Does grip material really make any significant difference in your shooting performance? In many cases, it probably matters little. On the other side of the coin, if the gun is shifting in your hand during recoil or is simply uncomfortable when shooting, grip material may be a factor and consideration.
Edward Zane Carroll Judson was an author of dime novels in the last quarter of the 19th century whose pen name was Ned Buntline. He specialized more in fiction than fact and created long-standing myths about Western heroes. To this day, we do not know if it is legend or fact. However, he claimed to have presented five "Buntline Specials" to five lawmen in Dodge City in the late 1870s. Those men were Charlie Bassett, Neal Brown, Bat Masterson, Bill Tilghman and Wyatt Earp. Researchers have found long-barreled Colt Single Actions, which the factory did not refer to as Buntline Specials, in a serial number range from 1876 to 1884. To date, they have uncovered less than two dozen chambered in .45 Colt, two in .44-40, and one in .44 Colt. Usually, these long barreled sixguns were fitted with a wire stock and a long-range rear sight, which lifted out of its mortise on the top strap.
Then as now, the .357 Blackhawk is two sixguns depending upon one’s perspective. First, a Blackhawk, or any other Ruger for that matter, can be purchased and used for a lifetime just as it comes from the box. For more dedicated sixgunners, the Blackhawk is an excellent solid sixgun that can be improved to a Better Blackhawk to meet the wishes and desires of the original owner. I’ve used them extensively both ways.