Seems to me the OP is intrigued by his new revolvers and interested in learning about the history, quirks, and use of them. And getting good information on this forum as usual. I've probably posted similar questions about new-to-me firearms that I'm not familiar with. He's been polite with his responses and is getting the information he's asked for.
You are right on about my being intrigued. These 2 revolvers have turned out to be far more interesting, in both good and not good ways, than the S&W Schofields I used 25 years ago.
The Schofields were very fast to reload in comparison of course. You could see why a gunfighter or outlaw would chose one becuase of that. But they were also more complicated to clean and maintain, and never felt "nimble" - they seemed to have their weight further forward, even though one of mine was the short barredled "Pinkerton" model. They also "looked mean" comapred to a Peacemaker, which somehow seems appropriate. An important point was: Both shot to POA for me. Never had to address a POI versus POA issue. Another important point: They did not try to lose parts while being fired.
The Peacemakers ARE a challenge for me on POI versus POA. It's also annoying to have to constantly check that clyinder retention screw, and I fear that someday, probably during a competitive match, I'll be focused enough on the match that I might forget to retighten the screws on both revolvers. I DID foget during my second range session recently, and so at one point one of the reolvers would not cock for the 3 rd shot of a 5-shot stage. I had to carefully lower the revolver, quicly diagnose why (Unseated primer or ?), re-insert the cylinder pin which had moved far enough forward to jam the clyinder carefully back into the correct 1st, not 2nd groove position, and then rethread the screw into the frame. If that had happened at a match, that stage would have been a score disaster. And if one of the screws actually falls out onto the ground, good luck finding it in a match setting. And that rounded-forward grip shape coupled with the absence of any "beavertail" allows the gun to roll on recoil more than I would like, so I have to grip HARD to prevent the rolling and the otherwise minor hammer bite that results.
But, the Peacemaker reloading sequence is actually slow but not unpleasant when you get used to it. The tactile feel of the clyinder indexing is wonderful.The Peacemaker replicas both FEEL wonderful in my hands versus the Schofields or modern S&Ws or even the high quality costly Freedom Arms revolvers. They seem so LIGHT and so pointable. The aesthetics are also WAY superior to any other revolver I have owned or seen, and seriously, probably better than ANY handgun or rifle I have owned or seen. And, when I add the aesthetics, quality, and feel of the Mernickle "CAS high performance" holster rig to the aesthetics and feel of the Peacemakers, I am truly smitten. I think I'm in love.
So, I need to get them to shoot POA, whether that means different handloads, changes to the sighting system, or a special shooting technique not required on any other of my firearms. I THNK it will be worth it.
Jim G
