1000+ rounds through my 51 Navy Colt

[Old Dragoon]

I handled one today! it was a Pietta 44 Navy rebated cylinder engraved, army type round bbl but a '51 type rammer. had the Army gripframe. I could have bought it for $150.00 but I had questions that it didn't seem quite right to me. I knew there never was a real 44 Navy Colt, this one had a steel frame. I just couldn't make it work in my mind exactly what it was. all the numbers matched and all the proofs and maker marks were in front of the TG at bbl and frame juncture and I read FAP in stylized letters on it. I offered $125.00 for it but he didn't want to budge.
I didn't want to invest too much into it as I didn't know for sure what it was.

Only other thing there was a second gen Colt 51 Navy silver plated brass frame but something didn't ring true with that one either. it looked like some of the blue was coming off the cylinder and it looked like potmetal under. Supposedly made in 1960 in the original box. I didn't know Colt made a brass silverplated frame. red flag went up and I walked away from it.

 

[mec]

The Piettas have more literature on the sides of the barrel than Ubertis but they also have nicer looking case color on the frame. Sometimes the Uberti cyanide treatment is nice other times, it doens't quite amount to a good counterfeit of bone-charcoal treatment.

I pulled out a couple mine, degreased then heated them a bit over a flame. Applied a small amount of browning solution. This worked pretty good, The underlying mottle and colors are still there but the frames are considerably darker.

 

[James K]

A 51 Navy Colt should go thousands of rounds without any breakage, and thousands have. The repros are another story. If you want to eliminate breakage, find a good smith who knows how to tune a SA Colt, feathering the springs to prevent breakage and make the gun smooth as glass.

Jim

 

[mec]

"The reason I was a little disappointed over the springs breaking in my Colt is that I never had to replace one spring in my two Remington's in all these years. I have an idea in my head for replacing the Bolt spring on these Colts. I'll let you know if it works or not...."

Up until very recently the prescription for imported Single Action Army revolvers was to replace the Hammer, trigger and lock parts with "domestic parts." This information is still on Hamilton Bowen's web site applied even to the USFA revolvers that were still using some imported parts at that time. Since then, USFA has been getting their lock parts and springs made in the United States and they are considered very high quality. Still, the occasional trigger/bolt spring or hand spring lets go. Freedom Arms is also noted for fine action parts but some local guys have broken multiple trigger bolt springs, hand springs and even one mainspring.

Bowen has said that the Colt Single Action does suffer from all the ills attributed to it but adds that within its orignal expected service life- which he recons at about 3,000 rounds, the fragile parts and springs were not that much of an issue. When they became enthusiast/hobby guns all that changed. He sees an important part of extending the life of the revolvers to be lightening the springs where necessary.

Broken springs and worn or broken lockwork have been a reality from the beginning. In October 1847, John Coffey Hays signed for 214 Walker Colt Revolvers. Included in the shipment were 8 sets of lockwork, 8 sets of cones (nipples) and 22 sets of extra springs- The Colt/Whitneyville Walker Pistol, Lt. Col. Robert D. Whitting III.

 

[Remington kid]

Mec. It took me a while to smooth up the works on my Remington's but the biggest thing I noticed that may have caused problems in the future was that the hammer and frame around the hammer slot was way to soft. It didn't take long until they started to peen right at the frame and hammer shoulders. After I smoothed them up a little and did some some case hardening on that section of the frame and the hammer they have held up very well.
The other problem if you want to call it that was all the nipples including the extras that I ordered with the Rems had a ridge right at the mouth. I had to chamfer or bevel the edges slightly by placing each one in a drill press and holding a file on the ridge and polishing the nipple with light water paper and 000 steel wool. Never had to touch them again and all is great with both Revolvers. At least for now, Hope they stay that way, Mike