Ruger Blackhawk Barrel Bulge
- Thread starter kevzzz
- Start date
vagrantviking
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Southern Alberta
That sucks! Its a nice gun.
Had to be something in there. Odd if you are sure you didn't have a squib....
I'll speculate wildly here and throw out that it could have been a bullet seperation that left the jacket in the barrel. Doubt that just a lost cleaning patch would do that. Only possibility that makes sense is some sort of obstruction though.
A miss-thrown charge that caused an overload or a light charge that lead to detonation should have caused damage to the cylinder rather than the barrel.
As for a solution, you could shoot it as is if it still shoots alright but personally I wouldn't. Not because I thought it was unsafe but because knowing it isn't the way it should be would grate on me too much.
Any decent pistol smith should be able to get a new barrel on there for you without any trouble. Perfect chance to build a Ruger Buntline!
Had to be something in there. Odd if you are sure you didn't have a squib....
I'll speculate wildly here and throw out that it could have been a bullet seperation that left the jacket in the barrel. Doubt that just a lost cleaning patch would do that. Only possibility that makes sense is some sort of obstruction though.
A miss-thrown charge that caused an overload or a light charge that lead to detonation should have caused damage to the cylinder rather than the barrel.
As for a solution, you could shoot it as is if it still shoots alright but personally I wouldn't. Not because I thought it was unsafe but because knowing it isn't the way it should be would grate on me too much.
Any decent pistol smith should be able to get a new barrel on there for you without any trouble. Perfect chance to build a Ruger Buntline!
I'd suggest that apparently you didn't catch one misfire or thought it was something else like not cocking it fully or something along that line. Barrels don't bulge like that unless you have a squib and then shoot it. I doubt that even if you left a patch or cleaning brush in the bore that it would produce that sort of overpressure effect.
Either way it's dead now. Time for a replacement barrel.
. barrel change x3
Say what? This fixes the bulge on the inside how?
I sincerley hope you were kidding and just forgot to put the smiley at the end. If not you really need to read up more about gunsmithing and what the actual effects of such things as this really are.
It is possible that it was the first round you fired that day. Maybe something got in the barrel after you cleaned it. I have heard but have never experinced it that too much oil in the barrel could cause this.
I know it looks real bad and I also would be really peed off about it but I have seen things like this before and sometimes they do not affect accuracy and function at all.
The one good thing at least is that it should be not be to costly a fix and at least it wasn't a $2000.00 gun that it happened on. Also you never got hurt and that is the most important thing.
I was reading an artical some time ago that there are guys down south that can fix this barrel. Apparently they put it in a press some how and press it back and as the story went you can't tell it ever happened? I guess it sounds possible.
Graydog
I know it looks real bad and I also would be really peed off about it but I have seen things like this before and sometimes they do not affect accuracy and function at all.
The one good thing at least is that it should be not be to costly a fix and at least it wasn't a $2000.00 gun that it happened on. Also you never got hurt and that is the most important thing.
I was reading an artical some time ago that there are guys down south that can fix this barrel. Apparently they put it in a press some how and press it back and as the story went you can't tell it ever happened? I guess it sounds possible.
Graydog
And I was gonna suggest squeezing the barrel in my special C/T vise for a nominal sum...
Just incase any one else thought it was a good idea... Turning the "bump" down on a lathe is going to end up really dangerous!!!
Here is why
A gun barrel is a tube if the outside is bulged so is the inside.
A lathe will indeed cut the "bump" back to the correct out side dimension but the "bump" still exists on the inside.
So what you end put with is a barrel that has a very thin spot in it!!!
This could and probably would explode as the structural integrity is now gone.
If your still not getting it think pull trigger and half the barrel goes flying down range. Or worse the barrel tears on one side and comes flying back at you.
Turn the "bump" down is a very stupid idea and a very good way to get you and others injured.
So in short if you don't know what your talking about keep your trap shut. Don't work on your fire arms if you don't know what your doing!!!
Please!
Here is why
A gun barrel is a tube if the outside is bulged so is the inside.
A lathe will indeed cut the "bump" back to the correct out side dimension but the "bump" still exists on the inside.
So what you end put with is a barrel that has a very thin spot in it!!!
This could and probably would explode as the structural integrity is now gone.
If your still not getting it think pull trigger and half the barrel goes flying down range. Or worse the barrel tears on one side and comes flying back at you.
Turn the "bump" down is a very stupid idea and a very good way to get you and others injured.
So in short if you don't know what your talking about keep your trap shut. Don't work on your fire arms if you don't know what your doing!!!
Please!
vagrantviking
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Southern Alberta
Its very rare for modern bullets to seperate but anything is possible. The suggestion of excess oil in the bore is something that I have heard of before also but never first hand so can't really comment on. Would seem possible though.
Is SHOULD be safe to fire as it is but there are no guarantees. Could be stress fractures that might eventually let go.
The cost of a rebarrel should be somewhat less than replacing the whole gun. Nearly any smith should be able to give you a price.
For the safety of the load double check a couple reloading books and your seating depth. You will probably have to cut the load back some for cast bullets to give good results.
Is SHOULD be safe to fire as it is but there are no guarantees. Could be stress fractures that might eventually let go.
The cost of a rebarrel should be somewhat less than replacing the whole gun. Nearly any smith should be able to give you a price.
For the safety of the load double check a couple reloading books and your seating depth. You will probably have to cut the load back some for cast bullets to give good results.
I've been using cast for all my .44Mag reloading so far. I haven't done any H110 loads yet but the ones I've done with 2400 and 4227 have not produced any leading that I can tell. Mind you I've been mixing in a few rounds of jacketed as well which, if rumours are true, tends to wipe away any leading. Bullets for this are 240 grain RNFP's.
I strongly suspect that leading isn't as big a risk as some think. After all Elmer Kieth did much of his high power shooting using the cast Keith bullets. And unless they use a gas check it apparently wasn't an issue.
I strongly suspect that leading isn't as big a risk as some think. After all Elmer Kieth did much of his high power shooting using the cast Keith bullets. And unless they use a gas check it apparently wasn't an issue.
