44/40 rebarrel. Final details before ordering parts

[cal44walker]

Going to rebarrel to 44/40 and just need to try to confirm one last thing. I am not 100% sure if the bolt from a 44/45 caliber will run on the groove machined on the upper roof of the 38 caliber frame. I tried placing a 44 caliber round in the hole drilled for the bolt to travel through and the cartridge rim was too big to fit through. Logic would suggest that the 32 and 38 caliber bolts have a smaller OD than the 44/45 bolts and therefore would not fit the smaller frames without further excessive and unpractical machining. Enlarging the mag following hole is a piece of cake but I've never seen a 44/45 cal bolt and therefore don't know it outside diameter. If someone could measure one for me?

Thanks

Matt

[Pettifogger]

Lower the lever to retract the bolt and then push the carrier down so you can see the bolt head real clear.  On the .32 and .38 you'll see there is a lot of clearance around the sides of the bolt.  The bolts aren't actually round.  They are sort of oval.  If you measure a bolt from top to bottom it's around .500.  This dimension is pretty much the same on all the bolts regardless of caliber.  The large bore bolts measure around .505 wide.  (the hole in the receiver is usually about .510 wide.)  The width on a .38 bolt is about .425.  The .38 bolts are a little narrower, but they both fit the same frame cutout because they are the same height.  A .44-40 rim won't go in the bolt hole in the receiver regardless of whether it is a small or large bore.  You may still find it cheaper and easier to sell your rifle and buy one in the larger caliber.  Right now Uberti parts are hard to come by.  If you go to the VTI website on almost all Uberti parts there is a little red note saying to "Check Stock."  This means they are out but if you log on and establish an account or call they will put you on the waiting list.  I have had some Uberti parts on order for well over a year.

[Montana Slim]

You can easily email VTi to inquire about current stock of parts. They reply promptly.

I received a new-style Uberti bolt "kit" (for my 44-40 1866) recently and installed it last week. This style has the FP retractor. Took a bit of time to assemble/install since they sent me a kit for a 1873 & a bagged extractor for a 1866. So, I had to first remove the 1873 extractor & install the 1866 type. Then I found the hole for the pin was way too small. I polished the hole and lightly tapered on each end until the pin fit nicely.....Plus the usual deburring. About a two hour job start/finish. On the bright side, the leftovers provide a good supply of spares for my other rifles.

Slim