Digital BW, The Print

I am new to the group and forgive me if I am doing this incorrectly, 
and, if I am being lazy in just asking what you all probably know 
quite well...or, maybe you all are looking for the better solution - 
which is what this group is all about.

I have a Canon 10D and I typically shoot in jpeg, but I am about to 
switch over to RAW (memory backup concerns). Anyhow, I have been 
converting the image under mode from RGB to grayscale in photoshop 
and then usually back to RGB for adjusting the color of a nice black 
and white. When I print them, the images seem horribly soft and the 
gradation is not satisfactory.

Can someone point me to some articles or instructions on how to get 
great results from a digital file?

Best,
Mike Shampanier
http://www.MikeThePhotographer.com
Mike@...