Sighting in the 51 Navy/Colt .36

[Beartracker]

After changing my front sight to a silver post on my 51 Navy Colt I had to re-sight it in using 25g of Pyrodex"P", .380 cast ball and #1075 caps. Cleaning barrel and cylinder between every 6 shots for a total of 30 shots. My main purpose for this Revolver will be to carry while mowing and working around the yard and keeping Rattlers and copperheads at bay and an occasional fox, Bobcat or Yote so I wanted it to be sighted for a 6:00 hold on a quarter size spot at 15 yards, just right for snakes.
The bottom shots were the first 6, then I removed 1/16th from the sight and shot 6 more. Then another 1/16th and 6 more. Then removed a little less than a 1/16th and 6 more. Then I polished it and removed a little more with sand paper and shot the last 6 in the red and centered. I'm happy with it!

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[mec]

you play that 51 like a fine stradivarius

 

[Beartracker]

Thanks Mec, It's beginning to have that fine feel to it now.I love my Remingtons but it sure is fun shooting this 51 Colt. The front sight is only about 3/16" high now but it seems to like it right there. Mike

 

[mec]

"The front sight is only about 3/16" high now but it seems to like it right there. Mike"


The better not to knock it off the end of the gun when you're fooling with it.

I shoot the colt replicas better than the remingtons- maybe because I shoot them MORE. I still believe it's a matter of preference rather than one being better than the other. It was interesting that my Remington actually benefited from stuffing in 40 grains of Swiss while the 60 army choaked on it.

 

[Beartracker]

Mike , That is strange but as we know even two identical model's may not like the same bullet or load. I was a little shocked to learn that my Remington prefers the heavy 40gr. load. It shoots great with 30-35 but not as well as with the 40gr. When I first got it I even tried 20 gr. of Goex 3F for a target load but it was not consistent at all.The thing is...I own two Remington's and they both like 40gr. the best and it's even stranger that after I switched to the Pyrodex"P'' as per your suggestion the accuracy never faltered a bit.
After weening this 51 Colt on Pyrodex"P" and the way it's shooting I'm beginning to think that I may not go back to "Holy Black".....Never thought I would ever say that!

 

[mec]

I was considerably cheered by the 1125 fps I got with 40 /pyrodex. Sometimes the swiss is faster and sometimes the pyrodex. I suppose 24 feet per second isn't that significant and they could swap places the next time.

 

[Steve499]

By the way, Mike, looks like your shooting slump is history!

Steve

 

[Beartracker]

By the way, Mike, looks like your shooting slump is history!


Steve, I wish I could say that was true but it's not. These shots were from a half a$$ rest. I'm shooting targets better off hand now but no where near as well as I used to. No problem with rocks or pine cones.
The weather was great here today and I just had to shoot a while Mike

 

[Beartracker]

Mec, If you ever get the chance try a 200gr. Conical with 40gr. of Pyro and see what you get on the chrono. That's what I'm going to use on Deer this year.A friend sent me some of the 200gr with the tapered end and the grease rings. They really fly great but they make a Remington sound like .44 Mag and it's a good kick to it also. Mike

 

[Low Key]

It's funny how some pistols like one particular load and others will shoot anything you feed them and ask for more! Every gun is an individual and there are minor differences that we don't even notice or can't explain that will affect how the gun shoots. Maybe the tolerances are just a teeny bit tighter on one pistol as compared to another? As for my 3 Remingtons, they seem to like everything above 30gr all the way up to 40gr and I can't tell any difference in accuracy anywhere in that range. Of course, all three are more accurate than me on my best day so there's another factor to consider, .

Good shootin Mike! I'm glad that you're enjoying that 51. I shot 12 shots yesterday from 10 yards, duelist, they all fell inside a four inch circle and I'm pretty happy with that considering that the wind was blowing about 15-20mph and changeing directions constantly. I plan on shooting 12 or 18 more shots today after church if it's not raining maybe at 20 yards if the wind is calmer.

 

[Beartracker]

Thanks Low Key, We have rain and wind here this morning and afternoon but it's starting to clear now. Maybe I'll shoot a few more this afternoon too Mike

 

[Low Key]

Well, no chance to shoot today. We had family visiting all afternoon, it was a good day today though. Maybe tomorrow I can shoot if it doesn't rain.

 

[Beartracker]

Low Key, How is that sawed off blaster of yours shooting ?Do you notice any heavy muzzle jerk when you shoot it? How about holding on target with it? Mike

 

[Low Key]

The 5.5 Remington shoots great! That's the one I shot on Saturday. I do notice that the muzzle flips up a bit more than my 8in 58 with 30 - 40gr but it's not at all unpleasant to shoot and it's just as accurate. Holding on the target is also no problem, the sight radius is long enough to let you sight accutately. I've been working on the trigger also, lightened to probably 1.5 or 2 pounds and put some epoxy on the sear to take out the creep and I've done the same thing to my 8in antiqued 58. I like a hair trigger single action!

 

[sjohns]

Yesterday I took out the 51 Uberti that I converted to 38 long colt. The last time I took it out it was hitting far left.

I took a file to the brass tip and started slipping off brass on its right side. I used sight black while shooting.

First and most noticable was that I was beginning to get an actual tip on the front sight. It was relatively flat and wide at the top to begin with.

Any way after a couple of attempts it finally started shooting straight. I know that many people use a torch and try to soften the solder up front and ping the whole acorn over to the left more, but this is what I did.

If you try it, be careful and take your time. There is a barrel there after all that ya don't want to score.