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?safety/function question on a Used purchase SAA?


Goodshot45acp

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  Just purchased a used Uberti Hartford old west ( first single action Army I’ve owned without a transfer bar/4 clicks) 45colt

I love the sound while cocking this revolver but  Are there supposed to be clicks as you manually lower the hammer with pulled trigger (décock pointed in a safe direction  of course )?

 

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I have never had a single action revolver that does not make some kind of clicking noise when decocking the hammer.  I've got Colts and clones of the SAA, and various cap & ball revolvers, S&W's, Merwin & Hulbert, Remingtons and other things.   ALL of them make a quieter different kind of clicking noise than the clicks made when cocking.   Are you sure these are not the normal sounds made by the parts moving as the hammer is lowered?

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Howdy

 

Hold off on the trip to the gunsmith.

 

There is at least one click when the trigger is pulled on a Colt or colt clone. and the hammer is slowly lowered..

 

It is caused by one of the spring legs of the bolt popping over the hammer cam to reset the bolt. This occurs when the hammer is about halfway down.

 

How loud this click is depends on how springy the bolt leg is. With some Colts (and clones) it is quite loud, with some it is muffled.

 

If you listen really closely you may also hear a slight click as the hand resets when it pops over a cylinder ratchet tooth as the hammer goes all the way down. How loud this click is depends on how stiff the hand spring is. Yes, it also happens with guns that have a coil spring instead of the traditional leaf type hand  spring.

 

In this photo, one arrow is pointing to the edge of the hammer came. The other arrow is pointing to the curved ends of the bolt. When the hammer is cocked, the upper surface of the cam grabs the curved ends of the bolt and rotates them up. This pulls the business end of the bolt down out of the cylinder, allowing it to rotate. When the hammer falls, either fast or slow, the bolt arm against the face of the hammer is compressed as it rides up and over the cam. At the same time the split trigger/bolt spring keeps the bolt pressed up into the cylinder, locking it in battery. As the edge of the cam clears the bolt leg the leg snaps down, slapping against the flat face of the hammer. This is what causes the click. The bolt is made of spring steel, and how loud the click is will depend on how stiff the legs are. In this photo you can also see a traditional leaf type hand spring attached to the hand. How stiff this spring is will be the determining factor in whether a slight click can be heard as the hammer is lowered all the way as the hand resets in the next cylinder ratchet tooth.

 

 

Colt%20Lockwork%20Parts%20with%20arrows_

 

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Thanks HK and Driftwood (and previous) , I probably should’ve initially emphasized the clicks were much more muffled/subtle than those heard when cocking. With this being explained (by you)and your experiences I believe this is normal thank you so much for your help, it’s just that I’ve never owned an actual clone before/ only have another single action with transfer bar which is “ Quieter“

Thanks everyone

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1 hour ago, El Hombre Sin Nombre said:

Uberti Hartford? I didn’t know uberti picked up that line. I only know ASM made them 

 

EMF sold a number of firearms from different manufacturers under the "Hartford" model designation.

I have a Uberti .44spl SA revolver (mfg. in 2001) and used to have a Rossi 1892 rifle with the "Hartford Model" barrel stamping.

I also have an EMF "Hartford" 1851 revolver (mfg. in 1995 by ASM) which was a donation from SASS to our annual match, IIRC.

 

 

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On 10/25/2019 at 5:49 PM, PaleWolf Brunelle, #2495L said:

 

EMF sold a number of firearms from different manufacturers under the "Hartford" model designation.

 

 

Yep.  I have a pair of Pietta revolvers from EMF with "Hartford" stamped on the barrels.

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