hartford 1860 spindle

[oldsmokeyjeff]

I have aquired a Hartford 1860 revolver and the "spinidle" ( I know that isn't the correct part name but it escapes me) that the cylinder revolves on is bent.  Can this be replaced? How is it anchored in the frame? It is loose in the frame but doesn't seem to be threaded.  Not sure what the last owner did but it is bent to the point where the cylinder will not mount.  Otherwise this is a BEAUTIFUL revolver with no scratches or blemishes of any type and the nicest case hardening I have seen on a gun of this type.
         Any help will be appreciated and thank you!   Jeff

[FourBee]

Hey oldsmokeyjeff:
  That part is called the "Base Pin", it is threaded into the Frame.   The Hartford is now being sold by EMF I believe.   I'm not sure if yours' is made by UBERTI or PIETTA.   I'd take it to a GunSmith and have him put a new one in.

[FourBee]

oldsmokeyjeff:
  I'm not positive that the "Base Pin" is threaded.  It does appear to be in the schematic.  But it is a separate replaceable part.

[oldsmokeyjeff]

Thanks guys....I'll try and see if I can figure out who the actual manufacturer is.  I tried to unscrew the base pin but it coesn't want to turn loose and I didn't want to apply too much force.  The pin wiggles a touch in the frame already and I hope the frame isn't damaged.

[oldsmokeyjeff]

Armi San Marco made the revolver...it's on the small label on the Hartford box.  There also is a small hole in the part of the frame where the hammer rests and it is bored through directly in line with the base pin. Not sure what this does but I'm going to try and find out. 

[FourBee]

I noticed on the schematic there is a cylinder lock pin #28.   That's probably whats holding the Base Pin in place.

[oldsmokeyjeff]

Found an ASM schematic and the cyl lock pin on this model goes in the back instead of the side and appears to somehow lock the base pin...I don't remember how to post pics here so I can't post the diagram.  It is actually listed as a barrel pin the same as the 2 pins that hold the barrel from turning on the frame.  What I can't figure out is how it comes out.  I can't even see it in the hole and there is no way to grasp it.

[Flint]

The cyl. Lock Pin is seen at the rear of the frame, it is in a hole drilled half in the frame and half in the Arbor (base pin).  It is the reason you can't unscrew the arbor.   Drill out the existing cylinder lock with a tap drill suitable for a #6-32 screw, and with a new base pin in place, if the original can't be straightened, redrill the hole.

I don't know why the exploded drawing shown on oldsmokey's posting shows the locking pin sideways, it is not, it is parallel to the arbor.  On an Uberti, the locking pin is the same part as used for the (#23) barrel locating pins.  On a Pietta, they aren't.

It may, on a new base pin, be necessary to mill its half hole with a ball end mill, after marking its location.  It would be a gunsmith's or machinist's job.  Tap the hole after assembly for #6-32 and seat a set screw to lock the parts. With a set screw, future removal will be easier.  Otherwise, a new pin would have to be driven in, matched to the diameter of the hole.

The wedge slot must be aligned and set in the correct position to properly fit the barrel lug.  David Chicoine's book on Gunsmithing Guns of the Old West has dimensions for the base pin by Uberti.