Needin info Colt (Sorta) Lightning....

[Paladin UK]

Needin info Colt (Sorta) Lightning....

Ho pards, I see that Uberti are now offering the lightning in  .45LC.  I also see that Pedersoli are offering their version of the lightning too  

Sooooo, my questions are...

1. Do either/both/neither slam fire
2. Which is the most accurate copy
3. Which do you feel is the most relaible

Paladin (What`s savin his pennies like mad!!  ) UK

[Pettifogger]

I'm a glutton for punishment so over the years I have accumulated nine Lightnings looking for one that works reliably enough to use as a main match gun at major matches.  The most accurate and best built is the USFA.  However, finding any Lightning that follows the original Colt design and works reliably at speed is an "iffy" proposition.  They can be made to work, but somethings it takes a lot of time and then they just flat aren't as durable as some other designs.  The most reliable in my opinion is the Pedersoli.  Looks like a Lightning on the outside.  However, Pedersoli has actually made some changes on the inside that really help with reliability.  I'm playing around with one right now.  It is the first Lightning that worked well right out of the box.  I took it apart tonight and it is an interesting gun.  I'll give it an action job and smooth up a few parts and see how it holds up the next few months.  I have some other brands that have had hours and hours of reworking the internal parts that are now reliable and fast.  However, if you are not a gun tinkerer and do not have a lot of experience with Lightnings I would get a Pedersoli.  The Pedersoli will not slam fire, but that feature is basically not that useful anyway.  If you are shooting CAS and have to aim at the targets slam fire isn't any benefit.  If you just want to blast off a bunch of rounds into the berm, it can be a little fun, but no big deal.

[Paladin UK]

Fer Pettifogger........

Thanks for the info pard, I didn't see any mention of the Uberti, (Or is that AKA the USFA)....

I really like the Pedersoli but again its horrendously expensive here in the UK    and the Uberti would come in at about $180.00-$200.00 cheaper!!

Regardin  Slam fire I occasionally just for kicks, do it with my original 16g #97 it aint no big deal, but Hey its FUN!!! It would not be my reason for passing up on a gun!!

I like ta `tinker`!! I make my primer powered nipples, and have slicked up ALL my Toys!!  Includin my #92 Which I gotta tell ya its as slick as snot!!

Paladin (What preciates all yer info on this  ) UK

[Pettifogger]

The early Uberti advertisements all touted the fact that they had sacraficed "speed" for reliability.  Lots of people reported they didn't have either, i.e., speed or reliability.  I have read that Uberti changed the design but haven't taken a new one apart.  Not sure if it slam fires or not.  The only person I know that shoots one really fast has many, many hours of custom work on it.  One thing I did notice on the new ones is that they don't have a slide lock.  I suspect they put that feature in so you can pump the gun and eject the live rounds.  On an original Colt you have to manually drop the hammer between each round if you want to empty the magazine.  If your finger slipped -- BOOM!  The Pedersoli also has a device to allow emptying the magazine without having to drop the hammer.

[Pettifogger]

Here's a post I put on another wire.  Maybe this will help a bit.

I love Lightnings, have nine of them. They work to varying degrees depending on their mood on a particular day. Being a glutton for punishment, I decided to round out my collection with a Pedersoli as it is the only one I had not tried. It actually worked out of the box! Pedersoli usually makes very well constructed firearms and this one is no exception. The exterior metal and wood were excellent. Pedersoli's advertising says they have made improvements on the original Colt design. The gun needed an action job, so I pulled it apart last night to have a look at its innards. It is indeed different on the inside. Without going into a lot of detail, the Colt design basically operates like a teeter totter. This teeter totter goes up and down and regulates the release of the cartridges from the magazine onto the elevator. This is where 90% of all problems with Lightnings occur, the most notable problem being rounds released under the elevator and jamming the rifle. Hopefully, the picture I am trying to attach works OK. On the top is the magazine stop and hammer from a Colt. On the bottom is the Pedersoli. As is obvious from the picture, the Pedersoli splits the magazine stop (the teeter totter) in two. On the Colt hammer at the bottom is a round pin. This pin moves when the hammer is cocked and allows the magazine stop to move up and down. On the Pedersoli there is a much beefier pie shaped piece of steel on the end of the hammer. The Pedersoli modification seems to work real well. The only thing I don't like is the Pedersoli has a trigger disconnector. On the Colt, the tip of the trigger sets directly into the hammer full cock notch just like a Single Action Army. On the Pedersoli there is an additional piece between the trigger an hammer. It is a little balky and I was shooting faster than the disconnector could work. But, while I have it apart I will fix that problem.