Rugar Blackhawk...Stainless or Blued ????

[Guest rod locker]

I have decided on the .357. Can't decide on stainless or blued. Like the stainless because of the hardwood grips but it is over $100 more. Also thinking about the 6" barrel over the 4". What do ya'll prefer?

[gunrunner32]

What I did was went with the blued and you can get a set of nice hogue wood grips in your choice of wood for around $45 or so for standard grips. Ir you like a bigger grip you can search for the mono wood grips and they will run you about $75 and up.

Hogue Mono in Gancola Alves:

New Blackhawk / Vaquero Goncalo [83200] - $69.95 : Hogue Inc., The Best Value In Handgun Grips, Rifle Stocks and Accessories - Bar None!

Hogue Cowboy Action Grips in Coco Bolo:

New Blackhawk / Vaquero Coco Bolo Cowboy Panels [83860] - $49.95 : Hogue Inc., The Best Value In Handgun Grips, Rifle Stocks and Accessories - Bar None!

My .30 Cal Carbine Blackhawk with the Gancola Alves Mono Grip:

[I_Like_Pie]

I like stainless for an unusual reason. The front sight is screwed on instead of soldered as with the blued ones. I shoot heavy for caliber bullets and always have to install a taller front sight. Easier with a stainless gun.

Also like the touch-up with stainless. Blued is certainly more "classic" looking however.

[Guest rod locker]

what about barrel length? Which did you go with?

[gunrunner32]

On my SAA revolvers I've got the 7.5" barrel in the .30 cal (they only make it in that length), a 4.25" in .22lr, a 5.5" in .45LC. Out of all of them I like the feel and weight of the 5.5" barrel, the 7.5" was a little to front heavy until I put the mono grip on it.

[DaveTN]

I prefer the looks of high gloss blue, but carrying them on duty I quickly found that it’s not practical.

Stainless can be kept looking new for decades with little or no cost. Small scratches can easily be repaired by you at home. You can’t fix blue and make it look right without sending it to someone for a refinish; that’s pretty expensive.

I would buy blue if it’s going to be a collectable, nightstand gun or a safe queen; or stainless if it’s going to see a lot of use. I don’t keep guns so I also look at resale; a stainless will generally sell quicker than a blued. But a Blackhawk isn’t really a carry gun, so that might not matter much.

4 or 6 inch will pretty much be personal preference. I shot in competition with duty guns and my 4†S&W K & L frames would shot as accurately as my 6â€â€™s. So there was no point in hauling around the extra 2â€. I don’t know if that’s true of the Blackhawks or not.

Grips… you can get whatever you want. I have rubber Hogue’s for shooting and wood for presentation on my S&W’s.