Thinking of getting one

dutchman · February 04, 2007, 05:01:46 PM

Hey Pards,

I've been shooting C&B's for awhile but they've always been Colt style. Here lately I've been looking hard at the '58 Remington's. However, the closest I've come to one is holding one at a gun store. I love the feel and heft of the weapon but beyond that I have no first hand knowledge.

Tell me what you like and dislike about them, a good one to buy, whatever you can.

Thanks
Dutch

hellgate · February 04, 2007, 06:06:40 PM

Like you, I was once an exclusively Colt man. What i like about the Colts is the grips fit me better, especially the Navy grips (ASM & Uberti, not Pietta). I discovered the Euroarms and Uberti Remingtons were not as heavy as the Pietta Remmies I had owned and handled nicely. Colts are prettier (1860 & 1861 models) or just look cooler ('51 & Walker) but the Remmies are RUGGED and I do not worry about overloading them. They are very utilitarian (Rems) but they may gum up with fouling more than a Colt. My Uberts foul quickly whereas my Euros shoot all day like the colts. A drop of oil on the cylinder face near the frame between stages keeps the Ubertis running. A big drawback for the Remmies is how they vary so much in grip size and shape. An 1860 Army Colt will feel the same regardless of the make but remmies vary wdely to me: Euroarms smallest grips lightest weight, Uberti a little heavier & slightly larger grips, Pietta heaviest with biggest grips. Now, if you have big hands, that is a plus. The Piettas are a little overbuilt (too beefy) for me and "clunkier" to wield. This is just my opinion. Photos of original Remingtons resemble the Euroarms the closest with the Ubertis next closest. Just my random thoughts and single opinion. None of the Remingtons are really BAD.

Ransom Gaer · February 04, 2007, 07:15:49 PM

Dutchman,

I have a pair of Uberti made '58 Remingtons that I have installed the R&D conversion cylinders and I no longer use them as percussion revolvers. They are great revolvers either as percussion or cartridge. There are two things I have some issue with. As Hellgate said they will gum up more than the Colts will, but just lube the cylinder pin and it runs much better. All of the Remington replicas will suffer from this, just like the real ones. I think the small cylinder pin is the source of this. This is a nuisance, but nothing more really. The other and this is more personal than anything. I find the grip to be a little cramped. I prefer both Colt grips(Army and Navy, they are different) more. The Colt grips seem to have a little more room for me.

On the positive side the Remingtons are rugged. I have yet to break anything on them. I think they are also more accurate than any of the Colts, although at the ranges we shoot at this is not that big a deal.

When I bought my Ubertis I was able to do a direct comparison in the store between Uberti and Pietta. I in general liked the Uberti better. The action felt smoother. I also liked the heavier hammer spring and the Ubertis just seemed to be a little nicer all around. I also liked the trigger on the Ubertis better too. I have heard the Piettas have improved. Look at them both.

One thing I would recommend and you may know this already. Regardless of Colt or Remington, Uberti or Pietta get some Treso or Thunder Ridge nipples. They really do improve the function of a cap and ball revolver. All of mine have them. I have some of both and they are both good.

Whatever you get, good luck with them and have fun.

Ransom Gaer

hellgate · February 04, 2007, 07:43:51 PM

Ransom reminded me of a couple of things:
Some people get their knuckle on the middle finger whacked when shooting a Remington. I have the stock nipples on my Ubertis and they do not get cap jams from blowback regardless of the load. 30grs FFFg+ 200gr conicals do fine. As for them gumming up: keep in mind the C&B revolver was a giant technological leap from their predecessor, the single shot pistol. Back then they were absolutely thrilled that they could get off SIX SHOTS (as in "six shooter") compared to just one. So there was a 6 fold increase in firepower from a few years before and there was never a thought that they would be used for sustained fire like 30 shots in a row. If someone wanted to shoot more they carried two revolvers (or 3 or 4 if Confederate cavalry) rather than stop and reload. A lot of border ruffians with Colt Navies would carry a large fighting knife as a backup (the Bowie). Enjoy.

Marshal Will Wingam · February 04, 2007, 07:58:47 PM

I have a pair of Uberti '58's that I use as my main match pistols. They fit my hand better than anything else. I have long, narrow fingers. My middle finger touches the trigger guard when I hold them but I haven't felt any bumping or bruising that many pards talk about. I guess if my fingers were shorter, I'd have a knuckle there. I shoot them with conversion cylinders and can't imagine any other pistol pointing the way these do. Go shoot one and decide if they fit your hand properly. You will need to lighten the mainspring some to make them work right.

Steel Horse Bailey · February 04, 2007, 08:11:53 PM

By all means, BUY !!!

Everyone who has already posted has pretty much summed it all up.

Now, go out and get a new toy. Or two. Or ...

Halfway Creek Charlie · February 04, 2007, 09:48:16 PM

I'll expound on this a bit,
I use Olive Oil and Bore Butter for lube, both C & B and Cartridge. I use NO petroleum base cleaners or lubricants and I can shoot my Remy's at least 5 stages before I have to clean the cylinder pin. I use the olive oil as an internal lube and as a wipe down in the bore. and as a cylinder pin lube.
That doesn't mean I don't clean out the cartrdge conversion cylinder between stages though, shooting the outside lubed soft lead bullets,tends to lead the chambers at the cartridge mouth a bit. So I run the sprial wire cleaner thru the chambers between stages so I can load easy. But I don't lube the cylinder pin between stages, and I use Bore Butter as the lube on the bullets too. Just don't drop them in the dirt or you spend all day cleaning the cartridges of sand and dirt!
Black powder just seems to blend with non petroleum lubes, whereas in my experience the Petroleum lubes grab the Bp and gums it up really fast.

Ransom Gaer · February 04, 2007, 10:08:55 PM

Hellgate,

Your comment there about Confederate Cavalry reminded me of a book I have on the 9th Texas Cavalry during the war. I had three cousins in that regiment and three more in the 6th Texas Cavalry which was in the same brigade. Therir brigade was ordered to attack US Grant's supply depot in Holly Springs, MS in December 1862. In the book the author mentioned that the members of the brigade made off with between 4 to 6 revolvers per man. I am sure that would include Remingtons as well as Colts.

Ransom Gaer

hellgate · February 04, 2007, 11:41:13 PM

Sheesh! Just remembered something else. On my two Ubertis, all I had to do to lighten the mainspring was to back the adjustment screw on the front of the grip frame all the way out and then tighten them about 1/2-3/4 turn of contact with the spring. I do not get blowback even with heavy charges. On my previous Piettas and my two Euroarms Remmies the tension adjustment screws did not function to relieve mainspring tension. A very simple answer to heavy spring tension in my Euros was to simply replace the mainspring with a Colt 1860/1851 mainspring. It lays at a flatter angle and makes for a lighter spring pull. You may need to shorten it a bit if it rubs on the back of the hammer. No grinding to narrow the spring; just a little off the tip.

Wolfgang · February 05, 2007, 04:44:41 AM

Having been a shooter all my life ( except for a 20 year break for a carreer during which I fired maybe 12 rounds total and had one pistol in my possession for 10 years without firing the first shot out of it $:-\$ ), . . I picked up a copy of "Guns of the Old West" and found that the old guns we all loved in the 60s-70s and couldn't afford to own / shoot were now replicated, affordable and folks were having a great time in something called "Cowboy Action Shooting". . . WOW. . . Roaming the internet and in need of a single action- black powder pistol to "try it out". . . . I spotted a brass frame Pietta '58 Remington for cheap ( $120). So I ordered it. And loved it from the first minute it was in my hand. Loved it more with the first shot of black powder. I how have another with steel frame and a Armi San Marco that was sold to me by someone who thought it was a Pietta. ( It is fine as an extra, just not interchangable with the Pietta cylinders.) What works good for you, . . is what works good for you. Some find the Uberti grip better for them, others rave about the Euro Arms, . . try some out if ya can, or buy one of whatever is handiest and give it a try, . . my $ .03 if of any worth to ya, . . . . Good shootin', . . . .

ps. . More about my stuff at : www.drburkholter.com/cf4.html

dutchman · February 05, 2007, 09:06:59 AM

Thanks guys.

Tell me about point of aim. With the Colts and the distance we shoot, I really don't "draw a bead" on the target. With cylinder and barrel all being about the same height I usually just site down the barrel to the target (is that understandable?).

How does the Remington compare?

Thanks again
Dutch

Marshal Will Wingam · February 05, 2007, 02:30:59 PM

I posted on your other thread about this.

http://www.cascity.com/forumhall/index.php/topic,13377.msg168654.html#new

Wolfgang · February 05, 2007, 07:50:01 PM

Ya asked:
"Tell me about point of aim. With the Colts and the distance we shoot, I really don't "draw a bead" on the target. With cylinder and barrel all being about the same height I usually just site down the barrel to the target (is that understandable?)."

Ya really gotta get one in yur hand and shoot. One reason I love the Pietta Remingtons is that I just sort of point it in the general direction of the target and shoot very well with it. It just IS the right fit/ feel for me. So it works for me. I hear others say that only Colts work that way for them. It is an idividual thing. Good shootin', . . . .