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Suggestions for a wanna be cap and ball shooter


2KidsPop

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I'm in the market for my first cap and ball revolver(s).  I have no experience with black powder but find it very intriguing.  Looking for something that I can grow with, upgrade and have tuned in the distant future.  Something that would never need to be upgraded / tuned would be a plus. Any thoughts / suggestions for a wanna be black powder shooter would be appreciated.  Thanks in advance.

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You can shoot Ruger Old Armys stock.  They are no longer manufactured though are available used.  Get one without adjustable sights if you want to shoot it for CAS.  Otherwise borrow both Remington and Colt replicas before buying and shoot one-handed.  (Soot Lords are quite willing to let you try their handguns.)  These will feel different in your hands.  

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You will get your share of opinions, so here's mine.

 For a long term option of durability,  upgrade/ conversions, and ease of maintenance especially for frequent use, I say you can't do much better than a '58 Remington.

While I am of the opinion that the '60 Colt Army was the sexiest lady of that day, I'd rather have taken the Remington (or 3 or 4) to battle.

Check out some videos of a Colt vs Remington on YouTube sometime.

 


 

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I have shot 51 Colt Navies, 58 Remingtons and Ruger Old Armies. Out of the box Remingtons are the best bang for your money. All of them need to have the nipples changed to insure consistent firing and helping to eliminate the caps falling off after being shot.

I shot 6 stages without touching the Remies box stock.  I shot both the long barrel and short barrel Remies. preferred the short barrels for holstering.

Renies $260 each. If you can find used Ruger $800 each +/-.

I now shoot Old Armies because they are built like tanks and never break. Remies may break the spring on the hand. The thingy that rotates the cylinder when you pull back the hammer.

Ike

 

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The links I posted above will assist you in making C&B revolvers reliable and long lasting.

 

The work for the most part is not hard but when the procedures call for precision drilling of the frame using a mill and vice you need to follow those recommendations.

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The first gun I bought with my own money was a 58 Remington.  I think it was a Lyman but can't remember now. Shot it a lot. 

 

What I didn't like is that the grip shape was so pinched tight behind the trigger guard that the trigger guard would would rap my index finger smartly.   

 

I don't know if it's Pietta or Uberti that had more room behind the trigger guard. 

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The old adage of:

 

"Try before you buy"  is never more appropriate that getting into C&B  and shooting one-handed.

 

Go to  a few shoots, hold them all, load them all. and  clean them all then decide/

 

Ol'  #4

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6 hours ago, Chertrock Chuck said:

 

You will get your share of opinions, so here's mine.

 For a long term option of durability,  upgrade/ conversions, and ease of maintenance especially for frequent use, I say you can't do much better than a '58 Remington.

While I am of the opinion that the '60 Colt Army was the sexiest lady of that day, I'd rather have taken the Remington (or 3 or 4) to battle.

Check out some videos of a Colt vs Remington on YouTube sometime.

 


 

He does have all the points in this...But for me it was which one fits MY hands and feels good....That came down to 1860 Army grip....For me it just felt right....

 

Texas Lizard

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Final answer... Ruger "Old Armies".  I don't use myself, but those that regularly beat me do.  There's a hint in there!  If I could find a pair of the 5-1/2" ones, I'd probably get 'em.  And quit usin' my 1851s... maybe!

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1062729038_51NavyConfederate44sAug2019.jpg.3a4e213a7b6bee5986265a6b94821a49.jpg

 

51 Confederate Navy 44s.   I know.  Brass frame. I've shot this pair enough if they fail tomorrow they have earned their keep.  

 

59993d38e5350_Pietta51navy44sAug2017.jpg.a71a1a428913545bd2e4f1fc3e68004f.jpg

 

Got them at Cabelas on a black Friday sale $308 including tax for the pair.

 

I'm going to get a SliX-hand lever bar so I can load without breaking them down. 

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9 minutes ago, Colorado Coffinmaker said:

 

So long as one does not try to "Magnumize" those Pietta '51 Confederate Navy .44s, they will give yeoman service for CAS.  :D

 

Probably about 18 grains of Grafs Reenactor.   The tombstones were hard set. I was hitting them but they were not going down until I shot near the top.  Others had problems too. 

 

 

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2 hours ago, Warden Callaway said:

 

Probably about 18 grains of Grafs Reenactor.   The tombstones were hard set. I was hitting them but they were not going down until I shot near the top.  Others had problems too. 

 

 

That's why I love my Ruger Old Armys.  Pesky knockdowns go down like they were hit by a locomotive when I load a maximum charge of BP.  (I only load maximum charges for these situations.)

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On 9/21/2019 at 12:30 PM, Warden Callaway said:

Lots of used ones on the market.  They are easy to buy and sale and ship in most areas.

 

 Cabelas has smashing sales on them in fall and winter. 

 

Cabela's has not had any sales for over a year since Bass Pro Shops took over the reins. Cabela's is still trying to sell off its remaining stocks of Pietta .44 Navies and all of the other Pietta finishes they are stuck with. Cabela's was great before BPS took over. Go to a BPS store and I will bet you don't see one BP gun under or behind the counter. BPS is the downfall of any Cabela's gun sales. They sell fancy boats and fishing gear.

Jim

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7 minutes ago, sourdoughjim said:

Cabela's is still trying to sell off its remaining stocks of Pietta .44 Navies and all of the other Pietta finishes they are stuck with

 

I am on the outs with Cabela's. Don't care for Bass Pro except for their NRA museum in Springfield.  But Cabela's still list the Pietta cap guns as available on their website.  Here is the same gun I bought on Black Friday sale.

 

https://www.cabelas.com/product/Pietta-Model-Confederate-Navy-Caliber-Black-Powder-Revolver/735152.uts?slotId=2

 

We'll watch and see if they put them on sale this fall.

 

 

 

 

 

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Lots of ways to go here.  In general, I would not recommend anything from CVA.  They don’t use good steels and they are not durable.  I would not recommend a brass frame anything as they are less durable than steel frame guns (but to each his own).  The Ruger old armies are extremely durable but they are expensive, no longer made, and not really period guns.  As such, they don’t interest me.  

 

The 2nd gen Colts are very good, but they are pricy and there are no spare parts.   I like the current Uberti’s better than the Piettas.  I think the finish is better, though I have both.  The biggest issue for the Italian guns is poorly made springs.  I view them as spring kits.  You can make them into pretty good springs by filing and polishing them.  In any case parts are readily available.

 

I have 1858 Remington's,  1860 armies, a Paterson, Walkers, and am currently looking for some colt 2nd gen 1851s.  I like the solid frame of the 1858s and it’s nice to be able to change cylinders.  But I don’t like the grip very much.  Paterson’s are not practical.  The walkers (and dragoon’s) are cannons.  Fun to shoot but very heavy.  The 1851s have the same grip as the SAA, which is nice. They are very handy and the .36 is frugal to feed.  But my favorites are the 1860 colts.  They point extremely well and the .44 is powerful enough to knock things over if needed (pretty rare on SASS stages).  I like them so much I also have 1860 conversions and 1872 open tops. 

 

I agree that you should hold and shoot as many different cap and ball guns as you can.  None of the guns available are perfect.  They will all have a down side or need work of some type.  You just need to find the one you like best.  After that, have fun.  

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45 minutes ago, Warden Callaway said:

 

I am on the outs with Cabela's. Don't care for Bass Pro except for their NRA museum in Springfield.  But Cabela's still list the Pietta cap guns as available on their website.  Here is the same gun I bought on Black Friday sale.

 

https://www.cabelas.com/product/Pietta-Model-Confederate-Navy-Caliber-Black-Powder-Revolver/735152.uts?slotId=2

 

We'll watch and see if they put them on sale this fall.

 

45 minutes ago, Warden Callaway said:

I am willing to bet they don't. The revolver you posted as a link is a non-historical 1851 Navy .44 revolver. They have been trying to get rid of them for a long time. When is the last time Cabela's even listed a Pietta 1851 Navy steel .36 or a Pietta Griswold & Gunnison .36? Their menu has been stagnant for over a year. Other dealers have them readily for sale. That should be a sign.

 

45 minutes ago, Warden Callaway said:

 

 

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I've been shooting cap & ball revolvers since 1965.  My first one was a steel framed 1851 Navy clone. 

 

I have shot most all the clone models, including: 1860 Army, 1851 Navy, 1861 Navy, Walker, Dragoon, some of the .31 caliber Colt clones, the Starr Single Action, Remington .44, and .36, Rogers & Spencer, Ruger Old Army, etc.  The only three I have not fired are: the LeMat, the double-action Starr, and the Paterson. 

 

For my first one, I would start out with the '51 Colt Navy, steel frame model. 

My reasons?  Economical to shoot, very low recoil, grip frame almost identical to the single action 1873 Colt, and the arbor is large, has grease grooves, and if properly lubed, you can shoot a very long time, without having to take it down, to wipe it down, because of the build-up of fouling.

Some of the other designs can foul pretty quickly (the operative word here is "can".  Doesn't mean they will, but some have more of a tendency to foul, seemingly more quickly, than others).   

 

No matter which design/caliber, you choose, I would recommend also to replace the stock cones (nipples) with slick-shot cones. 

 

But....this is MY opinion, and I am not saying anyone else is wrong...just going off of my own experiences, since I have been doing this since Moby Dick was a minnow.   

 

My Two Bits.

W.K.

 

 

 

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2 hours ago, Doc Coles SASS 1188 said:

The 2nd gen Colts are very good, but they are pricy and there are no spare parts.

The 2nd Gen Colts were made of parts supplied by Uberti.  I've had to repair mine, (one bolt), and Uberti parts fit.   Been using them since ~2003.

 

I even have a ASM 1851 made of the same parts, also interchanges with Uberti parts.  The only difference in the Colts is they use US threads on screws.  

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1 minute ago, Griff said:

The 2nd Gen Colts were made of parts supplied by Uberti.  I've had to repair mine, (one bolt), and Uberti parts fit.   Been using them since ~2003.

 

I even have a ASM 1851 made of the same parts, also interchanges with Uberti parts.  The only difference in the Colts is they use US threads on screws.  

There were different makers of these over time and the parts vary a bit.  I have adapted Italian parts and made entirely new parts for 2nd gen gun’s and originals.  I just made a hand from scratch for my original 1862 police.  I have a pair of tuned ASM 1860s that have original Manhattan bolts in them.  25 years and still ticking.  

 

As for uberti making parts for the second gen Colts, decades ago a pal ordered some 1860s from uberti for cavalry reenacting.  They came in uberti boxes with the standard uberti finish, marks etc, but the barrel roll marks were for the Colt.  I think they were over-runs or were grabbed out of the wrong bin.  

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A bit off topic, but lots of good info in this article by Hellgate.  

Thanks Hellgate.

--Dawg

 

DEBUGGING COLT CAP & BALL REVOLVERS FOR COWBOY ACTION SHOOTING

 

by Hellgate Tye #3302

 

My very first "real" gun was an 1861 .36cal Colt Navy I got when I was in high school that still shoots like a charm. I just happen to like the looks of a Colt and don’t have anything against the Remingtons other than I’ve never owned one and rarely shot any. When I first started CAS I used it to shoot the "modern" category because my other pistol was my grandad’s flat top .357 Blackhawk. I found out real fast why the old timers switched to fixed ammo and to smokeless powders. However, the old timers were SERIOUS when they shot at something and staked their life on their equipment. When I want to be serious I’ll use my AR-15 but for SASS I just want to have a good time and enjoy life shooting with a bunch of similar types who don’t mind me smokin' and smellin' up the range. Too many shooters are scared off using cap & ball guns because of all the foibles of black powder itself and unreliability of percussion firearms. I’m hoping that some of the things I’ve learned from "competitive" cap & balling will help others to dig theirs out of the back of the gun safe or even go buy a couple of them to get started.I have found them to be quite reliable once you get a few "bugs" out. They are an inexpensive way to get into Cowboy Action Shooting. Decent revolvers can be had for as little as $100 mail order for those like me that are too cheap to spend a small fortune.

 

I will organize my discussion of making your Colt cap & ball (C&B) revolver run smoothly by talking about the various parts I’ve had to deal with that have fouled up my shooting a stage. I am experienced but not an expert and will bow humbly to the gunsmiths and others who know more than I.

 

FRAME-Brass frames have been known to "shoot loose"especially with heavy loads but I have known of others that never had any problems. I think that case hardened steel is preferable to hold things together. Loose alignment pins can be snugged up by tapping a small dent with a center punch next to the hole they slipped out of then tapping them back in place on the frame. The mainspring can be lightened to smooth the action by filing or grinding the edges to narrow it down. Be careful, too light of a spring can cause some major problems: (1) Hammer blowback will let caps fall down between the hammer and frame and the rest of the caps won’t fire [5 seconds each and you’re standing there cussing and trying to clear a loaded gun under the clock] (2) Fouling buildup may slow hammer fall and not hit the caps hard enough [more misses] (3) The point of impact could change if there is a major difference in spring tension [still more misses] (4) Too light of a trigger pull can be a safety problem [DQ or worse].

 

SIGHTS-Colt C&B’s frequently don’t shoot to point of aim ( three of the five I’ve had shot to the right). All of mine shot high (no problem). I look at the factory sighting notch as merely a reference point. If the gun shoots high you can cut (with a Dremel tool) or file the sighting notch in the hammer deeper. To lower the point of impact further you can grind the top of the hammer down and deepen the notch accordingly. Plan on ruining a file or two on the case hardening. You can always adopt the six o’clock hold if you are anywhere close. If the gun shoots low you may want to use conical balls since they are heavier than the round balls ( around 200grs vs 140 for .44s and 130gr vs 81gr in the .36) and impact about 2" higher at 10-15 yds. You could take a little off the front sight but there is not much to work with. If the gun shoots wide it gets a little trickier. What I have done is to cut (with a file or Dremel) the sighting notch off center to the appropriate side. If the cut is too far over I just fill in the notch with acid core solder and with a flat jewelers file cut a new notch. The solder can be easily filed to shape and darkened with touch up bluing. The front sight can be filed on one side to move the point of impact over a little. Check for burrs on the barrel wedge slot.

 

BARREL-The loading lever latch may not hold during recoil dropping the rammer into the cylinder and freezing up the works. This will happen the first time you take the gun to try it out or not at all. A little filing of the bevel to allow a deeper mating of the latch and barrel catch will prevent the loading lever from ever dropping again. The wedge may be replaced with an aftermarket one if it wears and can’t be driven in far enough to narrow the cylinder gap adequately. If the cylinder gap becomes way too wide you may have the cylinder pin shooting loose and it is time for a new gun or a gun smith. Burrs on the wedge slot may cause misalignment of the barrel to the frame and contribute to shooting off point of aim. They can be filed off but if the gun shoots straight, leave them be!

 

NIPPLES- If the caps fit snugly, all cylinders fire, and the caps don’t get blown back then leave them alone! Buy a variety of caps until you find what brand gives a snug fit. I borrowed a Remington from a friend during a match and all four remaining caps fell off with the first shot (I think that’s called four misses). Don’t waste your time pinching caps to make them fit; get the right size. There are too many other things to keep track of during a match. If one chamber doesn’t always fire you can make a shim out of fine copper or other soft small wire bent into a circle and pounded flat like a small thin washer and placed under the nipple where it seats in the cylinder. That will raise it a few thousandths to where it will fire. When a cap falls between the hammer and frame (the gun goes "clunk" and you go nuts) you are getting blowback of the hammer. There are 3 causes I have identified: the hammer fall is too light, the flash hole in the nipple is too big or the load is too heavy. Get a stronger mainspring, replace the nipples, or use a lighter charge and/or bullet(no more conicals). I have replaced the nipples in all my pistols with Uncle Mike’s nipples. They are stainless, have smaller flash holes, and the #10 Remington caps I use snug up beautifully on them. Thread sizes are 6x.75mm and 12x28 depending on the make of pistol. Ruger Old Army replacement nipples are 12x28 and the other Uncle Mike’s revolver replacement nipples are 6x.75. Prior to a match run a nipple pick through each flash hole after cleaning oil out of the chambers before loading.

 

CYLINDER-If you have calipers, measure the inside diameter of the chambers. If one is off then mark that one as the empty chamber that you don’t load. Or you can set up six targets and shoot from a rest into each target from the same chamber several times to see which cylinder groups the worst and mark that one as the empty (6th) chamber. I use 1 or 2 dots of fingernail polish or enamel touch up paint to indicate which cylinder to not load. You could also just take the nipple out to mark it but I would hate to try to scramble for a spare if a stage called for "shoot five and reload and shoot a sixth". Marking the 6th chamber takes away one more thing I have to remember (like "did I put powder in this one or not? Oh well, too late now!") Get an in-line capper for those stages where you do a "reload" by merely capping the second charged (with powder and ball) revolver. The capper goes faster than using a cartridge gun (your ONLY advantage with a C&B!!). Remingtons have too small of nipple cutouts for a capper to be used and you must fumble with loose caps under the clock.

 

FOULING- Pyrodex or Black Mag powders probably foul less but since I havn’t shot either in my C&B’s I will let others make the call. Even when using an under the ball lubricating wad, I put an over the ball lube in each chamber. This keeps the cylinder face fouling soft as it blows out of the gap and prevents cylinder binding against the barrel. Depending on the temperature I use different chamber greases; cool/cold temp=GOOP or other lanolin based hand cleaner, fair/warm=Crisco, hot=1000 Plus or Wonder Lube. Plastic 12-20cc syringes (though not very "period") help in filling the chambers. I sometimes spread a little black powder lube on the face of the cylinder to wipe off fouling if time permits between stages. I use the heaviest grease I can find (Lubriplate) on the cylinder pin. It keeps fouling from being blown in between the cylinder and the pin thus slowing or stopping cylinder rotation. Don’t get too tight of a cylinder gap or fouling will stop the cylinder from turning. Conical balls, under ball wads and over ball lube all keep barrel fouling to a minimum. A rag to wipe your hands and gun grips off after loading helps in cleanup and prevents a slippery gun in rainy weather (yes, us Orygun Rangers still shoot when it is only raining "lightly").

 

BULLETS-If your club uses ringers or allows a hit (without falling) to count then a .36 cal Navy is fine. If fallers are used then the 80-82 gr ball of a .36 isn’t going to work. LEE makes a conical 130gr bullet mold in .36 cal that packs more punch and might work. I have found that .44 cal round ball works fine for fallers and the conical ball molds throw 200-220 gr bullets that knock down anything you hit right.

 

MODELS & FIT- The "Navies" (1851 & 1861) have smaller grips, 7 1/2" barrels and can be had in both .36 and (historically incorrect) .44 cals. The Army, Dragoon and Walkers are all .44cal and have larger grips. The Dragoons and Walker are "horse pistols" that are noticeably heavier but throw more powder and smoke than the other "belt pistols" designed to be carried on the person.

 

Don’t let all these things that can go wrong with a C&B discourage you from giving them a try. Figure that you aren’t going to break any speed records but you’ll have a whole lot more fun than anyone else at the match as long as you keep that smoke wagon turnin’. After a short while you sort of get a rhythm in loading that can be, shall we say, meditative. Think of all the time you will save not having to process your brass plus you’ve got a free reloading outfit built onto each gun! You’ll also grow to appreciate why Wild Bill Hickock carefully cleaned, oiled, and reloaded his two "Navies"on a frequent basis. You can bet he took the time to do some "debugging" too. (end)

 

Dropped caps:

 

Before you go getting alot of work done on your gun, try a few other things first. (However the Frank Leman makeover works. Colt shoulda done it 150 years ago.) Capguards (plastic rings to put around the caps to prevent splitting) would be one more thing to drop into the action to screw things up. At least the caps can get flattened out better than the plastic rings. You are either getting blowback of the caps or your hammer is lifting them off the nipple and they're dropping into the action. Here are some things to try:

 

1) Stone the rough spots on the hammer face and the safety cutout a little bit to take away sharp edges that catch the cap and pull it off the nipple where it gets tipped off when wings of the cap catch on the frame cutout and the cap falls off the hammer face into the "works"as it is cocked. Check the length of the nipples; maybe one is high and scores the hammer face and creates the rough spots.

 

2) Shoot lighter loads. (less powder, less lead, or a coarser powder i.e. ffg) to lower pressure [and therefore backthrust] on the cap & hammer face.

 

3) Get a heavier mainspring to keep the hammer down onto the nipple. ("tuning" of a SA usually includes lightening the mainspring but that allows the hammer to be blown back with the spent cap and dropping the cap under the hammer). The heavy original spring is strong for a reason (to keep the hammer down and whack through fouling to explode the caps).

 

4) Replace any cap with a flashole larger than the rest, don't load that chamber (designate it the "open" chamber) or replace them all. A larger flash hole will also add to the jet of flame coming out the back of the nipple to blow the cap off.

 

If you do all these things and you are still having problems then I'm outa advice. They've worked for me quite well so far on alotta different Colt C&Bs.

 

Hellgate

 

 

 

 

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2KidsPop;

 

The above posts provide a wealth of information, perhaps overwhelming.  Perhaps I can put some things in perspective from my own experience.

 

Every factory new cap and ball revolver except the Ruger Old Army should be considered a kit when it comes to competition.  They all should go bang out of the factory box.  But unless you are extremely lucky, after that first bang you will likely be fighting cap fragment jams, and eventually some broken springs.  Even the Ruger Old Army gets better with non-factory nipples and springs.  There have been major matches won with out-of-the-box cartridge revolvers.  I am not aware of any major match black powder category that has been won with out-of-the-box percussion revolvers.

 

So your choice really depends on how competitive you want to be with those percussion revolvers.  If it does not bother you to finish way down in the rankings, then you can shoot factory guns without tuning and modifications, endure the jams and broken springs when they occur, and have lots of fun doing it.  If you want your ranking to be limited by your ability rather than your gun's capability, you are going to be faced with tuning those guns.  A reasonably handy fellow can do a lot of tuning in his own workshop even though he is not a gunsmith.  There is information on line that shows you what needs to be done, and links are provided above.  If money is no object, send your guns to one of the well-known cowboy gunsmiths for tuning, or buy guns that have already be tuned by someone else.  At least one of the cowboy gunsmiths offers pre-tuned new percussion revolvers for sale.  I have never shot one of those, so you should contact someone who has if that is an option for you.

 

You will have a terrific time as a blackpowder shooter.  Just realize that your competitiveness a factor to be considered in the black powder categories, as it is in the smokeless powder categories.

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On 9/24/2019 at 6:17 AM, J-BAR #18287 said:

2KidsPop;

 

The above posts provide a wealth of information, perhaps overwhelming.  Perhaps I can put some things in perspective from my own experience.

 

Every factory new cap and ball revolver except the Ruger Old Army should be considered a kit when it comes to competition.  They all should go bang out of the factory box.  But unless you are extremely lucky, after that first bang you will likely be fighting cap fragment jams, and eventually some broken springs.  Even the Ruger Old Army gets better with non-factory nipples and springs.  There have been major matches won with out-of-the-box cartridge revolvers.  I am not aware of any major match black powder category that has been won with out-of-the-box percussion revolvers.

 

So your choice really depends on how competitive you want to be with those percussion revolvers.  If it does not bother you to finish way down in the rankings, then you can shoot factory guns without tuning and modifications, endure the jams and broken springs when they occur, and have lots of fun doing it.  If you want your ranking to be limited by your ability rather than your gun's capability, you are going to be faced with tuning those guns.  A reasonably handy fellow can do a lot of tuning in his own workshop even though he is not a gunsmith.  There is information on line that shows you what needs to be done, and links are provided above.  If money is no object, send your guns to one of the well-known cowboy gunsmiths for tuning, or buy guns that have already be tuned by someone else.  At least one of the cowboy gunsmiths offers pre-tuned new percussion revolvers for sale.  I have never shot one of those, so you should contact someone who has if that is an option for you.

 

You will have a terrific time as a blackpowder shooter.  Just realize that your competitiveness a factor to be considered in the black powder categories, as it is in the smokeless powder categories.

 

Words of gold here.     I am definitely NOT that "reasonably handy fellow" so I went for the Ruger Old Armys…  That happened to be around the time the fixed sight 5.5" guns came out and an old and handy friend in GA got me a pair and tuned them to perfection.    I know shooters who have a great time with Remington and Colt clone C&B......but those DO take some mechanical aptitude to get and keep running well.    Whichever way you go...enjoy!

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Good advice above.  Also check out Dixie Gun Works of Union, Tennessee.  I have a variety of '51s, 60s, two '58 Remmies, (all .44s) and a pair of  '61 .36 Sheriff models.  All of these are Piettas.  Mostly shoot the '60s, but my favorites are the Sheriffs from Dixie.  I would suggest that wherever you buy them, try to do it in the store and check the feel and function, especially the indexing.  All the colt replicas are fairly easy to work on.  The Remmies feel stiff and clumsy to me and so are mostly safe queens.  Welcome to the dark side!

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On 9/21/2019 at 3:42 PM, Chertrock Chuck said:

 

You will get your share of opinions, so here's mine.

 For a long term option of durability,  upgrade/ conversions, and ease of maintenance especially for frequent use, I say you can't do much better than a '58 Remington.

While I am of the opinion that the '60 Colt Army was the sexiest lady of that day, I'd rather have taken the Remington (or 3 or 4) to battle.

Check out some videos of a Colt vs Remington on YouTube sometime.

 


 

This is good advice. Personally I cant get over the ugly look of the 1858, but they are fine cap and ball revolvers. My personal preference would be an 1851 or 1860 from uberti, however.

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