dynamite loads demand firm grip pressure. Two muscles generate grip pressure----the MIND and the HAND. The two must be toned and only mindful practice can do that.
David Bradshaw
SweetWilliam
Buckeye
So your saying grip it light & your middle finger knuckle won't get hit?
Not buying it, because I do grip it lightly & my knuckle Definitly gets hit.
Not buying it, because I do grip it lightly & my knuckle Definitly gets hit.
David Bradshaw
Blackhawk
- Joined
- Sep 11, 2012
- Messages
- 933
SweetWilliam.... "big bore using full power loads" spans numerous cartridges, bullets, powder charges, and velocities. In a single action, I prefer a HEEL INDEX grip, wherein the heel of my hand catches the heel of the grip, whether Peacemaker, Super Blackhawk, Bisley, or Dick Casull/Freedom Arms Model 83. Creates an air gap between middle finger and trigger guard.
Alternative stocks are preferred by many, and include rubber by Pachmayr and Uncle Mike's, a wood from Herrett and others. These stocks arch between front strap and trigger guard. My hand finds the Peacemaker pattern initiated on the 1873 Colt for .44 Magnum and up. Velocity multiplies the recoil of heavier bullets. My hand pressure increases as recoil rises.
A strangle hold means you are fighting the gun. Can you strangle the grip without tremor? Consistently? And do so repeatedly? And shoot from multiple positions with the same Point of Impact? If so, have at it. Never said, "grip it light & your middle finger knuckle won't get hit." Have the patience to be exact. And accurate.
David Bradshaw
Alternative stocks are preferred by many, and include rubber by Pachmayr and Uncle Mike's, a wood from Herrett and others. These stocks arch between front strap and trigger guard. My hand finds the Peacemaker pattern initiated on the 1873 Colt for .44 Magnum and up. Velocity multiplies the recoil of heavier bullets. My hand pressure increases as recoil rises.
A strangle hold means you are fighting the gun. Can you strangle the grip without tremor? Consistently? And do so repeatedly? And shoot from multiple positions with the same Point of Impact? If so, have at it. Never said, "grip it light & your middle finger knuckle won't get hit." Have the patience to be exact. And accurate.
David Bradshaw
SweetWilliam
Buckeye
I don't strangle hold the grip.
My opinion is like I said in an above post. If you are shooting 44mag, 45colt(mag) or anything bigger using full power loads your middle finger is going to get banged up.
Especially shooting off the bench. No matter what grip frame.
Yes you can change to an after market grip, if you like. But IMO rubber grips on a single action just doesn't do it for me.
If it isn't you probably aren't shooting full power stuff or you have a strangle hold on it. And a heel index grip isn't going to feel any better with full power loads. It might save your knuckle a little but it isn't going to help your palm.
My opinion is like I said in an above post. If you are shooting 44mag, 45colt(mag) or anything bigger using full power loads your middle finger is going to get banged up.
Especially shooting off the bench. No matter what grip frame.
Yes you can change to an after market grip, if you like. But IMO rubber grips on a single action just doesn't do it for me.
If it isn't you probably aren't shooting full power stuff or you have a strangle hold on it. And a heel index grip isn't going to feel any better with full power loads. It might save your knuckle a little but it isn't going to help your palm.
contender
Ruger Guru
SweetWilliam,,, carefully go back over what David has offered. He speaks from decades of experience,,, in the big bore game. Metallic handgun shooting,,, at long range, accuracy required, with powerful loads. You might want to wander over to Lee Martins single action forum website. A LOT of folks over there find the 44 mag a STARTING level big bore. And if you look carefully,, you will find members there are the same names we've come to recognize as experts in the field.
Basically what David is trying to convey is that fighting the recoil will result in pain & knuckle rapping,,, while allowing the physics of the gun & grip to act naturally, while you control the things you can control will give you excellent results.
If you doubt this info,,, do a search of Davids posts,,, both here & over on Lee's site. (Lee actually posts pics & stuff here for David,) to see what he's done, & how he shoots each gun & how important the things he's mentioned are to good accurate shooting.
If I were to liken David to a college professor,,, I'd say he'd be a a Nobel Prize nominee for his knowledge. As an old saying goes; "Study the Master, for he is the one with the knowledge."
Basically what David is trying to convey is that fighting the recoil will result in pain & knuckle rapping,,, while allowing the physics of the gun & grip to act naturally, while you control the things you can control will give you excellent results.
If you doubt this info,,, do a search of Davids posts,,, both here & over on Lee's site. (Lee actually posts pics & stuff here for David,) to see what he's done, & how he shoots each gun & how important the things he's mentioned are to good accurate shooting.
If I were to liken David to a college professor,,, I'd say he'd be a a Nobel Prize nominee for his knowledge. As an old saying goes; "Study the Master, for he is the one with the knowledge."
SweetWilliam
Buckeye
I don't mean to be ignorant or to give anyone a hard time but I've read what David wrote a couple times and what I'm getting out of it is light grip pressure and follow through. Now I'd like to think that's what I do, maybe not.
Or different grips.
Or different grips.
contender
Ruger Guru
Quote; "My hand pressure increases as recoil rises."
This.
Too light, and it will hurt, and too much & it will hurt. You have to adjust according to the variables he listed.
"To put it country simple, use no more pressure than necessary to place your shots."
This.
Too light, and it will hurt, and too much & it will hurt. You have to adjust according to the variables he listed.
"To put it country simple, use no more pressure than necessary to place your shots."
David Bradshaw
Blackhawk
- Joined
- Sep 11, 2012
- Messages
- 933
The target is the final arbiter of accuracy. Thus, the target is the final arbiter of technique. That is why I don't preach doctrine. If I am guilty of preaching anything, it is INTENTION and PRACTICE. Don't beat yourself up if you can avoid it. One of the fine revolver shots of IHMSA Silhouette, Edna Huff, laid steel low with her 8-inch S&W M-29 forty-four. Asked her one day as we sat behind a wind swept firing line, each calculating the fearsome bend a revolver bullet would take to connect on turkeys and rams, "Have you worked with the Super Blackhawk?"
"Yes, and I can't shoot that grip."
That was 1978, the battle between Ruger and Smith & Wesson running wide open. The S410N "Silhouette Super" was yet a season out. For some of us there was little or no performance difference between an accurate Smith and an accurate Ruger .44 Magnum. Others, as did Edna Huff, settled on one----or the other. (Discussion confined to the .44.)
David Bradshaw
"Yes, and I can't shoot that grip."
That was 1978, the battle between Ruger and Smith & Wesson running wide open. The S410N "Silhouette Super" was yet a season out. For some of us there was little or no performance difference between an accurate Smith and an accurate Ruger .44 Magnum. Others, as did Edna Huff, settled on one----or the other. (Discussion confined to the .44.)
David Bradshaw
The square trigger guards hit my middle knuckle every time no matter what I did, the solution for me was a hogue mono grip. I bought a brand new bisley Hunter (my first and only bisley) it did the exact same thing to me, maybe a little worse. I traded the bisley grip frame, hammer, and trigger to a fellow forum member for a plow grip frame with round trigger guard, I have never had any problems shooting the round trigger guard plow grip. Some can shoot the square guards, some can't
