'51 Navy - Cabelas Sale

Hard Mouth · September 05, 2009, 02:03:44 PM

Howdy,

If this is "commercially inappropriate", please delete, but I just got one of these yesterday and wanted to pass along a "heads up":

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/pod/horizontal-pod.jsp?_DARGS=/cabelas/en/common/catalog/pod-link.jsp_A&_DAV=MainCatcat20712-cat20817&rid=&indexId=cat20817&navAction=push&masterpathid=&navCount=1&parentType=index&parentId=cat20817&id=0006191

Yes, I know it's nowhere near "correct", but I'm well pleased. Pietta, real pretty, nice action. Oiled grips, not varnished. You'll notice that the pistol without the "Starter Kit" is available for only $50 more!!. Marketing genius here. Also had free shipping (Yes, to Kalifornia !!)

Haven't shot it yet, but will be looking forward to it!! I've been a Rem/ R&S guy, but these open-tops are starting to intrigue me..

Hard Mouth

hellgate · September 05, 2009, 02:42:01 PM

Hey, You're gonna like that little barbecue gun*. I had one several years ago but it did not shoot straight. I had a dovetail front sight installed but sold it anyway. Later on, I heard that Pietta upgraded their quality so I bought another one because I messed it. I just love it.

One point I want to recommend: Fill in that little notch in the bottom of the hammer face and you will have very few cap jams (if any). Piettas have the largest safety notches on their hammers and they grab the spent caps off the nipples after firing and and dump them under the hammer as you cock the gun. There are no safety pins on the back of that cylinder anyway so that notch has no function on your gun. Clean the notch out thoroughly and fill it with JB Weld. Once I made the hammer face smooth on my gun I quit having cap jams and have been able to shoot full 30gr FFFg loads without a problem for CAS matches. Before I would get caps under the hammer and misfires. No nipple replacement needed. My gun was very smooth right out of the box and all I did to make it a good shooter was to deepen the rear sight notch for a more clear sight picture. It will only take the round ball (.454).

You will want to make a "cheater" for the lever. Take a 1-1.5" diameter hardwood dowel (old chair leg, shovel handle, tool handle, etc.) and bore a 1/2" hole into one end about 2" deep. The wood "cheater" is used to slip over the rammer to give you more leverage and spare the palm of your hand. You will need to shape it (bevel the wide end and taper the bored end) for a better fit.

So, there you go with my quick operational manual for the U.S. Marshall .

*barbecue gun= a fancy little hideout gun taken to barbecues inTexas to be shown off and compared to other fancy little guns brought to the barbecue by guests. At least that's what a Texan once told me.

Deadguy · September 05, 2009, 04:25:00 PM

I have two of those, at $239 buy as many as you can afford! You will not regret it! They handle and point very nicely, and seem to be a "step above" the rest of the Pietta line in terms of fit, function, and quality. Mine do have the saftey pin stops between the chambers, odds are, yours will too. I load mine with a DD "Tower O' Power", and I use a 200 grain Lee REAL with 30 grains of BP, and it works real nice with that load. Yeah, there's a little kick, but that's the way guns are supposed to be. Also, about that loading lever. It will bruise your palm if you use it as-is, so either get a loading stand or a tubular extension for it.

Fingers McGee · September 05, 2009, 07:50:11 PM

You're gonna love it - I'll agree that for that price, you need to buy 2.

I have a pair of .44s and one in .36. Even with the short barrels, they're point shooters.

For a loading lever 'cheater bar', I use a 6 inch piece of 1/2 inch ID Tyvek tubing. It's rigid enough to provide sufficient leverage to seat the ball; but soft enough to not mar the loading lever or your hand.

My normal CAS load is 26 gr fffg, lubed wad and .454 round ball.

Hellgate is right. Filling the safety notch in the hammer face with JB Weld will prevent the hammer from pulling expended caps off the nipples and depositing them in the action. Of course, Treso Nipples and #10 Remingtons help too.

FM

hellgate · September 05, 2009, 09:00:08 PM

Dittos to what Fingers said: He was first to mention filling in the
notch on the Wire and the Remington #10 cap works well on my U.S. Marshal However I still have the stock nipples.

Hard Mouth · September 06, 2009, 04:27:19 PM

Howdy Pards,

Thanks for the replies and tips. I'll do the hammer-fill; don't think I'd be using the "safety tits" anyway. Got a spare pack of Treso nips right here. Probably open up the sight-goove a bit, too, once I see where it shoots. Definitely see the need for a cheater. Fingers, what is Tyvek tubing and where in Home Depot will I find it? I do have a loading stand for my Rems that'd work, but I can't see pulling the barrel every reload. My desert shooting buddies with their Glocks and Sigs already think I'm a bit tetched.

As to a second, I admit I'm sorely tempted now that I have it. I have a pair of the "Old Silver" '58 Rems that 'm fond of (push-over fer shiny and scratch-marks), and having a brace of short-barrels could be handy. One beer over at the BBQ tomorrow (no, won't wear it!!) may make the decision...

Fingers McGee · September 06, 2009, 07:41:44 PM

Quote from: Hard Mouth on September 06, 2009, 04:27:19 PMxDefinitely see the need for a cheater. Fingers, what is Tyvek tubing and where in Home Depot will I find it?

I've always called it tyvek tubing cause that's what the guy that gave it to me called it. It's a clear thick walled polymer tubing that is akin to aquarium tubing. I believe it would be in the plumbing dept - or Landscape depy as tubing for a fountain.

FM

john boy · September 06, 2009, 11:52:11 PM

Ditto with the other folks. I bought a pair in 44 when they first came on the market. One serial number sequence (51x) was a poorer quality than another (50x). So, I went to Cabelas and looked at every one they had in stock. Came home with a good one (another 50x) and have the pair that are top shelf quality. Also sent Alesandro Pietta a mail and asked him to have his QC tightened up because they are sweet handling - shooting C&B's. Mine shoot about an inch high at 25 yards and group nicely

HM - your gonna like them

Singing Bear · September 08, 2009, 10:26:45 PM

Why back in the good'ol days.............I guess that's where the really great sale prices are now.
I remember back when Cabela's would have the blued guns on sale for $115 and the brass ones for something like $89.99 or there abouts. The nickel jobbie would be too expensive at around $149.00.

Dalton Masterson · September 09, 2009, 12:08:44 AM

I remember going into the bargain basement and being able to pull guns apart and swap things around. Our Cablelas (Kearney), had a rack in the middle of the room that probably had 30 guns on it or so. No keys, no locks, no nothing. It was great. Then they made more stores and our bargain cave went to heck supplying the rest of the stores.

I havent bought one of those ones yet, but they do feel good in the hand.
DM

Sgt.Jake · September 09, 2009, 07:20:29 AM

When I bought mine in 1994,it was 139.99,still shootin it ,cant ever bear to part with it shoots that well. Adios Sgt.Jake

Hard Mouth · September 14, 2009, 02:24:46 AM

Hay, pards,
Thanks for your advice and encouragement! Just noticed something else, though, while fondling it (still no opportunity to shoot..). The trigger's way offset to the left! I have only one other Colt clone, a '51 of unknown manufacture, circa 1972, and it's trigger is slightly left, never before noticed. What's the story?? Is this Original? Was there a reason? This Colt design stuff just keeps getting wierder.... Are other Colts like this?

Ace Lungger · September 14, 2009, 06:45:00 AM

They were not that cheap last year when I bought mine

Got took again!
ACE

Fingers McGee · September 14, 2009, 11:38:09 AM

Quote from: Hard Mouth on September 14, 2009, 02:24:46 AM
Hay, pards,
Thanks for your advice and encouragement! Just noticed something else, though, while fondling it (still no opportunity to shoot..). The trigger's way offset to the left! I have only one other Colt clone, a '51 of unknown manufacture, circa 1972, and it's trigger is slightly left, never before noticed. What's the story?? Is this Original? Was there a reason? This Colt design stuff just keeps getting wierder.... Are other Colts like this?

That's normal. The trigger and bolt have to fit in the channel on the underside of the frame, one goes on the right, and one goes on the left.

Pettifogger · September 14, 2009, 08:49:24 PM

"This Colt design stuff just keeps getting wierder...."

The Colt design has been basically the same since 1836. It isn't getting "weirder," in fact since it basically set the pattern for all modern revolvers it is anything but weird.

Mako · September 15, 2009, 11:44:25 AM

Quote from: Pettifogger on September 14, 2009, 08:49:24 PM
"This Colt design stuff just keeps getting wierder...."

The Colt design has been basically the same since 1836. It isn't getting "weirder," in fact since it basically set the pattern for all modern revolvers it is anything but weird.

True...

Jethro "Black Jack" Harris · September 24, 2009, 10:33:22 AM

Howdy, Pards,
Well, I ordered one of these puppies. It arrived two days early. First thing I noticed was the oil all over the gun, but that's a good thing. Then the hammer was hard to pull. Again, no biggy since it's a new gun. But, the cylinder was binding. There's no gap between the cylinder and barrel. Took only a light tap with a small rubber mallet to loosen the wedge so I could remove the barrel. Had to muscle the thing off. The big hole in the barrel that receives the cylinder pin was too small, and the two little holes on the barrel housing that receive the small pins on the frame were out of alignment. Barely got it back together. Had to pound on the barrel with that rubber mallet. Needless to say, it's winging it's way back to Cabela's.

Just my experience.

JBJH

Dalton Masterson · September 24, 2009, 11:09:51 AM

Sounds like the way all of mine fit. They get better as you use them. Sounds also like a gorilla put the wedge in, which binded your cylinder. I would have kept it if the action was timed good.
Hope your next one is good.
DM

Jethro "Black Jack" Harris · September 24, 2009, 01:15:10 PM

Quote from: Dalton Masterson on September 24, 2009, 11:09:51 AM
Sounds like the way all of mine fit. They get better as you use them.

Dalton,
That's interesting. I can expect stiffness in a new gun, but the cylinder binding worries me. So, in your experience, will the binding loosen up? Like I say, I can't see a gap between the cylinder and the barrel. And having to be a gorilla to get the barrel off the gun and back on again is "normal" for a new Pietta Colt? Also, I forgot to mention that the ramming lever sticks when I try to release it and is hard to push down. If these are things that will work out in time, I may keep the gun. (After reading your post, I retrieved the package before UPS arrived to pick it up.)

Thanks,
JBJH

Dalton Masterson · September 24, 2009, 01:29:19 PM

Well, the barrel to cylinder gap is set using that wedge. The further it gets pushed in, the tighter the barrel goes. Pettifogger has a ton of ways to tune them up, and make them darn near perfect, but I have just been shooting mine as is, other than some polishing.
Are you just pulling on the barrel to remove it? Put the gun at half cock, and lower the loading lever down to remove it, and see if that helps. Use the lever to remove the barrel.

The loading lever screw may be a little bit overtightened, which may bind the lever.

The hammer pull should be hard, but smooth. The hammer should not be so light that it allows the cap to blow back into the action. I do lighten my springs a little bit, but they are no where near as light as my centerfire guns.

A little bit of tuning is almost always needed on the ones I have bought (14 or 15 now).
I will let others comment on improvements other than simple polishing of parts.
DM