Conversion cylinders

[TBOATS]

Out of all the conversion cylinders RD , Kirst and Howells which is considered the best, I have all three and really the only differences I see is the velocity allowed which by Kirst is 1000 fps all the others are at 800-850fps. I am interested in taking the extra 1860 pietta I have and turning it into a snub nose project and was wondering if there are any that did it and are there any pitfalls i need to be careful of before I do. I have looked at all the info I can find but if anyone can think of something that may help I am all ears. Thanks ahead of time for your help and experience.

 

[noelf2]

I don't have conversion cylinders in any of my open top revolvers, but I do have them for my NMAs and my ROA. If I were to convert an 1860, I would go with a gated Kirst cylinder and cut a loading port in the frame. With a Howell type you would be pulling the barrel every time you reload. Oh, and you will need to make sure standard length 45lc cowboy action ammo won't bind the cylinder. 45 Schofield would probably be a better fit.

 

[misskitty2]

your right noelf2, about going with the kirst

 

[Jackrabbit1957]

And if you are doing a Uberti fix the short arbor so you have the same gun each time you put that wedge back in.

 

[ClemBert]

For that scenario, I'd recommend the Kirst gated converter. Like said above, you have the option of grinding out the recoil shield for a breech loader. I prefer the Howell, with the back plate, for my ROA. The reason being is that I would never cut the recoil shield of a ROA....may as well get a Ruger Blackhawk. The backplate combined with the cylinder is naturally easier to "roll" into place when you put it back in (not an issue for the open tops). The gated backplate of the Kirst requires the backplate to be aligned with the flat side down which, IMHO, requires more fumbling to get it in place (again, not an issue for the open tops) than the Howell design. Just an opinion. I have a Kirst for my Walker which has the recoil shield ported.

 

[45 Dragoon]

Well, the biggest difference between the two types is the support the cartridge case has at firing. The Howell's end cap has about as much area as the rounded backside of the cap and ball cyl. On the other hand, Kirst's conversion ring offers full support for the case to back up to. I'm a fan of both though. The Howell works best (to me) in a Remington platform where your going to be shooting "standard" loads . . . enough there . . . The Kirst's allow pretty much "off the shelf" stuff and the ROA is an excellent platform to house the Kirst cyl . . . enough there . . . !! If I ever find time to finish my gated version for the ROA, it will turn the ROA into the "Blackhawk of Blackhawks"!! A cap cylinder made for the Blackhawk would be an anemic package (too short!!) With a gated ROA you get both worlds! Woo hoo!! (The real " do everything " revolver!!)

Mike

 

[Stormson]

I've got an R&D for 1858's and a Taylor's for my 1860 snub nose. If I had it to do over I'd go Tylors or R&D for my 1858's and Kist with the gate and cut port for my colt. It really is a PIA to take the barrel off to reload. Since I already HAVE it, one day it will go to a dedicated hide out piece, I'll get another thunderer but put a 5.5 barrel on it with a Kirst and port. Maybe the same on a long barrel, though I always wanted a shoulder stock for a long one and dont want to bother with SBRing it, that will probably just stay BP only..

 

[Stormson]

Well, the biggest difference between the two types is the support the cartridge case has at firing. The Howell's end cap has about as much area as the rounded backside of the cap and ball cyl. On the other hand, Kirst's conversion ring offers full support for the case to back up to. I'm a fan of both though. The Howell works best (to me) in a Remington platform where your going to be shooting "standard" loads . . . enough there . . . The Kirst's allow pretty much "off the shelf" stuff and the ROA is an excellent platform to house the Kirst cyl . . . enough there . . . !! If I ever find time to finish my gated version for the ROA, it will turn the ROA into the "Blackhawk of Blackhawks"!! A cap cylinder made for the Blackhawk would be an anemic package (too short!!) With a gated ROA you get both worlds! Woo hoo!! (The real " do everything " revolver!!)

Mike

A PAIR of those.. with 5.5 barrels and cut down to bird head grips. Stainless, with mother of pearl or ivory grips... oh man. Makes me wanna go right out and win the lottery! LoL

 

[Blackpowderwarrior]

Im a fan of both. I have a kirst on 2 open tops and howells on both of my remingtons.
In my humble opinion the 1858 is the perfect base for a howells cylinder shooting *smokeless* loads. The reason being is the remington really can not handle black powder fouling like the colt. The colt will shoot BP all day and the remington binds up after 2 or 3 cylinders full of BP.
I had a few howells cylinders for my open tops but sold them due to the pain of taking off my barrel to reload.
Im a fan of the kirst 5 shot for the 1860/1851 44 its a beast and very well made. Its a solid cylinder and screams quality.
Cutting the loading port on the colt is super easy if you have a dremel tool.

Dont get me wrong the Howells cylinder is also a fine piece of engineering in its own right.

Attached are photos of my
1858 SS Uberti with Howells fluted cylinder
&
1860 Pietta with Kirst cylinder and ejection rod

 

[Zulch]

Im a fan of both. I have a kirst on 2 open tops and howells on both of my remingtons.
In my humble opinion the 1858 is the perfect base for a howells cylinder shooting *smokeless* loads. The reason being is the remington really can not handle black powder fouling like the colt. The colt will shoot BP all day and the remington binds up after 2 or 3 cylinders full of BP.
I had a few howells cylinders for my open tops but sold them due to the pain of taking off my barrel to reload.
Im a fan of the kirst 5 shot for the 1860/1851 44 its a beast and very well made. Its a solid cylinder and screams quality.
Cutting the loading port on the colt is super easy if you have a dremel tool.

Dont get me wrong the Howells cylinder is also a fine piece of engineering in its own right.

Attached are photos of my
1858 SS Uberti with Howells fluted cylinder
&
1860 Pietta with Kirst cylinder and ejection rod

BlackPowderWarrior, those are fine looking revolvers my friend. Help me here. I do not have any experience with either of these type cylinders. What method is used to remove the cartridges? I’ve see other revolvers that use the pushrod type thing to aid in quick removal. Just curious how it all works? Thanks

 

[Zulch]

Sorry, I should have read further back. Thanks guys

 

[misskitty2]

zulch,they work great i have one on my 1858 rem and 1860 colts, i have 2 , im talking about the ejectors,
i have a couple howell converters but got kirst to replace them,not sorry 1 bit

 

[CraigC]

I'll take the gated Kirst every single time.

 

[drobs]

I have a 20 year old Kirst with the solid ring for my Pietta Remington NMA. And a Howells for my Pietta 1860 Army. The Kirst ring can be cut to make an always open loading gate.

I wouldn't have bought the Howells 1860 conversion cylinder. Mine came with a used Pietta 1860 Army I bought off Gunbroker.


All that being said, I'm not a fan of conversion cylinders. I find it far more enjoyable to shoot loose black powder out of my cap and ball revolvers and cartridges out of my SAA revolvers.

 

[Armored farmer]

I bought an Uberti SAA for not much more $$ than a conversion cylinder.