Ordered a Uberti Hombre .45

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Quoheleth

Quoheleth

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Well, I've been looking for a single-action for the last couple months, a combination fun gun, field gun, and memory enhancer (Dad and I watched lots of old cowboy shows when I was a kid).

I had a Blackhawk a few years ago, but with it's long, 7.5" barrel and massive frame it was never comfortable for me. Vaqueros are smaller, but their SASS demand helps keep their prices up (which is fine - free market and all).

In a recent thread the Hombre was mentioned as a good, inexpensive gun. I went by the local Academy yesterday and hefted a .357 model. What I saw pleased me - solid, but not really heavy; very well balanced; good fit; finish is a bit industrial (they are described as matte, but my mind said parkerized when I saw it) but apparently functional. Wanting one in .45 Colt, I asked but the salesman said no soap - only the .357 in stock. Another customer was buying a S&W for his CCW and he said his brother has the .45 Hombre and loves it.

A little flush from a recent sale, I went home and ordered one from Tanners on GB last evening. I'll make the payment today and hopefully have it by the weekend.

Now comes the hard part...now I gotta wait.

I have a whole box of 250gr LRNFP (MBC's "Cowboy #1") loaded in mixed brass, Win LPP, and just under 8gr Unique (for some reason, my disc wanted to drop 7.8gr the other day). That's a pussycat in my big 25-5 Smith; I expect the same from the Uberti when I get to the range.

Did I mention the hard part is now waiting? Grrrr...

Q
 
You are gonna love the Hombre! I got one a couple of months ago from Tanners. They are local and I was able to walk out with it and enjoy it right away. They are a great shop.
I have put through about 500 200 gr rnfp's cast over W231.
Great fun and flawless operation. Shoots the 200 gr a little low and am just now gonna load 250 gr fp's. It should be right on with them!
 
I like the Simply Rugged holsters. Rob makes a really great OWB Pancake style that is very well made, & in todays leather holster market, very reasonable.
www.simplyrugged.com
I think you'd like them.
PS: That load of 8grs of Unique is a pretty standard .45 Colt load & a good one.
Enjoy
Frank
 
Excellent choice :) you'll love it.
I have the same gun and shooting it is a pleasure.
 
Got it!

Picked the Uberti up Saturday afternoon and got it cleaned up this morning. I'll post up pictures later, but I wanted to get a few early comments on the gun.

It arrived in a brown cardboard box with only a gun lock as an accessory and the corresponding Uberti literature and manual. The gun was wrapped in a plastic bag with a light coating of oil which easily wiped off with a little solvent and a cloth. A clean patch down the bore showed that it had been fired but after two or three passes, it was clean. Likewise the cylinder had a little schmutz in each chamber, but a couple passes had them cleaned up as well. There is a little residual oil in the inner workings. If I have a little gun scrubber left I'll spray it in there before the first range trip.

The revolver is plainly-branded. In line from the front sight to the rear is reads "Stoeger - Accokeek, MD - A. Uberti - Italy". The left side of the barrel reads, "Mod 1873 Cal .45 Colt" and on the left side of the frame above the trigger guard the original patent dates of Sept. 19, 1871 and July 2, 1872 are stamped. There is a mark on the cylinder (proof mark?) and PSF stamped there. The SN is stamped in front of the trigger guard housing.

First, positives.

Number one is the price - $250 off of Gunbroker from Tanners. Add S&H and FFL and I'm still into a good single-action .45 for exactly $300.

I like the gun's feel. The 4 1/2 barrel gives it a pleasant muzzle-heavy balance but not so heavy that the wrist tires of holding it. I had a 7 1/2" Blackhawk a year or so ago and that was it's failing - TOO muzzle heavy. I also like the slightly smaller frame size of the Uberti than the bigger Blackhawk. It just feels right in the hand.

The grips are a nice even finish and were, apparently, finished to the gun. There are no noticeable gaps anywhere where wood meets brass. In fact, the wood-to-backstrap fit is almost flawless and perfectly smooth. The one spot where it is not perfect is where the top of the grips come up to meet the frame - the wood projects from the sides of the frame about the thickness of 2 business cards on the left; one on the right.

The gun cocks with the classic 4-clicks. My first "click" is a bit gritty - I see the hammer is rubbing a bit against the frame - but the next three clicks are positive and snappy. Trigger pull is firm but crisp. I don't have a trigger gauge so I'll refrain from an exact guess of pull weight. It's a bit heavier than my Smith 25-5 single-action trigger, but that's a target-grade gun.

The cylinder gap looks good - just a hint of light shining between cylinder and the throat of the barrel. The cylinder spins smoothly and indexes crisply when the hammer is at half-cock. At full lock-up, there is no movement at all. It's tighter than my S&W.

Now, a couple negatives.

The action is a bit gritty, as I said. A little gun scrubber might help. It's not intolerable, but it is noticable.

The finish isn't even across the gun. The barrel and cylinder are different colors of than the frame. The frame is true black but the barrel and cylinder are almost heather-grey.

While the grips are nicely finished, the left panel was cracked. The repair job was well-done and is only noticeable in direct sunlight - I didn't see it at the dealer's shop. The wood was patched/glued and stained over. Not a deal breaker at all, but that's a detail that was missed. I mentioned the not-quite matchup of the grip to frame earlier.

I'm eager to get it out and shoot it to see how it does with Missouri Bullet's 250gr cast RNFP over 8gr Unique.

Overall, my impression is favorable. I'm a bit disappointed in some of the minor things, particularly the cracked grip (both for them passing it along and for me missing it!) but for a value-line gun, I suppose a bit of leeway must be given.

I'll get some pictures up as soon as I can, both of the gun and some range work.

Q
 
The finish isn't even across the gun. The barrel and cylinder are different colors of than the frame. The frame is true black but the barrel and cylinder are almost heather-grey.
Click to expand...
That's very typical of S/A revolvers. Likely a different steel used in the barrel and cylinder so there's no way it'll ever match.
 
So, it looks OK, but how does it shoot?

Loading up my handloads, 250gr RNFP MBC "Cowboy #1" with 8gr Unique, Win LPP, and mixed brass I headed to the range. My target was set at 10 yards.

Here's my very first string of 6 shots (each square is 1"):

View attachment 152278

The Hombre put together a pretty nice cluster, a little bit low of center.

My initial sense of the gun was spot-on. The trigger breaks clean, albeit a bit stiff, but the hammer fall is swift and firm. Recoil is very managable with a firm, 2-handed hold. Even when I would relax my firm grip and let the gun "have it's way" under recoil, the barrel would rise and the grip would roll up in my hand (like it should). Very comfortable gun and load.

The gun feels right. I did have a big Blackhawk a few years ago and it was so muzzle heavy that more than a couple dozen shots would fatigue the wrist and forarm. This gun has a slight muzzle heavy feel, but not so much so as to tire a shooter out. Ejection of the empties was smooth with one stroke of the ejector rod. I did catch myself a few times trying to open the cylinder with a non-existant S&W-style latch.

I fired the remaining 94 rounds. I fired at the center and then the two lower targets first, doing a little "rapid" fire (cock the gun, flash sight picture, fire).

The last of my ammo was used in trying to print some nice, tight groups and I used the top two corner targets for that. This gun will shoot - I just need to play with that front sight a bit, filing it down a bit, to get my POA to equal POI.

View attachment 152280


It was a very pleasant afternoon to shoot, mild temperatures and a stiff breeze. It was also a very pleasant gun to shoot - one which I will look forward to shooting again very, very soon.

View attachment 152279

Q
 
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Thanks for the review. I have 3 single action (1873) revolvers, and sure enjoy shooting them.
I use a Mexican, single loop holster for carry. A gun belt sure comes in handy for carrying ammo.
 
Thanks for the review, Q. With groups like that, particularly centered left-right, I'd say you've got a winner. Maybe try a tad bit heavier bullet and you may not even have to file that sight down.

You know, you probably just caused me to spend some more money as I've really been eyeing a Cimmaron "Lightning", also made by Uberti....;)
 
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