The revolver featured a square butt grip, adjustable sights, and 5.5- and 7.5-inch barrel lengths, and was available in blue or stainless steel finishes.

While the grip profile and no-sideplate construction of the Redhawk was similar to that of the earlier Ruger Security-Six, it was in fact a new design, incorporating a much larger and heavier frame.

[5] To simplify the design and cut the number of parts, the Redhawk used a single coil spring to power both hammer and trigger, resulting in a slightly heavier trigger pull in single action mode.

[9][10] Ruger achieves this multi-cartridge functionality by partially machining the cylinder to allow use of thin-gauge moon clips for the rimless .45 ACP while still retaining enough cylinder surface for proper headspace of the rimmed .45 Colt cartridge.

[7] Many shooters prefer the more compact frame of the Redhawk for hunting and self-protection, especially those who do not plan to use a scope.

[7][13] The explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes carried a .44 magnum Redhawk on the 14-month-long Transglobe Expedition and used it to ward off a polar bear.

Ruger initially addressed the issue by introducing a new receiver design, lengthening the frame 2.5 inches past the cylinder face to the end of the ejector rod.