Bob Wright
Hawkeye
I've heard the story that Ruger made their first .44 Magnum Blackhawk using the mid-size frame of the .357 Magnum Blackhawk, but in testing, it "blew up" resulting in the introduction of the MR-44 frame.
I remember reading somewhere, and can't remember where, this was the situation: They were firing the revolver into a large vat of water, the gun was held vertically and fired downward into the water. To control the splash from the impact, a rubber membrane was stretched across the vat. Firing tests revealed a bulged barrel which led Ruger engineers to beef up the frame.
Subsequent research revealed that water droplets had splashed up through the opening, the bullet entrance through the membrane, and had entered the bore of the test gun. These water droplets has led to the barrel bulging. The gun had actually withstood the pressure tests.
It seems to me this was stated either by Elmer Keith or maybe Skeeter Skelton, after an interview with Bill Ruger.
Does anyone have any further light on this?
Bob Wright
I remember reading somewhere, and can't remember where, this was the situation: They were firing the revolver into a large vat of water, the gun was held vertically and fired downward into the water. To control the splash from the impact, a rubber membrane was stretched across the vat. Firing tests revealed a bulged barrel which led Ruger engineers to beef up the frame.
Subsequent research revealed that water droplets had splashed up through the opening, the bullet entrance through the membrane, and had entered the bore of the test gun. These water droplets has led to the barrel bulging. The gun had actually withstood the pressure tests.
It seems to me this was stated either by Elmer Keith or maybe Skeeter Skelton, after an interview with Bill Ruger.
Does anyone have any further light on this?
Bob Wright