Speaking of wish-listable Rugers

[Totem Polar]

This .357 is pretty:

https://ruger.com/products/vaqueroBl...eets/5165.html

[JHC]

That is cool. What are bird's head grips like in handling, recoil etc? I've got just a couple hundred rounds with SA revo's, a standard Blackhawk. I parted with it dumbly before I got the hang of it.

[HeavyDuty]

I have a 5152 (the .45 ACP stainless birdshead Vaq) and I find the handling to be superb. I can see getting the stainless version of this one, just because.

[JonInWA]

Other than the admittedly attractive aesthetics the birdshead grip possesses, are there any real, quantifiable advantages for it versus the traditional plowhandle grip configuration? Are such advantages (if any) caliber dependant (or caliber sensitive)? Genuinely curious. My initial thoughts is that the birdshead configuration would be most applicable to lighter-recoiling cartridges/caliber, but what do the more knowledgeable and experienced say?

Best, Jon

[HeavyDuty]

I like how the birdshead rolls under recoil.

[Dave T]

Admitting that I don't get out much and am not a follower of Ruger's offerings, is a color case finish on their single actions now an option they offer?

If the gun pictured was available as a 7-shot 32 Mag I just might have to buy one...and I don't like new model Rugers at all.

Dave

[oregon45]

The surface treatment on that gun is the same type of "case coloring" Ruger has offered for about the past 25 years in the Vaquero line. It is not a true bone charcoal color case hardening, but instead is a chemical coloring process that does not increase surface hardness, and wears similar to ordinary bluing.

[oregon45]

That is cool. What are bird's head grips like in handling, recoil etc? I've got just a couple hundred rounds with SA revo's, a standard Blackhawk. I parted with it dumbly before I got the hang of it.

I've found the birdshead to be more difficult to control than the plow-handle grip frames; it tends to shift in my hand under recoil. The hammer pictured on that gun also is not ideal for use with the birdshead grip because the hammer spur is fairly high, and likely would require you to break your grip to thumb it back with your strong-side thumb if shooting one-handed--unless you have long thumbs. A Super Blackhawk or, even better, a Bisley hammer solves that because both have much lower hammer spurs. This is a non-issue if shooting two-handed because you can just cock the gun with your support-hand thumb.

[HeavyDuty]

The faux case colors are attractive, but I’ll take the durability and scrubability of stainless...

[revolvergeek]

Other than the admittedly attractive aesthetics the birdshead grip possesses, are there any real, quantifiable advantages for it versus the traditional plowhandle grip configuration? Are such advantages (if any) caliber dependant (or caliber sensitive)? Genuinely curious. My initial thoughts is that the birdshead configuration would be most applicable to lighter-recoiling cartridges/caliber, but what do the more knowledgeable and experienced say?

Best, Jon

It conceals better because no sharp pointed corner at the heal of the grip. Personally I find that something like a modified Bisley grip works best. I find the birdshead rolls more than the others, which may or may not appeal to you.