Question on 1858 Remington sticking/jamming caps?

[His lordship.]

I fired my Uberti 1858 Remington revolver today, I used to have an EMF version back in the 1990's and they are a little different.  The Uberti is tighter in removing the cylinder, had to relearn the method to partially cock the hammer and wiggle the cylinder and hammer to put it back into the frame.  My EMF was not so tight.  My Uberti is much more accurate than the EMF, the Uberti is one of the most accurate handguns I own.

The main problem I had was what seems to be a sticking cap in the top of the frame.  On my Colts I just rock the gun upright when cocking to allow the spent cap to fall out.  On the Remington this is not an option.  Should I pinch the caps on tight to prevent it from sticking in the frame and cylinder area after detonation?  The first few shots are ok, then it was sticking so back that I had to manually turn the cylinder with my other hand on several occasions.  I thought it was powder fowling, but I cleaned the gun after 3 full cylinder loads like I do with my Colts.

The gun shot right to the point of aim, quite a contrast to my 1851 Colt which shoots high and the the left.   

[coyotejoe]

Cap jams are a common problem with all C&B revolvers and I agree that Remingtons are more of a problem than Colts. Maybe that's one reason Colt outsold Remington by a wide margin back when they were state-of-the-art. There is no absolute "cure" but I've found a few tricks to help. Heavy mainspring tension will help keep the hammer down on the fired cap. A change to Ampco nipples with a very small flash hole reduces backblast and helps. Avoiding magnum caps will help. Pinching caps to fit the nipple will NOT help but buying caps that fit without pinching may help.

[Cuts Crooked]

Cap jams are a common problem with all C&B revolvers and I agree that Remingtons are more of a problem than Colts. Maybe that's one reason Colt outsold Remington by a wide margin back when they were state-of-the-art. There is no absolute "cure" but I've found a few tricks to help. Heavy mainspring tension will help keep the hammer down on the fired cap. A change to Ampco nipples with a very small flash hole reduces backblast and helps. Avoiding magnum caps will help. Pinching caps to fit the nipple will NOT help but buying caps that fit without pinching may help.

+1 on CJs advise! And point the gun DOWN when you recock, not up like you would for a Colt.

[ZVP]

 My Colt reproductions are far more prone to Cap Hang-ups than my Remington reproductions.
 I find that a quick flip to the right and cocking the revolver fast with authority helps eliminate most jams. Though the "flick" sounds awkward, it's really not hard to incorperate in the cocking action.
 I have tried the "Gunfighters Flip" where you point the revolver upwards while cocking, also tried the pointing it down method with my colt copies, however none worked as well as the quick flip to the right for me.
 I shoot two handed normally.
 Do not "baby" the revolver while cocking it. It's a machiene and needs to be operated with some mechanical force. I am not saying to abuse any gun, just operate it with some authority!
  HTH,
 ZVP

[ZVP]

 I just gotta add this about Colts and caps...
 My Uberti .36 Navy ate it's way through part of a box of RWS caps and apparentlly fragments got into the cocking hand and broke the spring for a second time on another revolver. First was on a Piettia Navy, now this time on the Uberti!
 I think the Remingtons handle caps much better than the Colt design does.
 Whatcha gonna do?
 Colts are just so cool!
 ZVP

[brpc]

Agree totally with ZVP.

This exaggerated "gunfighter flip" does work most of the time.

I have often thought that the method was duplicated by the old B movie westerns because they thought that it was supposed to look that way.  By the way it is not uncommon in novice pistol students using modern firearms.  Something to train away from.  Guess that was how it looked in the movies.......which was how it most probably looked back in the day.

[ZVP]

 Caps are a neverending source of frustration but there is a description of a possible cure in the book "PercussionPistols and Revolvers" by Bates and Crumpston. I did some of the mod to my Brass Framed 51 .44 and it worked pretty well however I did the same Mod to my Uberti Colt London .36 and it didn't help.
 I have had to order a new hand and spring for the London and will also add a new heavier hammer spring to try and help the spent caps pass the hammer slot. Seems that no matter what I do or the brands of caps I use, the London still has an inordinate number of caps falling and blocking the hammer. I hope this heavier hammer spring will cure the problem because I love the little London Navy.36. It just "feels" right and I wish I could get it reliable!
 Now far as my two Pietta Remingtons go, they both have the hammer mainsprings adjusted tight and though it increases the cocking effort, I do not have troubles with caps falling into the action. The heavy hammer setting requires thick copper caps to hold down the fragmentation of the caps.
 I use the stock Uberti and Piettia nipples on the revolvers. I will replace them with Tesso nipples when these wear out.
 My Colt pyrodex load is 22 grains and my Remington Pyrodex load is35 Grains.
 ZVP

[His lordship.]

Ironically I thought my Uberti Remington was having a problem with the caps, and it was.  I went to the range last week and squeezed them to make them tighter and had only one jamming of the action after shooting 36 rounds.  However, the problem with this gun is that it is tight.  I could feel the cylinder bind up after 3 cylinder loads and the powder was accumulating where there was any frame/barrel/cylinder contact.  A quick squirt of spray oil and rotation of the cylinder a few times did the trick.

As far as caps jamming the Colts.  My 1851 needs to be flipped back while cocking it most of the time to allow the spent caps to get clear.  My old Pietta 1860 Army that I used to have was more beefy and would fire ok if a cap or two got jammed into the area between the hammer and the frame.  I feel the 1860 Army would be a better battle pistol over the 1851.   

[ZVP]

 Chris,
 36 rounds is very good without a wipe down or some minor clean-up. Whatever powder you are using is a clean one!
 I usually wipe the Remington 58's cylinder andit's shaft down after around every 3rd cylinder full. I may go as high as 5 before a wipedown and  minor lube. Those Irons have tight cleqarances and wanna slow down quickly.
 Do you use Pistol Wads or crisco or some vegatable lube of some sort? I perfer Wads as they are a lot less greasy on the grips.
 Ya gotta love B/P it goes BOOM with authority!
 ZVP