Help picking my first blackpowder revolver

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44 cal Pietta 1860 Colt Army.

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Remington 1858 was my first bp revolver. Since then, I bought a sheriff model as well.
Plus a bunch of colt clones.
I also bought a conversion cyclinder for both the remingtons and the colts, but I feel MUCH safer firing .45 lc out of the remingtons!
 
I wish I still had my square back, car was stolen, engine taken and set on fire. I really liked that car!
 
Brutuskend said:
Remington 1858 was my first bp revolver. Since then, I bought a sheriff model as well.
Plus a bunch of colt clones.
I also bought a conversion cyclinder for both the remingtons and the colts, but I feel MUCH safer firing .45 lc out of the remingtons!
Click to expand...

Why do you feel MUCH safer firing .45 LC out of the Remington's? Just curious.

Mike
 
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The top strap on the remingtons make for a much stronger gun. If you fire too hot a load out of the colts you can get what is commonly called "stretch" and prematurely wear them out. As I understand it isn't so much that they stretch, but the cylinder slams back against the frame and wears that part of the frame out.
 
Jackrabbit1957 said:
I wish I still had my square back, car was stolen, engine taken and set on fire. I really liked that car!
Click to expand...

Bummer!
I was working as a vw mech. when I built the engine that is is there now. The 3rd rebuild since I have owned it, and I dumped about 3k (cost) in parts in it. Dual baby dels, counter weighted crank, ported and polished heads with stainless steel valves, etc.. Pretty much the best of everything I could get my hands on.
Though lately I have been thinking about selling it...
 
Brutuskend said:
The top strap on the remingtons make for a much stronger gun. If you fire too hot a load out of the colts you can get what is commonly called "stretch" and prematurely wear them out. As I understand it isn't so much that they stretch, but the cylinder slams back against the frame and wears that part of the frame out.
Click to expand...

Lol!!! Glad you "understand it" . . . I never could figure it out , especially after I bent my Remington pattern revolver during a shooting session baçk in the '80's. Never ever did that to an open top revolver. The arbor is a much stronger platform.

Mike
 
Gotta go along with Mike on this one, look at that stronger top strap and you'll see that its kinda thin where the groove is machined for the sight, then look at the area around the loading port, not much there either. Brutuskend, built about 200 of those early VWs myself. Had a 72 bus I hotrodded, 1835, Norris 330s cam, counter weighted crank, an older Holly Bug Spray carb, big oil pump. Couldn't keep clutches in it for long, it would pick the front wheels off the ground if you stomped on it. That's another one I miss.
 
Wow! I had a bone stock 6volt '64 bug! Cost me $375.00 in '74 . . .
of course I wish I still had it!!!

Mike
 
I restored a first year ( actually only a 6 month run of the first year, mac struts and a flat windshield) convertible for a old guy I used to work for after I stopped being a vw mech. I think he only drove it a half doz. times before his heart gave out. His kids, not knowing what it was worth cheap sold it for a couple of grand.
Man I was bummed over that. I should have snagged it myself, but didn't find out about it till it was gone. :(
 
wap41 said:
Why not start out with the best and not have to upgrade RUGER OLD ARMY
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Because the current market states that they are super expensive, and I can buy 3 repro new revolvers (Pietta, Uberti) for the same money as a ROA and learn how to make them better than a ROA insofar as fit and function.

And then I have three revolvers instead of one, and I can venture into Confederate type revolvers.

Quality AND quantity.

And you are left with.... one gun.

Regards,

Jim
 
wap41 said:
Why not start out with the best and not have to upgrade RUGER OLD ARMY
Click to expand...

I do that fairly often to ROA's (upgrade them I mean).

Most bp revolvers are somewhat close copies of their 19th century counterparts. The only thing a ROA is a copy of is another ROA from the 20th century.

Mike
 
Never cared for the super beetle, always thought that strut front end was a little flakey, heard of inner supports on the lower control arm giving up with ugly results.
 
45 Dragoon said:
Lol!!! Glad you "understand it" . . . I never could figure it out , especially after I bent my Remington pattern revolver during a shooting session baçk in the '80's. Never ever did that to an open top revolver. The arbor is a much stronger platform.

Mike
Click to expand...
Well I was just basing my answer on the knowledge I acquired during my research for my first cap and ball revolver. Luckily, I haven't damaged any of my pieces firing .45lc...yet.
 
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I understand and that's why I posted what I posted. There's all kinds of "knowledge" out there.

Mike
 
Glad you liked it...probably should delete it though....!!!! Okay...done deleted it. Was fun while it lasted. !!!
 
Jackrabbit1957 said:
Gotta go along with Mike on this one, look at that stronger top strap and you'll see that its kinda thin where the groove is machined for the sight, then look at the area around the loading port, not much there either...
Click to expand...
I understand that some folks want historically correct revolvers, and that's fine and I respect that. However, there are some of us who wanted strong, reliable BP revolver, with solid, rigid frame like on Remington like 1858, but without its weak top strap and bottom of the loading port. That is the reason why Bill Ruger came up with very strong Old Army, some sort of hybrid between Rogers & Spencer and OM Blackhawk, with adjustable sights.

In that respect, I cannot understand why manufacturers created target version of Remington 1858, even in stainless, but done nothing to eliminate weak spots on its frame.

Regardless, if somebody wants a nice BP shooter, here is 1858 Navy (36 cal) Target model with adjustable sights:

index.php


This model is manufactured by Pietta, and available from Marstar, Canada https://marstar.ca/product/pt-rgst36/ . I guess Pietta USA http://piettausa.com/ could help getting it.
 
expat_alaska said:
Because the current market states that they are super expensive, and I can buy 3 repro new revolvers (Pietta, Uberti) for the same money as a ROA and learn how to make them better than a ROA insofar as fit and function.

And then I have three revolvers instead of one, and I can venture into Confederate type revolvers.

Quality AND quantity.

And you are left with.... one gun.

Regards,

Jim
Click to expand...
who is left with one gun?I started to buy them when prices were raising now have 22 I also have several colt and remington reproductions including one that a past member won the nationals at friendship with and original 1860 colts But the only ones that come close to my ruger old army's are the 1860 original colts You can buy a decent ROA for $500 or less still
 
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