Ready made 58 conversion guns

[Corn Kobb Calhoun]

I see both Cim. and Taylor have 58 rems converted over to 45 colt. I need some insight to the difference between these and a gun with a convert. cylinder. Already have a 58 cap and ball love shootin it. Wife has thrown down her model P's and has taken my smokewagons. Was thinkin bout tryin a brace of these out. Any info or thoughts ..........CKC

[Flint]

The factory 58 conversions employ a forged frame, and is slightly larger to allow a 6 shot cylinder with parallel chambers.  The cast frame cap & ball parts are not interchangable as far as cylinders, and perhaps other parts.

A Kirst or R&D conversion cylinder for the cap & ball revolver is sized to fit the cast frame revolver.  It requires the shooter's installation and loading port cutting, etc., if it is not the drop-in version.

If you want to install a Kirst or R&D cylinder in your cap & ball, the port you cut will not interfere with the use as a cap & ball gun should you swap cylinders, but will make the gun a "firearm" as you altered the frame to accept the conversion, making it inelligable for resale.  This is not true if you use a drop-in.

A drop-in, at least in a Remington, is faster to load and unload than a gated conversion, but that is not an issue in CAS shooting unless there is a reload on the clock, in that case, loading one round would be faster with thgated version, but a full reload faster with a drop-in.

An out-of-the-box conversion is certainly less expensive than buying both a cap & ball gun and a conversion cylinder, so much might depend upon whether you already own the cap & ball guns and want to add the versatility.  The factory conversions (all made by Uberti) were originally announced to include a cap & ball cylinder, but none have appeared that way, and I don't know that they are offering a cap & balll cylinder to fit the conversion, as the cast-frame cylinder won't fit.  If they are offering a forged frame cap & ball, that would probably fit, unless there is an issue with the hammer and firing pin.

[Indian Outlaw]

The new (since 2007) Uberti cap & ball Remingtons have forged frames. The Kirst "Konverters," according to Jay Strite at Ravens Roost Custom, will work in these guns but may rattle "slightly" in the frame, due to a larger cylinder window. They line up with the bore however. He can tighten the cylinder in the gun if you send it to him. He welds two small feet to the bottom of the backplate and fits it to your gun. I have one on order and will judge the fit before I make a decision on whether I should send it to him or leave as is.

[Hoof Hearted]

I see both Cim. and Taylor have 58 rems converted over to 45 colt. I need some insight to the difference between these and a gun with a convert. cylinder. Already have a 58 cap and ball love shootin it. Wife has thrown down her model P's and has taken my smokewagons. Was thinkin bout tryin a brace of these out. Any info or thoughts ..........CKC

The Cimmaron and the Taylors pistols are both made by Uberti and as Flint has replied are slightly "upsized" for the allowance of six .45 shells.

One confusing point here is that converting your cap and ball pistol to centre fire does not make it "inelligible" to sell. It merely makes it a firearm when as before (cap and ball) by federal definition, it was not. All firearm laws then apply.

Both the R&D and the Kirst conversions can be used as "drop in". The Kirst allows you the ability to port the frame and then use the gated back plate as you are used to doing with most single action pistols. Kirst also makes ejectors.

Really the differences are:

#1 Buy and shoot........the factory conversions
     Buy and modify....... the others

#2 FFL
     No FFL

Good luck on ya!

HH

[Flint]

The difference between the drop-in and the ported version of the cap & ball conversion as to elligibility for resale is the cutting of the loading port into the frame.  If the frame of a cap & ball revolver is modified to accommodate the gated style cylinder, it becomes a "firearm", even if the percussion cylinder is reinstalled.

If the frame is not modified, but a drop-in cyinder is installed, the revolver remains as exempt from firearm status and can be resold.  I have seen some gunshops sell converted revolvers as "firearms" and register them as such, but it would seem simpler to me to have reinstalled the cap & ball cylinder and sold the parts separately.