Quality of current Italian clones, SAA & 1851 Navy; best distributors

[el chango pistolero]

Howdy.    I 'm new to CAS, so don't yet know enough to have anything useful to say, but I do have a lot of questions to ask of you experts, regarding choosing Italian Colt clones.

I've been reading all the old postings here in the Gun Reviews section, and learning a lot from you folks; but I haven't yet found answers to some specific questions, like:

1) Would you recommend Pietta's 1851 Navy replica?    I have an Uberti 1860 Army, and it's gorgeous.    If any of you are familiar with both, how would you compare Pietta with Uberti?    I'm really interested in the fit and finish, the cosmetics; but also, of course, in how well the working parts were finished, how close the tolerances, how well the guns work.     I've read that Uberti had quality control problems in the past, but their current stuff looks great; is Pietta's current stuff as good?

2) My bigger interest is SAA clones.    I have lots of Rugers, bp included, and they're great, but they'll never look "right".     So I got a Mod.P from Cimarron, and love it.    Beautiful fit and finish, and works perfectly.    Anyhow, it seems perfect to me.    I've only run about 400 rounds through it, and aside from having to file down the front sight, everything seemed to be in perfect condition, as is, out of the box, unmodified.     But I keep reading in posts here that the clones all need some gunsmithing.    Since I haven't had a gunsmith tune up the gun, should I expect mechanical problems eventually?     Would it make sense to keep on shooting the unmodified gun until I have problems, and then send it to a gunsmith for an action job?     And, the biggest question of all:     Who should I send it to?     Can any of you recommend good gunsmiths, people who are familiar with SAAs?     Any idea what a basic "tuning", or "action job" (whatever that means) should cost?     I live in Hercules, California (which is why I came up with my really unsatisfactory handle), the place where the Hercules Powder Company used to make its dynamite and black powder.    But this is the San Francisco Bay Area, things have changed a bit, and there's no way I'll find a decent gunsmith here.

3) Well, I've got a few hundred more questions, but this post is already way too long, so I'll wait and try the patience of you good folks again later.     But...one more?     Anyone here familiar with EMF's Great Western II?    I read a review by David Chicoine that makes it sound like the best of the Italians.    Is it really?    The current version is made by Pietta.     And are the people at EMF good people to deal with?

Apologies for making this so long.    I've had a lot of questions for a long time, and it's great to finally find people who are as interested in these guns as I am, and a lot more knowledgable.

Best,

Glenn
   

[St. George]

Look both here and in the 'Gunsmithing' Forum, for other comments on clones and such.

Both will have some valuable information for you.

As to 'needing' an action job - or anything else - all any of them 'need' is a thorough cleaning and a proper lubricant - after they've been detail-stripped and checked for high spots or evidence of burring.

Stone those away, clean and lube - and you're pretty much 'set'.

Many 'action jobs' just involve spring replacement - and if you can detail-strip the piece on your own - you can do that pretty easily.

The only real complaint on Italian-made guns is the 'softness' of some springs and screws.

Those are easily replaceable - and Brownell's or VTI are good places to get spares.

If you're really curious about the inner workings of Nineteenth Century firearms - get a copy of Dave Chicoine's 'Gunsmithing Guns of the Old West'.

I see it at Barnes & Noble's from time to time, and it's money well-spent.

As to your alias - remember - in those days, folks often gave their boys heroic names from the Bible and from Mythology that embodied a 'spirit' that they hoped their sons would rise to, and yours is a good name - reflecting those times.

Find yourself a nice watch fob from the Hercules Powder Company and wear it.

Then find an extra, and let me know...

Good Luck.

Vaya,

Scouts Out!

[el chango pistolero]

Many thanks, St. George.     I've read over everything in this section...spent a whole Sunday doing it...and have learned a lot.     I still wouldn't mind a few specific comments on Pietta 1851s, Pietta-made Great Western IIs, and anything at all on Cimarron Thunderers, especially the 3.5" version.

And thanks for putting my mind at ease on that "action job" thing.     I have read Chicoine's Gunsmithing Guns of the Old West, as well as Jerry Kuhnhausen's shop manual on Colt single actions.    With all that, I should know everything by now, but I'm not as mechanically-gifted as many of you folk seem to be, and all I can do is read the stuff over and over again, and then perform the operation very slowly and carefully.    So long as I do easy things, sloooowly, it usually works out okay.     Anything that involves a file is not, for me, easy.

"Stoning":     does that involve an emery stone (if there is such a thing)?     Is stoning just really fine filing?

Thanks for the comment on my handle.     I don't feel especially Herculean, but at least the name does relate to something which I've really done...move to Hercules.

Thanks a lot, St. George.

Best,

Glenn

[boot strap jack]

hey HG,  stoning is using a knife type sharping stone to polish the ruff surfaces. I use a very fine cut stone, remove a little and try the feel.

[St. George]

De nada...

'Stoning' is done with a Hard Arkansas stone - or something pretty similar - so think of it more like 'burnishing'.

'Filing' is what it is - the removal of metal.

As to your own abilities - the best advice I can give you - beyond the fact that you 'can' do it - is to GO SLOW.

Think about your work before you tackle it - and as soon as you've stoned a surface as needed to smooth things up - stop stoning, since there's such a thing as 'too much' - and good gunsmithing takes time and patience.

If you've read Chicoine's and Kuhnhausen's works - you have a very good idea of what you need to do.

Brownell's offers a free 'Cowboy Action' catalog - www.brownells.com - so get a copy, and you'll see what they suggest in the way of tools.

Before you 'do' anything, though - shoot your Model P another few hundred rounds and then see if it really needs anything beyond a good cleaning and lubricant.

It may not need anything at all.

Remember too, that a Colt clone will feel quite a bit different from a Ruger - both in balance and in overall feel - so compare apples to apples when you're deciding if anything's truly needed.

Again, Good Luck.

vaya,

Scouts Out!

[el chango pistolero]

Again, thanks to boot strap jack and St. George.    I've just dug out my copy of Brownells cowboy action catalog, gonna either find that Arkansas Stone in there, or phone them tomorrow.

I will give my Model P a few hundred more rounds, a few thousand more, and hope it doesn't need anything more complicated than a bolt/trigger spring replacement.    If it does, though, need something more:    jack and George, can you recommend a good gunsmith, someone who really knows SAAs?

Off to find the magic stone...

Best,

Glenn

[St. George]

Sorry - no.

I do my own work and have for a long time - but I'm sure someone will recommend an experienced 'smith.

Like I'd said - this is all stuff that you can do - so long as you have the books, the tools and most importantly - the patience.

Vaya,

Scouts Out!

[el chango pistolero]

Again, thanks, St. George.     Since my last post, I found sets of Arkansas Stones at Brownell, will order when they open tomorrow.     I'd still really like to get a recommendation for a good SAA gunsmith, so if any of you have any suggestions, I'd very much like to hear them.     Read them.

Thanks.

Glenn