Pioneer Gun Works Coil Mainspring Conversion Kit for Uberti 73

Pappy Myles · October 29, 2010, 04:12:58 PM

Anyone use one of these things. I've seen them advertised and was wondering about them.

Coffinmaker · October 30, 2010, 09:13:28 AM

Yes. I have one in my match .38 '66. It works very well. I put it in as an experiment to see if it was as good as a reground "tuned" spring. It is, if you don't have the capability to reduce a stock spring. Expensive.

Coffinmaker

Pappy Myles · October 30, 2010, 10:50:00 AM

Yeah I agree, 150 smackeronies.......But I'm pretty much at the stage that I have no more room in my 2 gun safes for new toys, and I do budget myself for toys each year, so I figures I'd experiment too with improvements and those extra gadgets.

Thanks for the info, much of a problem getting it put in the rifle?

WaddWatsonEllis · October 30, 2010, 03:53:12 PM

Pappy,

Just as a comparison, for $250 you could get the whole gun slicked by Cody Conagher ....

Pappy Myles · October 30, 2010, 05:05:01 PM

Thanks WWE, I'll certainly think about that......I pretty much have all the souped up parts. Thats and I'm up here in Canada on assignment for the next year and its a real pain getting them shooting irons across the boarder. Its do able, but a lot of nonsence.

WaddWatsonEllis · October 31, 2010, 03:27:06 AM

I understand only too well ...

When EAA stopped carrying Baikal, I ended up with a bastard stepchild shotgun ... I needed two seers ... probably several dollars worth of minute parts ... but by the time I got them through Canadian customs, it was quite expensive and timely ... took almost a month to recieve those two parts ....

Then I shipped them, a cashier's check and things last July to Steve's Gunz to have the gun repaired and slicked ... he said he planned to work on them in September ... I just sent him and email (which he has yet to reply to) politely asking what he found ....

So I do understand ...

Coffinmaker · October 31, 2010, 10:46:29 AM

There is a huge difference in what Cody Conagher does and what you can accomplish with a good short stroke kit and action work.

Coffinmaker

Montana Slim · November 01, 2010, 12:00:29 AM

I like my Uberti 1866 rifle & carbine just the way they are.....Bought the rifle new & did nothing but shoot it...13+ years & about 20,000 rounds of BP so far & it works great. The Carbine came to be used & had an "action" job...don't know who, but I spent some time undoing some of the mods and replaced a few of the parts that had been "whittled" on...yes, it works much better now.

I see folks ejecting live rounds out of their rifles/carbines at every SASS match I attend...Some are misfires due to light springs, some just from under-strokig/hesitate/stroke. After years of study I can say that 99% of the them are using SS guns and/or highly "tuned" firearms...coincidently, I've NEVER ejected a live round, nor had a misfire though my long-guns (excepting the time I installed a primer backwards). I can't recall seeing a live round ejected at an NCOWS match either...hum.

But it doo keep some folks occupied with their time & $$....so, it can't be all bad, right?

Regards,
Slim

Pappy Myles · November 02, 2010, 12:26:09 PM

Good advice.

The only time I actually had any issues with a rifle was when I was using a Winchester 94 traper and 45 scholfield. Bolt kept over riding the top of the round and not feeding.

Guess what rifle stays in my safe now?

Pettifogger · November 08, 2010, 02:47:12 PM

Saying a stock gun is better than a short-stroked rifle is about like saying I've never had an accident with my Yugo but those NASCAR guys are crashing all the time. If you just want to shoot, stock is fine. If you want to race, the gun can use mods for both reliability and speed.

Montana Slim · November 13, 2010, 08:38:23 AM

Quote from: Pettifogger on November 08, 2010, 02:47:12 PM
Saying a stock gun is better than a short-stroked rifle is about like saying I've never had an accident with my Yugo but those NASCAR guys are crashing all the time. If you just want to shoot, stock is fine. If you want to race, the gun can use mods for both reliability and speed.

Most "race" folks don't shoot original cartridges, either...the oriiginal WCF rounds feed/function more relaibly as well

All firearms design & features represent a trade-off...in the case of "race" mods....a small portion of reliability is traded for other benefits.

Ejecting a round or other malady is a minor inconvenience to the speediest, they can eject several rounds, reload, or just take a miss (or six) & still come out overall....but, that is not my definition of reliability.

Regards,
Slim

Pettifogger · November 13, 2010, 05:25:22 PM

"Ejecting a round or other malady is a minor inconvenience to the speediest, they can eject several rounds, reload, or just take a miss (or six) & still come out overall....but, that is not my definition of reliability."

Ejecting live rounds has nothing to do with "reliability." That is an operator error issue.

Montana Slim · November 13, 2010, 09:34:15 PM

Quote from: Pettifogger on November 13, 2010, 05:25:22 PM
"Ejecting a round or other malady is a minor inconvenience to the speediest, they can eject several rounds, reload, or just take a miss (or six) & still come out overall....but, that is not my definition of reliability."

Ejecting live rounds has nothing to do with "reliability." That is an operator error issue.

Maybe...or maybe not....how can you be 100% sure, either way. I see lots of ejected rounds..some with primer hits, many without.... I've examined/disected a number of them... a few have no powder, others two bullets, bulged cases...the list would be lengthy. Light hits that don't go off could be attributed to weapon, ammunitiion component or operator error...but by any description it didn't go bang. Overall, the system reliablity has gone down (operator-in-the-loop). If the operator is not trying to operate the weapon, then it's reliability is either 100% or 0%...depending on one's perspective.

Coffinmaker · November 14, 2010, 07:52:43 PM

Ah Slim, .......... what's yer point?? You perfect?? Or sumpthin??

Coffinmaker

WaddWatsonEllis · November 14, 2010, 10:37:47 PM

Just an update ... I had mentioned that I had sent a Baikal SXS to Steves's Gunz ,, so I thought iI ahould let the troup know the present standing ...

It is getting pretty near December and situation on the Bakal I sent to Streve's Gunz is remarkably quiet.

The work was supposed to be done in september (I sent the shotugun to him in July).

I have sent him several emails asking about the situation as nicely as I could.

I have yet to have a voicemail, email or PM on cascity.com ...

I would not suggest ever sending a gun to him until I get this straighttened out ...

Pappy Myles · December 01, 2010, 11:43:50 AM

Well, got my kit and the instructions. The instructions seam straight foreward with lots of good pictures. Have my screw drivers, punches, and Dremil tool ready. Gonna try to install that in my 73 this weekend.

I'll let you know how it turned out

Pappy Myles · December 06, 2010, 10:49:51 AM

My adventures in a uberti 73............Got the rifle all apart, I put in a coiled safety spring that it desperately needed. Seamed like I had to have a death grip on the lever and the stock to pull the trigger.......... As I was trying to tap out the hammer sturp pen to take the hammer sturp out, tht darn pin just won't budge. Gonna drop the hammer off at a smiths shop here in town to see if'n he can have a go at it. 1st time I've had the rifle taken apart that far. I've fitted in slip spring kit and an aluminum elevator too. Once I get the hammer back, I'll continue to with the main spring conversion

Pappy Myles · December 16, 2010, 11:34:26 AM

The continuing saga.

Had a gunsmith punch out the toggle pin. Polished up the hammer like the instructions said. Used my dremil tool to carve out a recess in the stock. Got it all together. And then the action wouldnt work. Pulled it all apart and fount out I needed to grind off some of the tang on the back of the hammer thats was binding on the spring strut.

Man, what a difference in action and trigger. Very smooth. Plus, I've learned a lot about the 73 action. Threw a couple of dummy shells in to work the action. Looks like I need some more gringing on the hammer. At full open level, the bolt is not quit all the way into the frame. About 1/16 to 1 /32 more to go. I kinda figured at full level, the bolt will be all the way in and the firing pen should be produding to help out on the ejection. A little more grinding on the hammer is in order

Pappy Myles · December 19, 2010, 05:40:17 PM

OK completely finished with the '73 project. What a difference those two springs make!!!!!!!!!

Pappy Myles · February 07, 2011, 01:31:35 PM

Finally got the rifle out to the range. Very nice and smooth trigger. only thing I did notice was a little gritty feeling while cocking.
SO, took it abart one more time, cleaned her up. and took a dremil tool, felt pad, and some valve grinding compound. suber fine grit and went in after the back of the hammer where the cam bering rotates against. Cleaned her up, back to the range, and tis very slick.

I like!