Barrel lenght?

[hornet22savage]

I'm looking for a 41 Mag. I really like the Ruger Super Blackhawk, but I really don't know anything about handguns and wonder from a hunting stand point. Is there a real advantage to a 7.5" barrel over a 6.5" or a 6" barrel. Thanks for the insight.

[jims]

If you use open sights you have a longer sight radius that can help accuracy and you get more speed out of the longer barrel.

[7mmfreak]

I shot a 7.5" Bisley Blackhawk in .45 Colt with heavy, hard-cast, +P loads for a while. I did shoot it better than shorter guns but I can shoot a 5.5" good enough for 99% of any shots one could reasonably ask me to make.

[wilmsmeyer]

I am with 7mm on this one. I like a pistol to be fairly compact yet have a decent sight radius. My 4" .357 and the SR9 9mm each have about the same sight radius and allows for hitting a 12 inch circle a slam dunk out to 50 yds offhand. For defense where shots are usually under 10 yds, it's no issue at all. If you want to shoot deer open sighted at over 50 yds, you may want a longer barrel then me.

I am not a true pistolero when it comes to hunting. If I was, I would want at least 6" barrel and possibly a Long eye relief scope in 2X or so.

Does anyone remember Bob Melek (sp) from Guns and Ammo magazine? I used to love reading his long range pistol stories/articles. I think he used a contender with 10 & 14 inch barrels. He died kinda young from what I remember. He would shoot stuff at 300 yds like it was nuthin'. And Elmer Keith. He made some amazing shots with some short barreled revolvers. Good reading if you can dig it up....and good insights in hitting things with a pistol.

[deadeer]

Dec 30, 2014 19:25:57 GMT -5 wilmsmeyer said:

I am with 7mm on this one. I like a pistol to be fairly compact yet have a decent sight radius. My 4" .357 and the SR9 9mm each have about the same sight radius and allows for hitting a 12 inch circle a slam dunk out to 50 yds offhand. For defense where shots are usually under 10 yds, it's no issue at all. If you want to shoot deer open sighted at over 50 yds, you may want a longer barrel then me.

I am not a true pistolero when it comes to hunting. If I was, I would want at least 6" barrel and possibly a Long eye relief scope in 2X or so.

Does anyone rememb rier Bob Melek (sp) from Guns and Ammo magazine? I used to love reading his long range pistol stories/articles. I think he used a contender with 10 & 14 inch barrels. He died kinda young from what I remember. He would shoot stuff at 300 yds like it was nuthin'. And Elmer Keith. He made some amazing shots with some short barreled revolvers. Good reading if you can dig it up....and good insights in hitting things with a pistol.

Both great guys to follow. Keith made a 600yd shot on a mule deer with a 44mag handgun after chasing it from a rifle shot. That is one story he is well known for. He was a big influence on the 44mag, pushing the 44special to the edge until it was upgraded to it's big brother. Bob Milek was my influence on getting into the big single shot pistols. Very cool to read about his adventures and accomplishments. Two guys that were about the best in their game for sure.

Jay

[nsb]

The Ruger Super Blackhawk is a 44mag gun. A Ruger in 41mag would be simply a Blackhawk. Nothing wrong with the 41mag for a hunting handgun but I'd suggest looking at the Super Blackhawk in 44mag. There are more bullets to choose from and you don't need to load the gun to high mag levels to shoot and have fun. The advantage of the 7.5" bbl is, as stated, a longer sight radius when shooting the gun with iron sights. There is also a modest gain in muzzle velocity. If you're new to handguns, or don't know a lot about them, you might want to look into a double action vs. a single action if you're going to be hunting with it and doing most of your shooting off hand. The single action has a longer lock time due to its longer cocking arc and this will impact off hand shooting to some extent. However, most double actions cost a little more when buying new (same brands, different models).

[hornet22savage]

Thanks for the info, I'll see what I can chase up on those two shooters. nsb Ruger does make a Super Blackhawk in 41 mag. It is a distributer exclusive for Davidsons. You can also find them on gun broker. The newer models are simply hunter models earlier ones were Bisley. Myself I'm very new to handguns. I have shot a 357 mag but very little. Looks like this might become my main weapon since I lost most of my hunting ground this fall.