csb45
Bearcat
Does the Blackhawk .357 Brass frame box label include the "B" after the model number?
Blackhawk Brass Frame box labels
- Thread starter csb45
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NitroAcres
Single-Sixer
"Sometimes", not always..
However if it left the factory as a "B" the Factory Letter should state that..otherwise it was an add on by a previous owner.
However if it left the factory as a "B" the Factory Letter should state that..otherwise it was an add on by a previous owner.
csb45
Bearcat
Yes the factory letter does state the model number with the "B".
BUT, not the "box label" itself, there may be a marked 'B' on the outside cardboard shipping sleeve.......I do recall seeing a Super Blackhawk that is usually marked S-47 but it came with the '7' marked out and a '6' marked on the end label of the box, this was for the cutdown ( shortened) 6 1/2 inch Super Old model........
contender
Ruger Guru
As rugerguy has mentioned,, it's the outer SHIPPER that has the "B" denoting a brass grip framed gun. The normal box label was never printed with a "B" as part of the model info.
csb45
Bearcat
Thank you guys! Good information to know!
chet15
Hawkeye
I think I recall a handwritten red felt tip "B" on the outside of factory brass frame shippers
Chet15
Chet15
csb45
Bearcat
I've never personally seen a factory brass shipped box. The one I'm looking at does not have the outer sleeve.
contender
Ruger Guru
The only way to know if the gun you are looking at was shipped with the brass g/f,, is via a factory letter. That $10 letter can be worth a lot if a gun letters,,, AND is a hard to find model. In the .357 Blackhawks,, with less than 800 total that letter,, (there are 2 barrel lengths,) a letter can raise the value considerably.
Since Ruger sold a lot of brass grip frames as an accessory,, it's easy to add the g/f. I personally wouldn't pay a premium unless it had the letter to accompany the gun. And a premium would be a price above what a normal gun would cost. (A normal gun pricing would be the gun, and adding about $200 for the brass. That'd be normal. A premium would be above that.)
Example;
A normal minty .357 Blackhawk of the correct vintage to have a brass g/f; About $550-$600.
An added factory brass g/f will cost about $300.
Deduct about $100 for the missing original g/f.
So the gun w/o a letter,, about $750-$800.
A box,, depending upon condition; about $100.
Now,, a lettered brassie; about $1600.00. And the box,, add about $100.
A premium of about double the normal values.
Since Ruger sold a lot of brass grip frames as an accessory,, it's easy to add the g/f. I personally wouldn't pay a premium unless it had the letter to accompany the gun. And a premium would be a price above what a normal gun would cost. (A normal gun pricing would be the gun, and adding about $200 for the brass. That'd be normal. A premium would be above that.)
Example;
A normal minty .357 Blackhawk of the correct vintage to have a brass g/f; About $550-$600.
An added factory brass g/f will cost about $300.
Deduct about $100 for the missing original g/f.
So the gun w/o a letter,, about $750-$800.
A box,, depending upon condition; about $100.
Now,, a lettered brassie; about $1600.00. And the box,, add about $100.
A premium of about double the normal values.
Marcruger2
Bearcat
My dad had a first-year Old Army with the brass frame. It had its original red and black numbered box. Ruger confirmed that it was indeed a factory brass frame revolver, but the box did not have a "B" on it. It did not have the outer shipping sleeve, so no help there. Dad found it at a gun show around 1990, and he asked me to go look at it and tell him what I thought. About 95%+ condition....for $200.00. Even then that was a great deal.
Back when they were out, dad bought three factory brass frames from Ruger before they shut down sales of the frames. He fitted those to Blackhawks, as he really liked the Super-length brass. He kept one of the corrugated cardboard boxes the frames were shipped to him in. We later sold that on eBay for what seemed a phenomenal amount of money for a cardboard box.
Back when they were out, dad bought three factory brass frames from Ruger before they shut down sales of the frames. He fitted those to Blackhawks, as he really liked the Super-length brass. He kept one of the corrugated cardboard boxes the frames were shipped to him in. We later sold that on eBay for what seemed a phenomenal amount of money for a cardboard box.
