Sturm, Ruger & Co., Inc. Is one of the nation's leading manufacturers of rugged, reliable firearms for the commercial sporting market. With products made in America, Ruger offers consumers almost 800 variations of more than 40 product lines. For more than 70 years, Ruger has been a model of corporate and community responsibility.

Ruger Blackhawk .357 Cal. 'Flattop'

PRODUCED 1955to1962

GENERAL OVERVIEW

Ruger’s first center fire single action revolver, the new “Blackhawk” .357 Magnum, debuted in 1955, just two years after the successful introduction of the .22 caliber “Single-Six”.The first advertisement was in the August 1955 American Rifleman magazine.It shows $87.50 as theintroductory price for the “New Blackhawk”.

1. Ruger Blackhawk Serial Number History Blackhawk Revolver (manufactured from 1955 to 1973) Caliber: 357 Magnum Beginning Serial Number: Years of Production: 1 1955 1737 1956 7318 1957 1 30- 30- 30- 31- 31- The above chart shows the approximate first serial number shipped for the indicated year.
2. Ruger old model 357 Blackhawk 4 5/8 in. Description: Ruger old model 357 Blackhawk Revolver 4 5/8 inch barrel in original unconverted condition with original Box, Warranty Card, Instruction Manuel and Parts Brochure. The gun appears unfired and in my opinion it is unfired since it left the factory.
3. RUGER NEW MODEL BLACKHAWK 357 MAG USED GUN INV 234461 GI#: 101563948 A Ruger New Model Blackhawk chambered in 357 mag with a 6 1/2 inch barrel with a bright and shiny bore. This firearm is in excellent condition and is covered by Dury's Lifetime Warranty.
4. Hi Jon, I would like to know the value of two revolvers that were purchased together: Ruger 44Mag Revolver, serial #87013854, Model Blackhawk, 6.5' barrel, and a Ruger 357 Mag Revolver Serial #5201385 read more.

Bill Ruger had been right about American sportsmen wanting agood single action rim fire revolver when he introduced the .22 caliber Single-Six. Bill alsofigured that a good center fire was needed to fill a void at that time too.He was right,Ruger’s first center firerevolver was an immediate success and was sought after by outdoorsmen and gun lovers alike!

The first guns had a 4-5/8” barrel with six-groove rifling, 'flat-top' steel cylinder frame, fluted six shot cylinder, round 'Colt style' loading gate, steel long throw offset ejector rod housing, and a small serrated ejector rod button like the Single-Six.The integral rear sight was adjustable for both windage and elevation and marked “Micro”.The front sight had a rather narrow ramp and serrations on both the ramp and the blade.TheBlackhawkhad the same black anodized alloy grip frame (marked XR3) as the Single-Six.The gripframewasthe same size as the old Colt Single Action Army.The grips were black checkered hard rubber with Ruger’s trademark Black Eagle medallionson asilverbackground.

The left side of the 3-screw cylinder frame was roll marked “RUGER .357CAL.BLACKHAWK”.Of course in addition to the .357 Magnum cartridge, the .38 Special cartridge could be fired in the revolver, adding to its versatility.

Around November 1956 Bill Ruger made a change to improve the ejection of the .357 Magnum spent cartridges/brass from the Blackhawk’s chambers. The small, square, uncomfortable,serrated ejector rod button held over from the Single-Six was replaced by alarger concave style or “dimpled” button late 1956/early 1957.The ejector button was changed again in late 1958/early 1959 to the large flat faced buttonwhich is still used today.

In 1959, 6-1/2” and 10” barrels were introduced.Some variations of these two barrel lengths were made in low numbers and created some very scarce and rare collectible guns today.

Varnished walnut ($5.00), ivory ($16.50), and stag grips ($8.50) were also available from the factory.Walnut grip panels became the standard in 1960. The ivory and stag grips were dropped from the company’s catalog when the grip frame was redesigned in 1963 (marked XR3-RED).Of course, today the factory ivory grips are extremely rare and factory stag grips are very rare.Both are highly sought after by collectors.

Due to the “flat” design of the cylinder frame’s top strap, these guns became known as “Flattops”.The later production “protected rear sight” models are normally called the “Old Model” or just the “Three-Screw” model.

There are several variations of this gun that are very rare indeed.For instance, it is believed that only about 850 to 1,200 of these guns were produced with 10” barrels.Of that number, it is thought by some that only about 50 were made with the later “eight groove” rifling barrel that was introduced in 1960.Thus these 10” barrel “eight groove” guns are one of the rarest variation of any regular production old model Ruger revolver made.

There were several minor changes that took place beginning in 1957.Thicker triggers evolved, the small adjustment notch on the rear sight elevation screw was eliminated, the drilled-through base pin latch nuts were introduced, and the dimpled ejector button was replaced by the large flat faced button, to name most ofthe changes.

Many of these .357 “Flattops” havered, cherry, or plum colored cylinder frames, loading gates, triggers, and/or other parts.Some have what looks like gold or red lighting streaks in the finish.It is thought that this discoloration was due to the make-up of the molten metal used in the casting or molding process.The metal apparently reacted with the bluing solution during the bluing process, resulting in these various colors or tints.Some of these “discolored” guns are absolutely beautiful and highly desired by the serious collector.

The boxes were a two-piece yellow top with black bottom and white interior.They were enclosed in a brown cardboard “book wrap” shipping carton.The first boxes had a black end with “RUGER” written in yellow letters on top and four lines on the end that read “BLACKHAWK” in red letters and “357 MAGNUM REVOLVER, STURM RUGER & CO., INC., and SOUTHPORT, CONN.U. S. A. “ in yellow letters.A black Ruger Eagle inside a red wreath was on top of the box.The first boxes for the 4-5/8” guns had no catalog number and no barrel length marking on the end label since the only guns being made were all the same 4-5/8” barrel length.

When the boxes for the 6-1/2” and 10” barreled guns were introduced, they had their catalog numbers of BKH36 and BKH30, respectively, and barrel length added to the end label between the 2^nd and 3^rd lines.After the inventory of the first non-catalog, non-barrel length boxes for the 4-5/8” guns were expended (probably in late 1960), the new boxes for the 4-5/8” barreled guns had a catalog number of BKH34 and the 4-5/8” barrel length on their end label like the other two barrel lengths.I have pictured an example of all four boxes in this article.

While I will not cover them in detail in this article, there are several othervery scarce or very to extremely rare interesting variations of the .357 “Flattop” that were made . . while a thousand or more of some of these variations were made, such as the 'transition guns', some are limited to only one or two made like the engraved guns.These variations include, but are not limited to, 'transition guns', case hardened guns, inscribed guns, engraved guns, “A” prefixed serial numbered 10” guns (duplicate numbered?), plated guns, and “S” marked guns.

I suggest that you read John Dougan’s “Know Your Ruger Single Actions, 1953 – 1963” and Chad Hiddleston’s Red Eagle News Exchange “Reference of Ruger Firearms, Volume 1”, and/or some of the other books on Ruger collecting listed on this site to get a much better understanding of all of these and other variations, serial number ranges, etc.

Around 42,000 of these fine single action .357 Blackhawk “Flattops” wereproduced during its eight year life span of 1955 to 1962, when production ceased.

This gun was made by Bill Ruger to be a “working gun” and many saw extensive hard use and resulting heavy wear.Today, mint specimens are getting harder and harder to find, thus the collectibility and value of this fine revolver continues to grow.

RUGER .357 Cal. BLACKHAWK “FLATTOP”

Some of the major types and variations

Type 1 - Standard “dull” polish finish, long throw offset ejector rod housing, narrow land cylinder base pin, small square serrated ejector rod button, serrated narrow front sight base and blade, 4-5/8 “ barrel.About 6,000 made.

Type 1 “High Polish”- Same as above, but with the very rare “high polish” finish.These guns usually have the larger concave or “dimpled” ejector rod button since they were all shipped about two years after they were made.All that I have ever seen were shipped in September 1957.Only about 100 or so believed to have been made.There is some speculation as to why they were held and shipped late. . .maybe they were intended to be presentation guns with a special high polish finish?Or maybe they were just held to see if the gun’s blue discoloration problem (turning red, cherry, or plum colored) could be solved?Since low numbered guns were normally given to gun writers, Bill Ruger’s friends, and other special folks it seems that either of these reasons could be true.

Type 1 “Ross” variety – named the “Ross” variety after collector Bill Ross who discovered this interesting variety.These 800 guns were shipped in 1956 and have all the characteristics of the early Type 1 with the dull polish finish except they are completely out of serial number sequence.The serial number range is 14684 – 15483 and would have normally fell in the 1958 range.Some believe that these were numbered out of sequence to correct some sort of “duplicate” serial numbering error. . or as an attempt to confuse the competition regarding production numbers.

Type 2 – These guns had a wider non-serrated front sight base (horizontal serrations on the blade only), concave or “dimpled” ejector rod button, and a cylinder base pin with wider lands.The minor “changes of 1957” began to occur during the Type 2’s production.These included the use of thicker triggers, deletion of the adjustment notch on the rear sight elevation screw, and the use of “drilled through”versus the “capped” cylinder base pin latch nuts.It is believed that all of these guns had 4-5/8” barrels.Around 8,500 made.

Type 3 – At the beginning of the Type 3 these guns maintained most of the same characteristics as the late Type 2s except they had a “straight slot” ejector rod housing.However, fairly early in the Type 3 production several changes began to take place.The dimpled ejector rod button was changed to the “flat faced” button in late 1958/early 1959.This flat faced ejector rod button is still in use today.Also in 1959 the 6-1/2” and 10” barrels were introduced. In 1960 varnished walnut grips became the standard grip panel.About 10,000 – 11,000 Type 3s were made.

Type 4 - Introduced fairly early in 1960, themajor change was to “eight groove” rifling.Other characteristics were the same as the last Type 3’s produced.About 14,000 of these were made.

As you can see, there are many interesting and rare types and variations of the .357 Blackhawk “Flattops” to keep collectors searching for a long time. . .and even then you may never find them all!!!I wish to each and everyone of you good “Flattop” hunting!!

Bill Hamm

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The Ruger Blackhawk is a six-shot, single-actionrevolver manufactured by Sturm, Ruger & Co. It is produced in a variety of finishes, calibers, and barrel lengths.

History[edit]

Ruger New Blackhawk 357 Serial Numbers

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 & Company introduced the Single-Six, a .22 LRrimfire single-action revolver. The Single-Six proved to be a popular seller, leading Ruger to develop and market a centerfire revolver similar to the Single Action Army: the Ruger Blackhawk.^[6][7]

Ruger introduced the Blackhawk in 1955. Chambered for the .357 Magnum, the Blackhawk was a simple and strong design, and it sold well. In 1956, as Smith & Wesson was introducing the new .44 Magnum, Ruger quickly developed 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. /aiag-ppap-manual-latest-edition.html. 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 Smith & Wesson was about to launch a new cartridge.^[8][9]

The 1955–1962 Blackhawks are known today as the 'Flattop' models, because their adjustable rear sights were not protected by 'ears' extending up from the frame as later became standard. From 1962 through 1972, Ruger made the 'Three Screw' Blackhawk in various calibers, so called by the number of screws visible on the side of the revolver.

The Flattop and Three Screw Rugers were modernized compared to the Colt Single Action Army, in that they had adjustable sights instead of the Colt's fixed sights, and they used wire coil springs instead of the Colt's flat leaf springs. Bill Ruger chose coil springs due to their greater durability, saying that it solved one of the primary weaknesses of the Colt design.

The early models of the Blackhawk still operated the same way as the Colt, in that the hammer was half-cocked to load and unload and that the firearm was not safe to carry with all six chambers loaded due to the hammer resting upon the sixth chamber.^[10] In 1973, in order to eliminate accidents occurring from the hammer jarring against a round loaded in the sixth chamber, Ruger introduced the New Model Blackhawk. The New Model Blackhawk did not require the hammer to be half-cocked for loading and unloading, and it employed a transfer bar mechanism which prevented the cartridge under the hammer from being fired without the trigger being pulled. The New Blackhawk was seen as limiting firearms accidents and legal liability. Ruger then began offering a retrofit program, offering free transfer bar conversions to earlier variants of the Blackhawk.

It is worth noting that the Super Blackhawk is capable of operating with much higher pressure handloads than factory produced ammunition in .44 Magnum. Factory produced loads, such as Federal Champion 240 gr JSP loads are right around 800 ft-lbs muzzle energy. Loads in excess of 1200 ft-lbs muzzle energy are commonly produced by handloaders for this caliber and the Super Blackhawk can, in fact, handle more powerful loads than any .44 Magnum lever action rifle and substantially more powerful rounds than any double action .44 Magnum revolver. Buffalo Bore makes a heavy load that is in excess of 1500 ft-lbs muzzle energy.^[11]

These facts make the Ruger Super Blackhawk one of the top choices for handgun hunting. It is capable of reliably taking down deer, elk, caribou, moose, lion, grizzly or brown bear and even cape buffalo.^[12] It is commonly used to deliver a coup de grace shot to mortally wounded large game, having the ability to dispatch even an elephant with a conscientiously placed close range shot to the head. The wide availability of .44 Magnum cases and bullets make the .44 Magnum chambering far more practical than .454 Casull or .480 Ruger, while allowing for similar ballistics in custom loadings.^[13]

The Ruger Super Blackhawk in .44 Magnum is one of the most accurate big bore pistols for target shooting, typically returning 5 shot groups that are one ragged hole from a rest at 25 yards. Work is commonly performed on the action of these revolvers to give a light, crisp trigger pull, thereby contributing to accuracy.^[14]

Various models[edit]

Over the years the Blackhawk has appeared in a wide variety of models. These models include:

• New Model Blackhawk: Produced in blued steel in .30 Carbine, .357 Magnum, .41 Remington Magnum, .44 Special, and .45 Colt; produced in stainless in .327 Federal Magnum with an 8-round cylinder, .357 Magnum, and .45 Colt. Multiple barrel lengths were offered in many of these configurations.
• New Model Blackhawk Convertible: The cylinder of a Blackhawk is easily removed, and can be replaced with a cylinder for a different cartridge of the same diameter. Ruger has offered 'convertible' cylinder revolvers in .45 Colt/.45 ACP, .38-40/10mm Auto, and .357 Magnum/9×19mm Parabellum. Other than being sold with multiple cylinders, these firearms are identical to the Blackhawk.
• New Model Super Blackhawk: Produced in blued and stainless, with or without a rib for mounting a scope. The Super Blackhawk is built on the same frame, but with a larger grip (in the 7.5' and 10.5' barrels) and unfluted cylinder (except for 5.5' barrel), in order to more effectively deal with the .44 Magnum's recoil. Also, the grip frames are made of steel, versus aluminium for those same components in the Blackhawk. Ejector rod housings were originally steel on old model Super Blackhawks. The new model stainless steel versions have steel ejector rod housings.
• Vaquero and New Vaquero: With the popularity of Cowboy Action Shooting came demand for a single-action revolver that was more traditional in appearance. As the standard Ruger Blackhawk departs from the Single Action Army looks due to its adjustable sights, Ruger offered a fixed-sight equivalent to cater to buyers wanting a more traditional appearance. In all other ways, the Vaquero was identical to the Blackhawk, though offered in slightly fewer variants. The original Vaquero was offered in .357 Magnum, .44 Magnum, and .45 Colt. After some time, Ruger went with a smaller frame to more closely resemble the actual size of the Colt SAA, changed the name to the New Vaquero, and dropped the powerful .44 Magnum from the lineup. While keeping the smaller size, Ruger later went back to the simple Vaquero name.
• Bisley: The Bisley grip is a type of angled grip developed by Colt for target shooting at the end of the 19th Century. Ruger's 'Bisley' offerings incorporated a Bisley-style grip, hammer spur, and trigger.
  A limited edition of 1,000 Units from TALO Distributions featuring Turnbull Restorations Case Hardened frame.
• Old Army: The Old Army is a percussion ('cap and ball') black powder revolver based on the Blackhawk frame.

Ruger New Model Blackhawk Serial Numbers

Calibers[edit]

Ruger 357 Blackhawk Serial Number 34-96028

• .32 H&R Magnum/.32-20 Winchester Convertible (Single distributor—discontinued)
• 9×19mm Parabellum/.357 Magnum Convertible
• .357 Remington Maximum (Discontinued)
• 10mm Auto/.38-40 Winchester Convertible (Single distributor—discontinued)
• .44 Magnum (Super Blackhawk only)
• .44 Magnum/.44-40 Winchester Convertible (Single distributor—discontinued)
• .45 ACP/.45 Colt Convertible
• .454 Casull (Super Blackhawk Distributor Exclusive)
• .480 Ruger (Super Blackhawk Distributor Exclusive)

Finishes[edit]

See also[edit]

Sturm Ruger Blackhawk Serial Numbers

References[edit]

1. ^'Ruger Blackhawk: Versatility and Durability in the Spirit of the Old West'.
2. ^'Ruger Blackhawk Serial Number History'.
3. ^'Ruger New Blackhawk Serial Number History'.
4. ^'Ruger Super Blackhawk Serial Number History'.
5. ^'Ruger New Model Super Blackhawk Serial Number History'.
6. ^Taffin, John (2005). Single Action Sixguns. Krause Publications. p. 336. ISBN978-0-87349-953-8.
7. ^Taffin, John (1997). Big Bore Sixguns. Krause Publications. p. 336. ISBN978-0-87341-502-6.
8. ^Sturm Ruger booklet 'Fifty Years of .44 Magnums'
9. ^Sixguns.com
10. ^Larson, Erik (24 June 1993). 'Wild West Legacy: Ruger Gun Often Fires If Dropped, but Firm Sees No Need for Recall'. The Wall Street Journal. ProQuest398344120.
11. ^'Heavy .44 Magnum +P+ Pistol & Handgun Ammunition'. Buffalo Bore Ammunition Strictly Big Bore - Strictly Business. Retrieved 15 October 2017.
12. ^'Handguns for Dangerous Game'. Shooting Times. 15 February 2011. Retrieved 15 October 2017.
13. ^'44 Magnum Load Data - Handloads.Com'. www.handloads.com. Retrieved 15 October 2017.
14. ^DIYautotech (22 November 2012), Ruger Single Action Trigger Job Ruger Single Six, Single Ten, Blackhawk, Vaqeuro, retrieved 15 October 2017

Ruger 357 Blackhawk Serial Number Lookup

External links[edit]

Ruger 357 Blackhawk Serial Numbers Lookup