Ruger Blackhawk. What would you do?

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xring

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I recently bought a new Blackhawk .357 off Gunbroker and had it delivered to my ffl. As many of these stories go, after getting home, I discovered that the front sight has a ding / flatened are on the left side of the sight. It is interesting that it a blued over, and not white metal. But when I line up the sights, I see an annoying shiny spot on the front sight. Today was the first time I fired it. It does shoot well, but sort of bothers me. Deal with it, or contact Ruger? I understand on the blued models, the sight would have to be replaced and the entire barrel re-blued. Seems extreme. This one was almost perfect...
 
A picture would help. It may have touch up blue on it because I doubt it left Ruger with a dent. I have used Oxpho-Blue on a single six and it worked really well. If its just a dent I would dress it out and reblue. Maybe. Hard to say without seeing it.

And I thought any of the newer Ruger single actions had a screw on front sight. But I may be wrong. Its happened before.:uhoh:
 
It left Ruger that way. I think the sight was dinged up before the blue job. Or it was touched up by Ruger as it was purchased brand new. The fine serrations on the top of the sight are involved, so there is no dressing it up.
 
Oddly enough, the stainless models have a pinned front sight. Blued models are integral to the mount.
 
Sometimes, when I'm mulling over an imperfect gun, I just tell myself "That's what makes my gun collection MY gun collection." It's mind over matter.
(If you don't mind, it don't matter.)

But I guess the real question here is, "Is this a shooting gun, or a collector's piece?" If you value your firearms as collector's condition, this issue needs to be addressed. Ruger, from all I've heard, will probably assist you.

But if it's only a shooter, life is short. Just let it go.
 
I totally forgot that I could apply a few coats of orange enamel on there. I did it to a Single 6 with good results. But then I'd have to do my 1976 model also to match. And that sight is perfect. :(
 
Sounds like it mighta had Perma Blue put on it. I put that on after I filed my front sight a touch, and it was a bit shiny in the right light. My leather holster removes the Perma Blue pretty quickly, so I just leave it now. A holster is going to brighten just about any blued front sight over time.

Bottom line, for me at least, is that if it’s a shooter it’s a keeper. Enjoy it!
 
So you bought a gun that shoots well at a very good price and it does not look perfect?

Right?

Instead of posting you should be buying a lottery ticket.

Yeah so? Does it matter if it was a good deal, or a premium was paid? It was purchased new from a dealer. Whatcha getting at?
 
Based on your last post, I take it the gun was bought brand new? I apparently misread your original post and thought it was used, but new to you. If it was bought as a brand new gun, that changes things and I would likely send it back.
 
What I’m getting at is...

So many times an internet purchase fails to meet our expectations. Expecting to get a pristine object at less than market price is unrealistic. Buying a usable object at an advantageous price should be an occasion for celebration, not complaint. I had to deal with a father who was a perfectionist. I am sensitive to perfectionism.

A dinged sight isn’t much of a problem. Live with it or fix it with the money you saved on the purchase.

Congratulations on getting a good revolver. I hope you can find it in your heart to give it a good home.
 
Yes, it was a NIB gun from a dealer. I have purchased many firearms over the internet without any problem at all. I was in the right place at the right time, and got a great deal, that's all. I'm not whining over a used gun I got cheap. Not a big deal. If the sight was pinned or screwed on, I'd just replace it. As it is, some paint is in order.
 
I think I might gently file the ding out then file the other side to match. Then reblue The modification. The factory front sights on most revolvers seem a bit too wide for my liking anyway. I have an SP101 with a dinged front sight and I've been plotting a file job on that one. Just haven't got the courage to do it yet. Mine is SS so it won't require the reblue.
 
If it has damage, contact Ruger and have them repair it.
 
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xring

If it's just cosmetic and the sights are dialed in, then I would leave it or paint over it with the color of your choice.

If it's that bad of a dent I would contact Ruger and see what they say.
 
Another wacko conversation. WTH. You paid your money and have warranty rights. Ruger will pay for everything, shipping included. Why would you settle or screw around with it yourself? Why do gun owners think they are helpless and even consider eating a problem like this? Or just as bad thinking they are master gunsmiths and should resolve it themselves? Both extremes are ridiculous. You see it here again and again, and it never makes any sense. OP, do whatever you want, but there is only one right, smart, sensible move: send it back for resolution. Fooling with this yourself even in the least puts your warranty coverage at risk. That would be a real shame.
 
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This is something I've done that does a real good job of getting a decent blackish bluing that lasts. Bit of a process but works for me.
File/sand the damage to your needs. Tape off the area with really good tape. Brush on a mild salt water solution and repeat over however much time it takes to achive a light layer of rust but not long enough for pitting. Gently wipe loose residue off with soft cloth. If the rust comes of repeat solution. Once the surface retains the rust after wipe get this stuff called Ospho. What it does when applied to rust is turn it into iron phosphate. It kills the rust and its progress. It will also turn the area flat black. The deeper they rust the better the black. When it dries it will look a bit whitish powdery. It will wipe off with damp cloth. It can be reapplied but will only improve slightly. It is very important to protect adjacent surfaces because Ospho will strip bluing. I use just a damp q-tip and position the work down so the is no way any can run onto adjacent areas. Once it is cleaned and dry a bit of perma blue can usually spiff it up. As with any spot repair you may not to get it perfect but this has always got it darn close for me.
 
If it really bothers you I would send it to Ruger.

Another option that I have used is Birchwood Casey paint pens. They have a “sight black” that is easily removed but my favorite in this application would be their Flat Black paint pen. Most decent gun stores carry it or you can get it online.
I used this paint pen on my S&W 17 that had a dinged Patridge sight. I put it one time and it’s still there after several years. I used this on Ruger stainless sights and it doesn’t last as long and needs retouching. I guess it depends on if the ding touches leather in a holster. For the most part it’s pretty resilient stuff.
Amazon has it:
https://www.amazon.com/Birchwood-Casey-Super-Black-Touch-Up/dp/B00M1S1M4M

Oh, it holds up against Hoppe’s #9 up to a point. Hoppe’s seems to get under the edges and eat it away over time. I did a yeast using this on the rear sight of my stainless Vaquero. I applied it to the back of the rear sight indent to blacken it. Every time I cleaned the gun I purposely took a cotton swab and wiped solvent on the paint and left it there as I cleaned the gun and wiped it off last. The paint lasted 3 cleanings before it looked ratty enough to consider retouching it up.

Hope this helps.
 
I asked the OP for a picture of the dinged sight. So far no picture. But I did look at the Ruger site and all the BH guns have screw on sights. I would just send Ruger a picture or just call them and I bet they will send a brand new sight. Problem solved.
 
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