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My Ruger 357 Black Hawk is a Piece of Junk
03lover
Member Posts: 67 ✭✭
My Ruger 357 magnum Black Hawk stainless steel is a piece of junk. When I first received it, it had several problems. The chambers didn't line up with the bore well causing shaving and splatter from the bullets when fired. One chamber had an enlargement causing difficult extraction. The grooves in the bore had such terrible reaming marks that it looked like someone had reamed the bore with a rasp. The groove diameter measured .3582", which I think is too large.
I sent in to Ruger at a cost of $50.00 bucks and they replaced the cylinder and fixed the timing problem. They didn't do anything with the barrel.
I have struggled for several years trying to get this thing to shoot well. The over size bore causes all jacketed ammo the shoot 150 feet per second slower than my other 357 magnums. I can't shoot lead at all because of the leading.
I talked to a Ruger service person today and received no help at all. He wouldn't let me talk to a technician and wouldn't provide me with any barrel bore specifications that would help me understand the bore is in or out of spec.
I will not return the gun to Ruger at $50.00 both ways if they decide the bore is in spec., that would be another $100.00 wasted, just like the countless hundreds of rounds of ammunition I have fired trying to make this piece junk shoot well.
Good thing there is a good gun show this weekend. The Ruger will go the show with me and it will not come back home.
Where has the Ruger quality gone? I have sent two of three back to the factory to have problems corrected. No more Rugers for me.
I sent in to Ruger at a cost of $50.00 bucks and they replaced the cylinder and fixed the timing problem. They didn't do anything with the barrel.
I have struggled for several years trying to get this thing to shoot well. The over size bore causes all jacketed ammo the shoot 150 feet per second slower than my other 357 magnums. I can't shoot lead at all because of the leading.
I talked to a Ruger service person today and received no help at all. He wouldn't let me talk to a technician and wouldn't provide me with any barrel bore specifications that would help me understand the bore is in or out of spec.
I will not return the gun to Ruger at $50.00 both ways if they decide the bore is in spec., that would be another $100.00 wasted, just like the countless hundreds of rounds of ammunition I have fired trying to make this piece junk shoot well.
Good thing there is a good gun show this weekend. The Ruger will go the show with me and it will not come back home.
Where has the Ruger quality gone? I have sent two of three back to the factory to have problems corrected. No more Rugers for me.
Comments
Also, allude to the fact that your experience will be placed on Gunbroker for all members to see, and see if that doesn't jumpstart a reaction.
Just saying
why unload a problem gun on someone who is unsuspecting? Would that make you happy if you were in their position and YOU bought the gun that didn't shoot well??
Me please.
Forum rules prohibit me selling or offering for sale the gun.
But not for offering it on the auction side. Or if you come to an agreement, list is on the auction with no pictures and a title of "Auction for XXXXX" with a Buy It Now price of what you agreed on. Gunbroker will get their fees and everybody will be happy.
Forum rules prohibit me selling or offering for sale the gun.
That is true, but you can still give it away! [:D]
I should clarify my statement that the gun is junk.
It is junk in my mind because I am disapointed with jacketed bullet velocities and the leading problem caused by gas cutting of the bullets in the oversized bore. Sure, I can size my cast bullets larger but then the cylinder throats would have to be opened up. That would really mess the gun up for jacketed bullets and any future owner. Good accuracy can be had with both jacketed and cast bullets if I don't mind the velocity loss with jacketed. With cast bullets, I have a couple of loads that are tack drivers if I top off the powder charge with corn meal and keep the velocity down. This is more than I want to give up or go to the trouble for.
I am also disappointed with Ruger's not being willing to share the bore specifications with me. The service person's statement to me indicated if the gun performed to acceptable standards with SAMMI specification ammo they would consider it OK and I would be paying shipping both ways.
Sorry, but I am not willing to put another $100.00 into a gun that I feel is substandard and requires far too much extra work to produce lower velocity loads than normal to get good accuracy.
I wouldn't want to pass a real piece of junk onto someone else. I am sure there are a lot of shooters that would be very happy with this Ruger. I do a lot of target shooting so I see where all my shots go. I hate bore leading and don't care for anything I know to be less than it should be. I won't continue to support a firearms manufacturer that is less than willing to indicate to the customer the gun could or should be in need of repair with the detailed description I gave them.
I have delt with other firearms manufacturers that have bent over backwards to fix far less, even to the extent of replacing the entire gun. And that has been in the last several years. Goodby Ruger.
it's worth a try
It has already been viewed over 90 times on this forum. I put the same post on three other forums. I think it is too late for damage control.
I wish there was a way to send this to Ruger. I tried to email them and the system just booted me out before I had a chance to send the page. Ruger has burned me and I feel like they deserve a kick in the behind.
I bought it new from a dealer that sells thousands of gun a year. I had fired about (300) rounds by the time I had all the problems identified. By that time the gun was used and the dealer told me what most of us would expect, "Contact Ruger Customer Service and they will help you". I did and sent the BH in. Ruger sent it back with everything fixed except the barrel. Any dealer that would be willing to have taken this gun back or would have contacted Ruger to work out the problems for the customer would be a very rare person indeed or crazy.
By the time I contacted Ruger for the second time, I had fired more than (2500) rounds so the gun is in well used but excellent condition. I had a friendly conversation with the Ruger Customer Service person. I stated the details of my concern about the condition of the bore and asked several questions about Ruger bore specifications,none of that information could be shared with me. I was told he didn't think the barrel bore would be considered out of spec. and I could send the gun in for Ruger to check out. I asked, if the bore isn't considered out of spec. what would Ruger do. The answer was they would fire the BH with some SAMMI spec ammo, that is same ammo we can all buy, and if the gun meets their accuracy standard it would be considered OK.
Well, I knew it would not just meet, it would exceed Rugers accuracy standard. So why waste more money on the gun.
I am not complaining about the accuracy. I have developed loads with jacketed and cast ammo that are accurate. I just don't like the 150 FPS velocity loss with jacketed in this gun vs my other 357 magnums and I don't like the trouble I have to go to in the search for an accurate load that doesn't lead. My best cast load is a 145 grain wad cutter pushed with 4.0 grains of Win. 231, sparked with a Winchester small pistol primer and 8.0 grains of corn meal on top of the powder. The corn meal prevents leading with this load and I shoot 1/2" to 3/4" groups at fifty feet all day long without leading. If I increase the powder charge to 4.5 grains the leading starts in again.
Am I angry with the Ruger Customer Service person, NO. Am I angry with Ruger's policy as to how they handle some customer concerns with their handguns, YES. Am I unhappy with my Ruger Blackhawk because it doesn't meet my standards, YES. Would I ever again put myself is a position that I would have to deal with Ruger again, NO. Perhaps this Blackhawk is a lemon, that doesn't make me feel any better. I have other Rugers that had problems also so this isn't a rare exception to the norm.
This is no different than what many people experience when they buy a car or truck and have nothing but trouble, not only with the car but with the dealership also. They wouldn't buy another x@^(#$% either, ever again, especially from that dealer. My Ruger BH is without wheels and Ruger's desire to correct some problems is without any common sense or desire to please the consumer.
I have had problems with other manufacturers handguns. Those manufacturers made good and corrected the problems. They even paid the postage both ways. Will I buy more of their guns, YES.
I don't want anyone to think that I think I know it all. I know I don't because at 71 years of age I am still learning. I have been working with firearms since I was fourteen and had many good and some bad experiences. I learned something from all those experiences and look forward to many more now that I have more time to work with the guns. The quest for the perfect load in my many guns never ends. A golfer considers a hole in one the perfect shot. As a shooter, I consider five or ten shots in one hole the perfect load, but I do settle for something close to that. We all have an idea of what we consider poor,fair, good, very good or excellent when shooting for a good group. My idea of acceptable accuracy may be smaller groups than some and larger than others. I do require small enough groups that it challanges me and the firearm. That helps my hobby of reloading and shooting look more like a never ending high, and one I enjoy because it does.
Bottom line is the Ruger Blackhawk doesn't meet my standards. Ruger is not going to help correct it. Am I dumping a piece of junk on someone else by trading or selling the BH. Not at all. It will shoot up most anyone expectations or better, but not mine.
I did consider that option. It turned out to be far too costly.
I have not had a problem with any Ruger's and the one time I had to deal with their customer service department(to replace a screw I had lost) they steered me in the right direction. I own Ruger bolt actions, Ruger revolvers, reguer semi-auto pistols & rifles and all have treated me very good at a reasonable cost.
If I were in your shoes I would continue to call and complain and definitely be unhappy with the situation. Don't know what else you could do.
Jon
The cruel part was the 357 magnum I was able to buy for $15.00 less that I received for the sale of the Blackhawk is a Ruger Bisley 357 magnum 7-1/2" barrel in like new condition. The gun is well fitted and appears to have had some trigger work. The trigger pull is quite light and crisp. The bore looks new and great. I have to give this one a chance to show me what it can do. If it turns out it doesn't meet my expectations and standards, I can easily get my money back out of it. No matter what, I will not deal with Ruger Customer Service again.
I KNOW, IT IS ANOTHER RUGER. I love the grip of my Ruger Bisley in 45 Colt and that is one Ruger that never gave me any trouble, just great service and accuracy. Maybe this Bisley in 357 magnum will perform well.
The Ruger Blackhawk is in the hands of a proud new owner. The gun show was both kind and cruel to me. I sold the Ruger Blackhawk that didn't meet my standards. I was able to buy another 357 magnum for $15.00 less than what I got for the Blackhawk. That was good and kind to me.
The cruel part was the 357 magnum I was able to buy for $15.00 less that I received for the sale of the Blackhawk is a Ruger Bisley 357 magnum 7-1/2" barrel in like new condition. The gun is well fitted and appears to have had some trigger work. The trigger pull is quite light and crisp. The bore looks new and great. I have to give this one a chance to show me what it can do. If it turns out it doesn't meet my expectations and standards, I can easily get my money back out of it. No matter what, I will not deal with Ruger Customer Service again.
I KNOW, IT IS ANOTHER RUGER. I love the grip of my Ruger Bisley in 45 Colt and that is one Ruger that never gave me any trouble, just great service and accuracy. Maybe this Bisley in 357 magnum will perform well.
So did you tell the new buyer the gun had a oversized barrle ?