I’ve always been a fan of John Taffin’s revolver articles and the lightweight, short barreled revolvers he calls “Perfect Packin’ Pistols”. When the folks at Lipsey’s announced their new exclusive revolver from Ruger, I e-mailed my local shop immediately to get one on order for me!
The revolver is a Ruger Blackhawk Bisley, built on the flat-top medium size frame. Chambered in 45 Colt, it also comes with a 45 ACP convertible cylinder. It’s available in 4 5/8” and 5 1/2” barrel lengths and in stainless or blued finish. The grips are very nicely figured walnut with slight palm swells made by Tyler Gun Works of Friona, Texas. Being a tribute to John Taffin, all guns have special JT serial numbers and a serial matching holster is available separately from Barranti Leather. This perfectly fits the bill to be a Perfect Packin’ Pistol.
I got the first model my local shop could get ahold of, a 4 5/8” stainless model, number 294. I was immediately impressed with my gun, as the fit and finish were far better than recent models I’ve purchased from Ruger. Cocking the hammer felt rough, but it was dry. With a light film of grease on the base pin and each end of the cylinder, it turned over smoothly. The barrel / cylinder gap on the 45 Colt cylinder measured right at 0.006”. The barrel / cylinder gap for the 45 ACP cylinder measured 0.007”. Cylinder throats all measured 0.452” on both cylinders. I checked trigger pull with a Lyman pull gauge and got a consistent 3.4 pound pull over several tries. It seems I got a nice example of the Perfect Packin’ Pistol, but does it shoot?
I shot a variety of different types of ammo, from heavier +P factory loads to my back yard target plinking hand loads. This gun seemed to shoot everything I tried in it just fine, with acceptable accuracy. The Bisley grip frame and Tyler Gun Works grips felt great in the hand, and really helped to control recoil from the heavier 300 grain loads from HSM I tried. I really like the palm swells in the grips and feel they help me to get a more consistent grip from shot to shot. Ruger’s micro rear sight and serrated ramp front sight were easy to see and adjust for zeroing. With a wide range of bullet weights from the light 155 grain 45 ACP from SinterFire, to 300 grain +P 45 Colts, I adjusted the sight a good bit without any issues.
All shooting was done at 25 yards from a pistol rest and velocity readings were taken with a Garmin Xero C1 chronograph, with speed averages from six shots. All handloads were assembled using new Starline brass and Winchester WLP primers.
|
45 Colt |
AVG FPS |
Group |
|
DoubleTap Controlled Expansion 250 gr. |
790 |
2.5” |
|
HSM ProPistol Hunter 300 gr. (This is a +P load) |
1137 |
2.1” |
|
Handload-XTP 250 gr. / W231 7.0 gr. |
705 |
2.8” |
|
Handload-Missouri coated Elmer K 255 gr. / Unique 8.8 gr. |
904 |
2.9” |
|
45 ACP |
AVG FPS |
Group |
|
DoubleTap Controlled Expansion |
1048 |
2.4” |
|
HSM XTP/HP |
856 |
1.8” |
|
SinterFire HP Special Duty 155 gr. |
1132 |
2.4” |
|
SinterFire Frangible Reduced Hazard 155 gr. |
1060 |
2.7” |
|
Handload-Lead RN 235 gr. / W231 5.8 gr. |
922 |
2.5” |
Just in case you come across a snake or two along the way, DoubleTap and CCI offer 45 Colt shotshell ammo. To carry a couple shells in the field, I opted to have Barranti Leather make a six round cartridge slide and a two shot “Snakebite” slide to match the gun’s holster. I tried three different shot loads in this revolver at 5 yards and all gave a nice pattern capable of taking out any snake that crosses your path.
|
45 Colt Shotshells |
Pattern Spread |
|
DoubleTap DT Snake Shot (9 shot) |
16” |
|
CCI Shotshell (9 shot) |
18.25” |
|
CCI “Big 4” (4 shot) |
18” |
Overall, this is a great packing revolver. The light weight of the smaller frame and short barrel, paired with a well built holster, makes carrying or packing almost unnoticeable. With the ability to shoot a variety of loads, it’s a versatile option for any adventure!