Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns Ruger Redhawk .45 ACP/.45 Colt Revolver

Anyone shooting a Ruger Redhawk .45 ACP/.45 Colt Revolver?

I have an opportunity to pick one up in excellent condition.

What's a fair price for a used one in 99%? With box, etc.

https://ruger.com/products/redhawk/specSheets/5050.html

I picked one up last year in like new condition from an individual for $625

I passed on a clean used one for 800 last year. I intended to shoot a lot of ACP in it and saw some problematic reviews related to the proprietary moon clips.

I've got a ,45 Colt/.45 ACP convertible Uberti SAA clone. Soon as I got it, I switched the cylinder to ACP and shot the heck out of it. Sweet gun. I should really put that .45 Colt cylinder in and try it out with it, too. I like the concept of these convertibles.

I can get into this one for $650, maybe $625.

625.00 is a good deal. Revolvers are becoming more expensive every year due and should readily increase in resale value. You will be surprised how anemic the 45 ACP round feels when fired in a large wheel gun The Redhawk in 45 Colt, loaded with heavy hard cast bullets at 1200 FPS, will punch through an elk from front to back. If you wish to do reloading for the 45 Colt, get ahold of me.

45 Colt loads using 6 to 7 grains of trailboss powder are lots of fun to shoot.

I'd grab it for that Dave. An average original 44 would set you back that much.

I agree, that's a very fair price. I sold one for $650 recently. They are heavier than the standard Redhawk. It's the version that has the sleeve over the barrel. Check out the end of the barrel, as compared to the standard gun. Look it over pretty closely.

I had occasion to give a cursory look at GunBroker prices on the regular Redhawk. Most were new granted, but all were over $1000. None had 45 ACP capability either. I would get it if I were you.

I have a Redhawk .45 ACP/.45 Colt. The factory moon clips are pretty flimsy I have bent three in two years.

I also bought some from Ranch Products, Midway sells them. So far no problems with bending or breaking but still flexible enough to pry the empties out easily.

I have alsofound the pistol shoots 230 grain bullets in my .45 ACP much better than lighter ones.

Not all of them have the sleeved barrel. Mine is an earlier one with a standard one piece barrel.

Hey David!

Over here on the wet side I'd day $625 is a fair price--you can shoot it and still get your money back if you decide to part ways with it. (Heck, if you lose $25 after owning it for a year, you got to rent it for $2/month!)

I just wanted to comment that moon clips are a pain. I don't know what your experience is with them, but mine hasn't been good. Moon clips can be delicate and temperamental. When they work, they're awesome. If they get bent at all, even a smidge, you can have brass wedged into your chambers and you have to tap out pieces with a cleaning rod, pencil, piece of dowel, or whatever you have handy.

On the plus side, shooting .45 ACP out of a revolver that size is a breeze. I have the .45 Colt / .45 ACP Blackhawk and am always impressed as to how that gun soaks up the recoil. I shoot some fairly stiff loads out of a 1911 for bowling pin shoots and the recoil is noticeable, but out of the Blackhawk, those same loads are just cupcakes.

Good luck in your decision! Post a pic if you buy it!

How are they with .45 Colt ammo .. reliable extraction / ejection, reloads with speed loaders, etc? I'm thinking about buying one / ordering one. I have some experience with them in .44 magnum, not in .45 colt.

Tom

I wish I paid 650 for mine... I like it though. I don't use the moon clips a lot, but did some when I bought it. It's about easier to just download colt cases for me. It's handled the stout loads fine and operates perfect.

It's surprising when you first start shooting them how .45 ACP really is a pussycat in large frame revolvers.

I have a S&W 625-2 that is tons of fun to shoot and very accurate.

A few of those convertible RedHawks have been through the LGS near me. A good price on them would have been what you're looking at. One was absolutely pristine.

I hope you snagged it. Somebody should of for that price. Please post pics.

I've had one for maybe a year, but have only scratched the surface as far as getting used to shooting it. I'm not the most experienced handgunner (more of a rifle guy), but I can say that this Redhawk is very comfortable to shoot. The only load I've shot through it is my own handloaded 255gr LSWC over 9gr. of Universal. I mention the recipe because I think many will agree that the load is about as good as a middle-of-the-road, get'er done load as you can get. Stouter than the average factory, but not quite to the gorilla loads one can load in the Ruger. I think it's a little cliche to give the old "moderate push vs. a sharp kick" line, but that explains my load pretty well. Hot .357's out of a former GP100 were much more disturbing to me. Accuracy-wise; like I said, I'm not much of a handgunner - yet - but I'm working on it. If a deer trotted out in front of me at 40 yards or so, I would have not issues squeezing one off without a rest.

I will tell you though, it is just plain fun dropping 6 of those 255gr cartridges down each chute of that wheel. About as fun as pushing a handful of 30/30's up the tube of my old Marlin!

That looks SWEET!

Does it come with a .45 ACP cylinder or does it use the same cylinder for both?

Same cylinder for both TRH. The little dab of case support sacrificed in machining the cylinder for ACP moon clips, is inconsequential and heavy 45 Colt loads are fine in them. Before the LC/ACP Redhawk was introduced, a few guys were having their 454 Alaskans machined for ACP moon clips.