Skinny 1950
Member
The squareback is an early design best left forgotten,can't get my finger in there.
Question on Pietta 1851 squareback trigger guard
- Thread starter elhombreconnonombre
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expat_alaska
Member
Ah, but maybe your fingers are too large, which is understandable. I have always loved the squareback design ever since I acquired a Ruger SBH 3- screw way back. Never had a problem with so-called middle finger "hit" vs. the round guard Blackhawk. YMMV...
Rebel Dave
Member
Well my Pietta square back arrived today. I have to say for a Pietta it is a real nice pistol. Very nice tight action, fit and finnish. It has the Pietta grip, so they havnt changed that style/shape as of yet. For $250.00 I am well satisfied with my purchase.
I tried to upload a couple of pics but it didn't work, sorry I cant show you how nice it is.
So if you want a square back I wouldn't hesitate to get one.
Rebel Dave
I tried to upload a couple of pics but it didn't work, sorry I cant show you how nice it is.
So if you want a square back I wouldn't hesitate to get one.
Rebel Dave
expat_alaska
Member
If you cannot upload your pics, send them to me at [email protected] and I will size and post them, if you wish.
Hot Dog!! So good to hear that! That means that either Pietta is still making a squareback 1851 trigger guard (my hope!) or that Dixie had a bunch of these old ones squirreled away.
Please look on the right side of the frame and let us know what the date code is. [CM] is 2014 manufacture. What is yours?
Did yours come with walnut or hardwood grips? Easy to tell if you remove 3 screws and look at the interior of the grip. I have a very nicely figured grip that is reddish-stained hardwood (bought on EBay and sold as walnut) and the original walnut grip that is very plain straight-grained (which will be used for a future project).
If yours is recent, I still need to bug Taylor's and find out where my SB TG is.
Thanks! Hope you like it as much as I think I will like mine (when it all comes to fruition).
Jim
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Rebel Dave
Member
expat
Yes it is date coded CM
Not sure what the grips are made of I'll look closer next time I have them off.
As I said the fit, and finnish are very nice.
I'll send you some pics to post.
Pics sent.
I just recently bought a Pietta fantasy .44 brass frame w/round bbl, and the grip is like a Uberty. It is date coded as CM (2014). I was hoping the square back would have the same grips, but it is like all the other Piettas I have.
Rebel Dave
Yes it is date coded CM
Not sure what the grips are made of I'll look closer next time I have them off.
As I said the fit, and finnish are very nice.
I'll send you some pics to post.
Pics sent.
I just recently bought a Pietta fantasy .44 brass frame w/round bbl, and the grip is like a Uberty. It is date coded as CM (2014). I was hoping the square back would have the same grips, but it is like all the other Piettas I have.
Rebel Dave
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RCampb6131
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Ordered mine from Dixie today. Hope I like it as much as you do yours!
WV SCROUNGER
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- Jan 14, 2007
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- 55
Squareback triggerguard
I am looking for one also.....seems like there should be a lot out there for sale since all I read is shooters saying they don't Like the squareback and therefore swap it out for a round..............Hmmmm.
I am looking for one also.....seems like there should be a lot out there for sale since all I read is shooters saying they don't Like the squareback and therefore swap it out for a round..............Hmmmm.
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expat_alaska
Member
I find it funny that there are at least a few of us out there (myself included) that want one. I understand that there is less finger room around the trigger as opposed to the large round trigger guard found on the modern Pietta/Uberti replicas, but for nostalgia I want both.
I think I found this a while back on the CAS forum (?). Dated, but very interesting. Many more styles of trigger guards than I was aware of, along with more esoterica. Read it closely: actually, print it out (11 pages) because if you are like me, you're going to flip back and forth between pages and possibly read it while going to bed and falling asleep having sweet dreams. Very nice treatise, IMO.
View attachment 1851 Colt Navy_Swayze.pdf
Rebel Dave: I sent you a PM: I have not received your pics via email.
Jim
I think I found this a while back on the CAS forum (?). Dated, but very interesting. Many more styles of trigger guards than I was aware of, along with more esoterica. Read it closely: actually, print it out (11 pages) because if you are like me, you're going to flip back and forth between pages and possibly read it while going to bed and falling asleep having sweet dreams. Very nice treatise, IMO.
View attachment 1851 Colt Navy_Swayze.pdf
Rebel Dave: I sent you a PM: I have not received your pics via email.
Jim
dickydalton
Member
expat_alaska
Member
Hey, dicky:
To my old eyes it appears to have nickel or silver triggerguard and backstrap. I see no modern date code/proof marks on the frame so I'm figuring it's an older pistol. Correct me if wrong.
I really like your 1861 Navy. I had a tough time deciding whether to get the 1851 Navy, the 1860 Army, the 1861 Navy, or the 1862 Police.
Nice guns.
Money and old age permitting, I will have them all, except for your pink-handled snubbie. Please tell me it is your wife's gun only...
So much time and so little money.
Jim
To my old eyes it appears to have nickel or silver triggerguard and backstrap. I see no modern date code/proof marks on the frame so I'm figuring it's an older pistol. Correct me if wrong.
I really like your 1861 Navy. I had a tough time deciding whether to get the 1851 Navy, the 1860 Army, the 1861 Navy, or the 1862 Police.
Nice guns.
Money and old age permitting, I will have them all, except for your pink-handled snubbie. Please tell me it is your wife's gun only...
So much time and so little money.
Jim
Rebel Dave
Member
expat
PM sent
Rebel Dave
PM sent
Rebel Dave
dickydalton
Member
It's silver. There aren't any proofs because it's a 2Nd Generation Colt C Series put together in about 1971 in America. It is a letterable Colt.Hey, dicky:
To my old eyes it appears to have nickel or silver triggerguard and backstrap. I see no modern date code/proof marks on the frame so I'm figuring it's an older pistol. Correct me if wrong.
I really like your 1861 Navy. I had a tough time deciding whether to get the 1851 Navy, the 1860 Army, the 1861 Navy, or the 1862 Police.
Nice guns.
Money and old age permitting, I will have them all, except for your pink-handled snubbie. Please tell me it is your wife's gun only...
So much time and so little money.
Jim
I shoot the Wife's little revolver but don't carry it in public.
expat_alaska
Member
Sweet, Dicky! Mike (Goon) is a wealth of knowledge. I have spoken to him on the phone and he has no problem disseminating info about BP guns. That tells me he knows far more than anyone wanting to enrich their knowledge and has no fear of anyone competing with him. I like that.
I'm just getting into BP C&B but I am hooked. My nightly reading (before I nod off) is devoted to the subject. I need to learn more about Colt Repro's. I have lot's of time and less money.
Thanks for the info.
I'm just getting into BP C&B but I am hooked. My nightly reading (before I nod off) is devoted to the subject. I need to learn more about Colt Repro's. I have lot's of time and less money.
Thanks for the info.
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expat_alaska
Member
Rebel Dave's Pietta 1851 Navy Steel Squareback
Dave emailed me a couple of pics, but they were inserted into the body of the email rather than as attached files and I couldn't save them as .jpg format. I printed one out on photopaper, scanned it and resized it to fit on a forum page.
He says he'll send more, better pics on Monday.
Dave emailed me a couple of pics, but they were inserted into the body of the email rather than as attached files and I couldn't save them as .jpg format. I printed one out on photopaper, scanned it and resized it to fit on a forum page.
He says he'll send more, better pics on Monday.
Skinny 1950
Member
It is true the Square Back is just too small for normal fingers,that is why they came up with with the rounded trigger guard.
Malachi Leviticus Blue
Member
Not everyone has sausage fingers, and not every "Step Forward" is in the right direction for everyone. It all depends on what it is you want out of the piece.
Surprisingly most folks seem to believe Cap & Ball Black Powder revolvers have been replaced by "Improved" polymer framed auto loaders.
I don't have any problem shooting with an Square back trigger guard and I for one think they look much nicer than the round guard on the 1851. Fortunately there are also round trigger guards available for those that disagree.
Surprisingly most folks seem to believe Cap & Ball Black Powder revolvers have been replaced by "Improved" polymer framed auto loaders.
I don't have any problem shooting with an Square back trigger guard and I for one think they look much nicer than the round guard on the 1851. Fortunately there are also round trigger guards available for those that disagree.
Crawdad1
Member
The 1860 Army and the 1861 Navy both have the bigger brass blade front sights and are easier to see as opposed to the '51 Navy or the '62 Police.
I love them all but it seems every time you read something about the old west the '51 Navy is there whether its an oval or squareback.
RCampb6131
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Get mine tomorrow. Can't wait!
RCampb6131
Member
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expat_alaska
Member
RCampb1631:
I am jealous! Those color case features on the frame are just gorgeous, and Rebel Dave's pistol appears to have the same quality.
My Pietta 1851 Navy .36 round guard is nice, but not as nice as yours, even on the recoil shield. The grips appear to be a reddish stained white hardwood, and DGW shows 2 Pietta 1851 models as being furnished with those, even if your pistol was advertised as having a "European Walnut" grip. My pistol was shipped with a fairly plain European Walnut grip but I bought a fairly well-figured stained hardwood grip on EBay to replace the original. I will readily trade that grip for a brass squareback TG, even up.
I have 2 WTB requests, 1 ea., on GunBroker and CAS City Classifieds for a brass 1851 squareback trigger guard. I also have a squareback brass TG on order from Taylor's & Company (for 2 months).
So far, no joy.
I would think, if many fat-fingered shooters find these squarebacks unacceptable, that there would be at least a few for sale and that the owners of said pistols would/could have ordered a replacement round trigger guard from Taylor's, VTI, etc.
I am jealous! Those color case features on the frame are just gorgeous, and Rebel Dave's pistol appears to have the same quality.
My Pietta 1851 Navy .36 round guard is nice, but not as nice as yours, even on the recoil shield. The grips appear to be a reddish stained white hardwood, and DGW shows 2 Pietta 1851 models as being furnished with those, even if your pistol was advertised as having a "European Walnut" grip. My pistol was shipped with a fairly plain European Walnut grip but I bought a fairly well-figured stained hardwood grip on EBay to replace the original. I will readily trade that grip for a brass squareback TG, even up.
I have 2 WTB requests, 1 ea., on GunBroker and CAS City Classifieds for a brass 1851 squareback trigger guard. I also have a squareback brass TG on order from Taylor's & Company (for 2 months).
So far, no joy.
I would think, if many fat-fingered shooters find these squarebacks unacceptable, that there would be at least a few for sale and that the owners of said pistols would/could have ordered a replacement round trigger guard from Taylor's, VTI, etc.
RCampb6131
Member
- Joined
- Mar 31, 2015
- Messages
- 35
My squareback
Expat Alaska:
Thanks for you comments. Pietta's grips are oiled, so I refinish mine with Tung oil. Really brings out the grain in the wood.
Expat Alaska:
Thanks for you comments. Pietta's grips are oiled, so I refinish mine with Tung oil. Really brings out the grain in the wood.
expat_alaska
Member
1851 Navy Squareback TG Quest: Attn WV Scrounger
Well, boys and girls, it appears that the quest is near the end, and the parts are in the mail. Should be here Friday or Saturday from the kind folks at Taylor's & Co. (Ashley Loy is the go-to person: very good service!). It has taken about 3 months to acquire it (possible Pietta, customs, inventory, et al, delays), and I also ordered a few more parts (grip frame and bottom screw) to appease my want for another grip assembly that more closely approximates the original configuration of the Colt 1851 Navy using the original plain Pietta walnut grip and the round trigger guard that the gun was shipped with.
The nicely figured grip I bought on EBay is some type of hardwood, but the grain/figure/fit is nice as is and fits the Pietta gripframe contours, and that's what will be used with the squareback TG.
Once the mods are done, I will post pics.
In the future, since I have wide hands and long, skinny fingers, I want an 1860 TG, backstrap, mainspring and screw, and grip, just for grins and variations.
They will all fit into this:
http://hampelswoodlandproducts.com/..._id=23&zenid=81a8d6a39941f7a2e59bb87dd4a50380
And THAT is a very good price.
I will post pics when the squareback is assembled.
Cheers!
Jim
Well, boys and girls, it appears that the quest is near the end, and the parts are in the mail. Should be here Friday or Saturday from the kind folks at Taylor's & Co. (Ashley Loy is the go-to person: very good service!). It has taken about 3 months to acquire it (possible Pietta, customs, inventory, et al, delays), and I also ordered a few more parts (grip frame and bottom screw) to appease my want for another grip assembly that more closely approximates the original configuration of the Colt 1851 Navy using the original plain Pietta walnut grip and the round trigger guard that the gun was shipped with.
The nicely figured grip I bought on EBay is some type of hardwood, but the grain/figure/fit is nice as is and fits the Pietta gripframe contours, and that's what will be used with the squareback TG.
Once the mods are done, I will post pics.
In the future, since I have wide hands and long, skinny fingers, I want an 1860 TG, backstrap, mainspring and screw, and grip, just for grins and variations.
They will all fit into this:
http://hampelswoodlandproducts.com/..._id=23&zenid=81a8d6a39941f7a2e59bb87dd4a50380
And THAT is a very good price.
I will post pics when the squareback is assembled.
Cheers!
Jim
Malachi Leviticus Blue
Member
Wow, yes good price. I've been thinking of building a couple cases, but might have to just buy them. Cheaper than building them.
Bigdog57
Member
I really like the looks of the squareback TG, but with my 2XL mitts, I would likely find it uncomfortable to shoot.
expat_alaska
Member
After Some TLC...
... I got it installed. It just floors me that Pietta can get the polished areas so good but seem to leave some areas unfinished, to wit, the inside bottom and inside rear of the TG. Evidently to much manual labor for a $200 pistol. Spent about half an hour filing and polishing about .003"-.004" out these areas. Looks pretty good, IMO, and I did finally get my squareback:
Same pistol with the original round/oval TG; BigDog57, you may be right about the finger fit. There is quite a bit of difference in the dimensions/geometry:
... I got it installed. It just floors me that Pietta can get the polished areas so good but seem to leave some areas unfinished, to wit, the inside bottom and inside rear of the TG. Evidently to much manual labor for a $200 pistol. Spent about half an hour filing and polishing about .003"-.004" out these areas. Looks pretty good, IMO, and I did finally get my squareback:
Same pistol with the original round/oval TG; BigDog57, you may be right about the finger fit. There is quite a bit of difference in the dimensions/geometry:
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