My hand cannons - which goes, which stays?

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d-dogg

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Years ago I bought a Ruger .44 magnum Super Blackhawk with an 11 inch barrel on a whim and because I got a stellar deal on it. Was going to take up hunting with a handgun, and that thing is pretty darned accurate.

A few years later, I bought a Taurus .454 Casull (just to ask the hottie at the gun counter out - she said yes, btw). I did carry it camping as there were plenty of bears and mountain lions where I used to live.

Both were fun to shoot over the years, but these days I need to think about thinning the collection a bit.

Obviously neither gun is a concealed or even open carry candidate. And either is expensive as a target gun, though both can fire cheaper rounds.

The Taurus actually handles a lot better than the Ruger due to the factory ported barrel. Is also DA, though I do not think I have ever fired it DA.

To tell you the truth, I could live without either, though a hand cannon is fun to shoot.

I'm kind of interested in taking up cowboy shooting, and the Taurus will of course fire cheap .45 LC. It is a bit heavier than a lot of the .45 Peacemaker clones out there. I wonder how it would be for that type of shooting.

I don't live out west anymore, so hunting with the Ruger is not going to happen.

So what do you guys think? Sell the Ruger? Sell both? Leave them in the safe for the kids to deal with after I'm gone? Any ideas what the Ruger would be worth these days?
 
I don't know much about cowboy action shooting, but I would think that DA-revolvers (like your Taurus) wouldn't be that commonplace at those events. Would they?

I'd probably sell one outright, and trade the other toward a SAA-clone if I didn't already have one for the cowboy stuff. That way, you would have achieved three points: extra cash on hand, collection "thinned" by one gun, and your hands on a "cowboy gun" more suitable than the Ruger.
 
Well, .45 Colt is a lot more common than .44 Special, so I'd say the Taurus wins out there if you're looking for a gun that can shoot cheaper loads. Overall if you're going to keep one, I'd say keep the double action one. It's just more useful overall.
 
I'd sell them both and buy one gun that will actually do what you want.

If you want to shoot most cowboy matches you are going to need a single action revolver of a design that was made before 1899. That does include the Ruger .44 magnum Super Blackhawk, though you would probably want to get one with a shorter barrel.

For just a nice fun gun to shoot. It's hard to beat a S&W 629.
 
I find a lot more .44 Special ammo locally, than .45 Colt. Especially when it comes to defense ammo.
 
It sounds to me like neither of them is what you are wanting. So, sell them both and get the cowboy action gun/s you want.

If you want to keep one, I would keep the Taurus .
 
.45 colt is up there in price these days. Like others have said I would get rid of both and try and find something you REALLY want. If I've learned anything about buying firearms, compromises suck. If you can get it, get what you want.

But if I had to pick I'd sell the Taurus.
 
If you just don't "feel it" for either revolver any more, don't have any particular need or use for them, and want to get something else for another type of shooting activity, then I would say sell them both and get something that you really want.
 
Not everyone has unlimited funds to purchase toys.

I buy and sell because I enjoy it. Sometimes my direction changes so I sell off my collection to fund new purchases. The chase is sometimes enough.
 
@RetiredUSNChief and skt239 - I understand some enthusiasts have a never-sell-a-gun position. It's just that with 3 kids, there are other priorities in life, and neither of these guns are getting a whole lot of love right now. Even if I forced myself to bring them along to the range more frequently, punching paper would be their sole mission in life.

@56Hawk and MedWheeler, I suppose I should have done 2 minutes worth of googling on Cowboy Action Shooting. There is quite a bit to absorb. Need to study up a bit more on choosing a weapon. I do own a .22 Single Six the kids could use if they developed interest in the sport.

I think I will sell both, depending on what the used market is like. I'll be visiting my local FFL dealer to pick up a shotgun for my daughter this afternoon, so I'll get a feel for the price ranges in the used category. Some guys report a glut of used revolvers on the market right now due to the rush to buy up ARs.
 
Another vote to sell both and get what you want. Ordinarily I am one of those "don't sell guns" types, but neither of those guns is an out of production collectable.

If you want to get into the Cowboy Action game, you will need so much more than just an appropriate revolver (and there are a ton of different ones out there), you will need at the least a holster/gunbelt. Then, of course, you should invest in reloading equipment if you don't already have it. Don't forget appropriate attire you will want to wear. I foresee that even selling both of you revolvers, you will every penny to get set up to shoot Cowboy Action.

Ask me how I know.
 
You could get the blackhawk barrel cut down to 5.5" or so and use it for cowboy action with .44 Specials. Either that or just sell them both and get guns you do want.
 
d-dogg said:
@RetiredUSNChief and skt239 - I understand some enthusiasts have a never-sell-a-gun position. It's just that with 3 kids, there are other priorities in life, and neither of these guns are getting a whole lot of love right now. Even if I forced myself to bring them along to the range more frequently, punching paper would be their sole mission in life.
Click to expand...

No worries, d-dogg! I figured as such anyway, just poking a little fun!

:):)

"neither of these guns are getting a whole lot of love right now" says a lot, too.
 
No disrespect meant by my comment.

I'm not in the camp of never selling anything and in your situation, I'd sell the Taurus.
 
Well to follow up, the Ruger went to a new home tonight. The gent who bought it wants the Taurus too, but has to get it past SWMBO.

I played nice and gave the Mrs. half the proceeds of the Ruger. That will help with whatever comes next.
 
I'd sell both and pick up a S&W M625. Other than nostalgia, you really have no need for either of the hand cannons. (Not that needing was ever a real reason to own a gun.) The other possibility is to get a Ruger Blackhawk in 45 and you can still get some pretty powerful loads if you choose to shoot them.
 
I agree, sell both. It's obvious neither are what you want anymore. Since you want to shoot SASS you will need 2 revolvers. I suggest a pair of New Vaquero's in 38/357 because they are cheaper to shoot than in .45 Colt. Ruger also makes a SASS Vaquero for the Cowboy game. The SASS Vaquero has the old XR-3 grip frame which is very comfortable and fast too shoot. I have not shot one yet but I hear they are really good revolvers.

Even though you will need 2 new revolvers I'm sure the price you get for the 2 you have will cover the cost of 2 Vaqueros. I'm sure that 11" Super Blackhawk will command a pretty penny... While Taurus revolver usually don't hold their price yours is a 454 Casull so that will help.
 
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