1873 Uberti Problem

8905c · July 02, 2011, 06:41:36 PM

I am new to this forum and originally posted this in the incorrect area.

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1873 Uberti Problem?
« on: Today at 12:58:46 pm »

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I have a Uberti 1873 and have shot about 200 rounds through the gun. I really like it. Today, while cleaning the gun (empty of course), it was in the full cock position and my left wrist happened to bump the hammer. The gun went off of the full cock position to the half cock position. My finger was no where near the trigger. Is this a problem?
8905c

Bugscuffle · July 02, 2011, 09:49:16 PM

Have a good gunsmith check it out and ask him to pay special attention to the sear/hammer mating. is this gun new or has it been "previously tinkered with"? A lot of people that don't know what they are doing will go in and start filing on the sear and hammer notch thinking that they are going to "lighten" the trigger pull. It don't work quite like that. You can take out a little creep in a trigger if you do it carefully, but the angles of the sear and hammer notch along with the depth and polish on those surfaces are CRITICAL to a good trigger pull. The weight of the trigger pull are just as, or more, affected by the trigger spring and the hammer spring.

8905c · July 03, 2011, 05:00:58 AM

Bugscuffle -
Yes, I bought the gun new and have fired maybe 200 rounds through it. The gun has never been disassembled or tampered with. I enjoy shooting it, but became concerned when this incident occurred.
Thanks for responding to my post and providing your good advice.
8905c

joec · July 03, 2011, 09:11:51 AM

Quote from: 8905c on July 03, 2011, 05:00:58 AM
Bugscuffle -
Yes, I bought the gun new and have fired maybe 200 rounds through it. The gun has never been disassembled or tampered with. I enjoy shooting it, but became concerned when this incident occurred.
Thanks for responding to my post and providing your good advice.
8905c

In that case, if you have had the gun less than 1 year you might call Stoeger Industries about sending it to the customer service department. They will send a label to mail the gun back generally but include a breaf written discription of the problem. I had one new I had a problem with with some factory ammo and got it back in 10 buisness days repaired perfectly.

Pettifogger · July 04, 2011, 04:35:40 PM

Before you go calling and mailing stuff off to customer service have you put it back together and tried it out? Chances are you bumped something and don't even realize it.

joec · July 04, 2011, 06:58:35 PM

Quote from: Pettifogger on July 04, 2011, 04:35:40 PM
Before you go calling and mailing stuff off to customer service have you put it back together and tried it out? Chances are you bumped something and don't even realize it.

Perhaps you should read again what 8905c posted. He stated the following:

Quote from: 8905c on July 03, 2011, 05:00:58 AM
Bugscuffle -
Yes, I bought the gun new and have fired maybe 200 rounds through it. The gun has never been disassembled or tampered with. I enjoy shooting it, but became concerned when this incident occurred.
Thanks for responding to my post and providing your good advice.
8905c

So what does he need to put together and test. As he also stated he has put about 200 rounds through the gun.

Pettifogger · July 04, 2011, 09:37:17 PM

I was reading his first post and he mentioned "while cleaning the gun (empty of course)" and I erroneously thought he meant it was apart for cleaning or at least the cylinder removed. Same answer, however, if the trigger pull is at least three pounds and the clicks are crisp there is little likelihood something is wrong. When you are cleaning a gun with the hammer at full cock it is real easy for it to bounce off. If it is extremely light then he should take it apart and inspect the parts. While anything is possible, it isn't likely a gun with only 200 rounds through it has "worn" unless there was a complete failure during the heat treating process or the tip of the trigger is chipped or broken.

Fox Creek Kid · July 04, 2011, 10:26:27 PM

Is this about an Uberti '73 RIFLE or a '73 SAA clone? I assumed it was a rifle. More clarity, please.

Coffinmaker · July 05, 2011, 10:12:30 AM

Yep, a little more information on what kink of "73" were talking about. There have been many instances where guns have left the Uberti factory (rifles and handguns) without the correct bevel on the trigger sear. Usually "rounded" over which results in an unsafe trigger.
Gun needs to be completely disassembled and the angles and dangles inspected. Trigger sear angle is critical. The hammer, on reassembly, must pass the "pull hammer forward real hard" test.
If the gun is fairly "new" the importer owes you warranty work. If older than a year, you may need need the services of a competent gun plumber to fix the trigger sear.

Coffinmaker

8905c · July 05, 2011, 06:04:18 PM

It is an 1873 Cattleman SAA.

My reference to cleaning is taking out the cylinder and cleaning each chamber and cleaning the barrel.

By the way, a friend of mine who works on guns some looked (looked only - no disassembly) at the gun yesterday. He feels that I haven't been placing the gun in full cock with enough force. He tried it several times - cocking the gun with more force and the hammer stayed in full cock position even when he pushed forward on the hammer. He thinks the sear was not going into the full cock notch completely, when the hammer was gently cocked. So far, it hasn't failed when I cock the hammer with more force.

What do you think?

8905c

Pettifogger · July 05, 2011, 07:10:37 PM

I think you should follow the suggestions I gave you in the first place. Put it together and shoot it. As I said, cleaning a gun with the hammer at full cock it is easy to bump it and drop the hammer.

Montana Slim · July 09, 2011, 02:20:00 PM

If thats all that happened, count yourself lucky.....

The only time this happened to me was with my exceptionally nice 1873 ASM. But, when the hammer dropped to 1/2 cock, it broke the tip of the notch off the hammer. I have deepened the remaining notch slightly enabling the revolver to be used safely. I'll have to find someone to TIG weld & recut the hammer someday.

On your revolver, I recommend disassembly, cleaning and trueing-up the hammer full cock notch & trigger.
I go completely through any new revolver of mine to cleanup all the sharp edges and the hammer/trigger contact points.

Slim

8905c · July 09, 2011, 05:57:39 PM

Thanks to all who have replied with much good advice.

Yesterday, I took the gun out to shoot. Shooting factory ammo, the second round snapped. I opened the gate to see if the primer was dented, thinking it could have been a hard primer. The primer didn't have a mark on it at all. Upon closer inspection, I could see that bolt is not coming up through the bottom of the frame and locking the cylinder in position, when it should. Apparently, on the second round, the cylinder had drifted out of position for the hammer to strike the primer.
I took the gun back to the dealer where I purchased it and it is on it's way to Uberti.
I am puzzled, I have another Cattleman that I have shot quite a bit, with no problems at all.
Has anyone else had this experience with the Uberti SAA?
8905c

Abilene · July 09, 2011, 11:03:48 PM

Sounds like the trigger/bolt spring is broken. This is not at all unusual with Uberti guns with that particular spring. It is very easy to replace, but since it is already on its way to Uberti I guess they will do it. I always put aftermarket spring kits in my guns. The lighter main spring to make it feel better with a lighter action, and the trigger/bolt spring to make it more reliable.