Ruger Blackhawk

The Ruger Blackhawk is a 6-shot or 8-shot, single-action revolver manufactured by Sturm, Ruger. It is produced in a variety of finishes, calibers, and barrel lengths.

History

In the early 1950s, Westerns were popular in movies and television. Colt had discontinued the iconic Single Action Army prior to World War II, and few single-action revolvers were available to meet market demand for cowboy-style revolvers. In 1953, the new firm of Sturm, Ruger and Company introduced the Ruger Single Six, a scaled-down .22 LR rimfire single-action revolver. The Single Six proved to be a popular seller, leading Ruger to develop and market a full-sized revolver similar to the Colt Single Action Army: The Ruger Blackhawk.

Ruger introduced the Blackhawk in 1955. Chambered for the .357 Magnum, the Blackhawk was a simple and strong design, and sold well. In 1956, as Smith & Wesson was introducing the new .44 Magnum, Ruger quickly developing a variant of the Blackhawk in the new cartridge. Ruger achieved wide popularity with this firearm in a hotly-anticipated new cartridge, which was both cheaper and more readily available than the Smith & Wesson Model 29 revolver. According to popular legend, Ruger was able to field a .44 Magnum revolver at nearly the same time as Smith & Wesson due to a Ruger employee finding expended .44 Magnum cartridge cases at a scrapyard, and deducing that...
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