Author Topic: Bought a 1858 Remington Pietta (Read 2473 times)

David L · « **on:** August 09, 2003, 04:06:06 AM »

I owned a Colt 1860 Army and I can honestly say I truly hated it. Accuracy was excellent and had a nice tight grouping but reloading it every time made me hate black powder shooting. Getting extra cylinders was a joke, who wants to tear down your revolver at the range just to change the cylinder so you can keep shooting..STILL, I wanted to shoot black powder revolvers so I done some research and came up with this..

I saw the 1858 Remington repo and the quick change cylinder and just fell in love! I figure I can get 2 more cylinders and then go to the range and blast for 3 cylinders worth and then sit down and while I go over my loads and targets I can reload my 3 cylinders and go at it again. When I start shooting I wanna shoot a while, ya know.

I read on the Uberti and Pietta, the forum I hit seemed to lean towards the Pietta as being the best with Ruger Blackhawk and then Cimarron Repos as being the choice IF money was no object. I was going to buy from Calebs but then ran into a post that said their quality had really suffered. At this point I found the Bass Pro Shop guns and just laughed about that while I surfed on. To make a long story short I wound-up with this thing at Gunbroker dot com.

http://www.gunbroker.com/auction/ViewItem.asp?Item=10801338

Its on the way here from Florida as I write this. I (thought) Pietta was the best overall choice, passing on the Uberti the local gun shop had here IN STOCK! (GeeZus)..

Anyhoo, now I find out Im gonna hafta work on this thing OR the main spring, timing etc.Brand-new and will need work..NOW thats quality workmanship(GeeZ) IF it takes too much to get this gun right I guess Ill go shopping again and just buy from Cimarron. I had no idea that the quality of guns was so sorry today. Next time Ill spend a little more money and buy one I dont have to work on. I have already owned a Ruger hog leg and didnt care for it too much, the gun just didnt fit me.

I think this Remington will be the ticket, at 129.00 bucks I havent lost much and I also fear I havent gotten much in return either.

P.S. - I read about the corn meal on top of the wad, I busted a gut when I read thatI done my old Colt the same way, I wanted that ball as close to the barrel as I could get it! *L*

David L

Chicken today and feathers tomorrow..

Dan Chamberlain · « **Reply #1 on:** August 09, 2003, 08:37:59 AM »

David;

Not sure what you mean about Cabela's quality. I've purchased half a dozen percussion pistols from them over the years as well as rifles and a shotgun. Quality has always been first rate. My Pietta Remington needs no work and groups 2" at 25 yards all day long. As for loading up a bunch of cylinders, that's a good idea, but be sure you don't cap them until they are safely seated in the revolver! Just accidently tapping one of those caps on the frame can set it off before you have seated it, and that's a recipie for disaster. Another thing, I saw a young feller with three loaded cylinders and they were capped. He accidently knocked one off the table at the range onto a concrete floor! Luckily it fell on its side! Leave the caps off until you are ready to shoot.

Dan C

David L · « **Reply #2 on:** August 09, 2003, 12:28:46 PM »

Hiya Dan,

I was ready to buy the Remington and just ran into that section of comments on Black Powder. I have no idea what quality Calebs has but it looks like I should have bought it there and paid a little bit more.

I have no intention of capping the extra cylinders...*L*...That just looks dangerous and when you say it outloud it really makes my hair stand on end....

For what its worth, I started looking for supplies to shoot with. One store had a few cans of powder and no round balls, one had the hornady balls but I prefer Speer (since I herd they were better).

CAN you or anyone point me to some good powder, OR is that just too much to ask to be mailed to my door..I mean does the law forbid it? The gun shops I have been to said they are getting out of black powder period, no demand for it. I'll be danged if I'm gonna buy reloading equipment from someone that does not carry black powder. I'm considering the .45 conversion and will (of course) reload my own.

Thanks for the suggestions....

David L

Dan Chamberlain · « **Reply #3 on:** August 09, 2003, 02:20:27 PM »

David;

Black is getting tough to find sometimes. Pyrodex works very well in C&B revolvers as well. I just bought a pound of Triple 7 and I have to say it appears to work well also. I did some shooting with my .36 Navy this afternoon, and cleanup was a snap. It smokes, but there is no sulphur so no rotten egg smell. I can clean it in the Kitchen and the wife doesn't pitch a fit. Walmat handles 777 as well as pytodex. Also, Hodgdon (the makers of Pyrodex and 777) sells something called Clean-Shot...or is it Clear Shot? Anyway, this stuff is truly non-corrosive and reports are that it works well. If you go with 777, realize that it is a tad more powerful than Black Powder. So, with the Remington copies that take 35 Grains of black, reduce the charge by 10 or 15%. In my Navy, 20 grains of 777 produces a pretty nice blast! What part of the country are you from?

Dan C

David L · « **Reply #4 on:** August 09, 2003, 05:20:45 PM »

I'm in the Texas Panhandle in a village called Amarillo.

OK on the powder. I'll just go that route and see what loads produce the best group in my gun. I'm interested in accuracy, I like to play with the data.

What would be cool is to get a digital camera and go nuts with "natural" charts...*L* Ya know show the target with the load data posted just above the holes....Hmmmmmmmmmm....just a thought. This way I could see how rotten of a shot I am compaired to a time tested load....

This Remingtom 1858 quick change cylinder I think will make this hobbie fun for me again, I can't wait......

Gonna check on that Wally World deal ASAP, at least I can have easy access to accessories.

David L

The Shrink · « **Reply #5 on:** August 10, 2003, 06:28:48 AM »

David

The problem with shipping Black Powder is the HazMat fees. You really need to buy a case to make it worthwhile. I would bet your are relatively close to a group of Cowboy Action shooters, and among them I'll bet you'll find one or two who will jump at the chance to go in together on a case. This is your best bet to get powder, and probably caps likewise if there are no shops in your area that are willing to carry it.

There are several places that will sell and ship by the case, and if you ask on the Black Powder Cartridge site I'll bet someone will post a list of such places. It may be in the archives, as well. I know that such a list in on the archives of shooters.com/blackpowdercompetition or somesuch site. If you need it let me know and I'll find it for you.

Fightin Creek Slim · « **Reply #6 on:** August 10, 2003, 12:59:47 PM »

Howdy Dan:
Fancy running across you here.
I've got four of the Pietta New Model Army revolvers and have not had any problems with them. I've also got a pair of the R&D conversion cylinders in .45 Colt for the 58 Remingtons. The Remington has a few quirks the main one being that they tend to get caked up with BP fouling This is mainly due to the cylinder pin design. A shot of Ballistol out of a squirt bottle and a wipe down with a rag every other cylinder keeps this problem in check. The New Model Armies and 1875 Remingtons are my main match pistols in CAS competition so they do get a lot of use. Never cap those cylinders til you're ready for the firing line. A dropped capped cylinder can do as much damage as a hand grenade. I use GOEX FFg black powder for both the cap&ball and .45 Colt cartridge loads for CAS. Most likely if there are CAS clubs in your area you will have a group who are buying BP by the case and many of them would probably be willing to sell you some powder of cut you in on their group buying discount.

Dan Chamberlain · « **Reply #7 on:** August 10, 2003, 03:31:07 PM »

Well slim, how's that cylinder working for you? I don't regret letting it go but I'm wishing I hadn't bought the target model. Every time I see a New army I wish that had been the model I'd bought. Those Cabela's prices keep going up, it will be cheaper to buy a Ruger Old Army!

Hey, I did some experimenting this weekend. I cast some balls out of parafin wax and loaded them behind 10 grains 777 and seated them over a wonder wad. Had to do a final seat with a dowel as the ram wouldn't seat them deep enough. Anyway, in the basement I was knocking over empty soda cans regularly. The wax would hit the concrete wall and just flatten out when I missed. Noise was loud enough to make ear protection a must. The wonder wads scrubbed the wax out of the bore and I didn't get any waxing (leading) of the bore. Clean up was a snap. If you have a window in your basement, an exhaust fan helps to clear out the smoke. But with the 777, there was no sulphur smell. And 10 grains didn't smoke that much.

Dan c

Fightin Creek Slim · « **Reply #8 on:** August 10, 2003, 06:11:44 PM »

Dan:
Thats the only cylinder out of the whole lot of them that I haven't had to tinker with. The others I've either had to chamfer the nipples or replace them outright to get caps to seat reliably. I think that the overall quality of the Pietta's has improved considerably since they went to all new CNC equiptment in their factory. Haven't had any problems with the revolvers other than the new factory nipples. You're right those prices are going up on the Cabela's guns. Still not as expensive as Uberti's though. I do like those New Model Armies. I was thinking of cutting a pair of them down to Sheriff's model length, but I have since decided to keep em as is for backups to my match pistols

Dan:
You must have a very understanding wife who lets you shoot the stinky stuff in the house.

I've never heard the end of it since I last cold blued a shotgun in the kitchen. :roll:
I've shot primer powered wax bullets out of my wheelguns in the basement. Got to shoot a Civil War 3 inch ordnance rifle over the fourth of July. I want one but that would be several years shooting budget. I'll bet that the neighbors would be mighty polite after seeing it in the back yard though. :twisted:

David L · « **Reply #9 on:** August 11, 2003, 04:14:49 AM »

I'm still laughing at Dan shooting in his basement, will be for a-while. Wish I had a basement, if I done that in my house I would be hearing the blast of as bull-horn saying, " Come - out with your hands in the air", and all this would take place in less than 30 min...*L* I live on the wrong side of town to be thinking about that (near the snooty folks). Some of these folks would prolly have a heart attack..On the other hand some just might shoot back....NOW thats funny...

Not gonna get into the competion part of this. A bunch of guys with fully loaded guns and massive amounts of BP sitting around isn't my idea of a fun shooting experence. When I read that piece on reloading .45 LC Colt and a man just fills the entire caseing and compresses a bullet onto the BP without measuring it made me do some thinking...*L* If I could find someone interested in the same thing in my area I would consider that rout but not in groups....NOT at all...

I won't be storing more than 5 pounds in my own home, I think that is my personal limit. I'll let someone else store "bulk" canisters but not me. I may pay a little more but at least I don't have to store it, I'm not ammo dumping for a war...*L*

Thanks for all the replies guys....

David L

The Shrink · « **Reply #10 on:** August 12, 2003, 11:17:30 AM »

David

If you decide to store any at home you should, and probably will be required to build a storage magazine for it. It is easily built out of 3/4" plywood, a simple wooden box. Personally, I think it is better stored in military ammo boxes, but the requirements don't agree with me.

By the way, I shoot my .22 revolvers in the garage, with (I'm at work, so I'll probably get this wrong) "Aglia" ammo, which is primer only and a 20gr lead bullet. I'm shooting them out of a H&R 999 and my wife upstairs and my neighbor next door don't hear them. The bullet almost penetrates 3/4" fir at 15 ft. I can see the very tip of the bullet sometimes from the other side. Some of these are pushed through by other hits on top of them. They are very quiet, even in a revolver.

David L · « **Reply #11 on:** August 13, 2003, 01:49:04 PM »

Well, we have this army surplus store here that has so very impressive containers. They have a steel box that is almost twice as large as the conventional "Ammo Box". I already have one of them repainted red white and blue with a small American Flag on it. I started to put a confederate flag on it but that might cause some problems so to avoid any conflict I put Ole Glory on it, glad I did it turned out purty good. The steel ammo boxes at this Army Surplus have gaskets around the lids for an air-tight water-tight seal.

That's kinda handy to stay in practice with the ole 22, the ammo is reasonable and I'll bet with practice you could put a 22 shell anywhere ya wanted to. Ya spend a lot of time with a gun ya get good with it, I would think.

David L

First your money then your cloths.....

The Shrink · « **Reply #12 on:** August 14, 2003, 01:45:42 AM »

David

If you simply encase that ammo box (or another since that one is so pretty!) in 3/4" plywood you will, I think, have a powder magazine that meets or exceeds the federal fire code. Remember, black is an explosive, and must be stored as such, while smokeless is only listed as a flammable, with much looser restrictions.

ButlerFord45 · « **Reply #13 on:** August 21, 2003, 06:03:16 PM »

Double Clicked, at least with BP I can't double charge!

ButlerFord45 · « **Reply #14 on:** August 21, 2003, 06:15:19 PM »

Yo! David, in the competitions, only two people have loaded guns at one time, the one on the firing line, and one at the loading table, and they are both being monitored/observed by someone else, so what you have is a group of people with a great deal of knowledge about and respect for firearms.

"Not gonna get into the competion part of this. A bunch of guys with fully loaded guns and massive amounts of BP sitting around isn't my idea of a fun shooting experence. When I read that piece on reloading .45 LC Colt and a man just fills the entire caseing and compresses a bullet onto the BP without measuring it made me do some thinking...*L* If I could find someone interested in the same thing in my area I would consider that rout but not in groups....NOT at all...
"

I was curious as to what kind of thinking you were doing? Cartridge brass makes great powder measures, in fact a 45 colt case holds about 38 to 39 grains depending on the manufacturer of the brass. That's about 1-2 grains less than the original Colt 45 load. Most of the 250/255 grain bullets that I have used would compress that just a tad over .3", which with Goex FF (seems to do really well with about that amount of compression in the Colt 45) is a good load that shoots well in any of the 6 guns that I have for that caliber

Flint · « **Reply #15 on:** August 22, 2003, 05:23:30 AM »

David, I agree with ButlerFord. A level caseful of powder is a common load of Black Powder. BP is not like smokeless where you can simply back off the charge to lighten it up, there can be NO air space between the bullet and the charge. A light load MUST be topped with a filler, like cornmeal, and a Wonder Wad, if you like. The size of a black powder cartridge case was dependent upon the standard powder charge. Do not load your Remington with a charge the ball cannot be seated hard onto, use a filler if you must.

Also, as stated, a Cowboy match is not a field fulll of loaded guns. We operate a Cold Range, which means, no-one but the shooter and the on-deck are loaded, and both the loading table and the unloading table are monitored. Cowboy shooting clubs are safety concious above all else.

David L · « **Reply #16 on:** August 25, 2003, 01:15:34 PM »

I have reloaded for a 30.06 before and just putting powder in until I can seat a bullet just diden't make much sense to me. Thinking about the relationship between BP and smokeless AND doing some reading has really helped me out. This board has really been my guide to BP shooting so I will continue to read and "learn" what I can and cannot do with BP. I doubt I will be reloading .45 brass anytime soon, I'm just too interested in roundballs for now..*L*

I am in the process of contacting a CAS club here now, after hearing about the CAS saftey regulations and the folks involved I've decided they are not a "bad" bunch of crazed BP shooters just playing with BP, but are respondsiable adults operating in a safe manner...(that was a relief) I'm hoping by next summer I'll have all the toys to compete with the big boys, I'm really looking forward to it!!!

Thanks for steering me in the right direction guys...

David L