Pietta 1851 Wedge Removal

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ClemBert

New member
So as an engineer I have to ask this question....what kind of :mad::mad: jack azz :mad::mad: designs a firearm to use a wedge to hold a barrel onto a frame?...oh yeah, that'd be Samuel Colt. Sammy must have gone to the same school as those guys who design cars where you have to remove one of the motor mounts and jack the car engine up to remove the oil filter.

Okay, next question. Anyone have any suggestions for removing said wedge out of a Pietta 1851 Navy revolver? So I turned a copper penny on is side and held it with a pair of plyers on the right side of the wedge and beat on it until the copper penny was destroyed. Wedge didn't even budge. The wedge is sitting almost flush on the right hand side. Maybe I just need to shoot the crap outta it one day with the largest charges I can fit in the cylinder...maybe that'll loosen things up.

So far I'm a big fan of the Remington 1858 and the ROA. Sammy can bite me on the azz for now. :eek:
 
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ClemBert

New member
Did you leave out the part where I'm supposed to wait until a full moon then stand on my head and bark while beating on the penny? :p

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Hawg

New member
Did you leave out the part where I'm supposed to wait until a full moon then stand on my head and bark while beating on the penny?
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Dang, I knew I was forgetting something.:p I figured it was a zinc penny you were using. Might try heating it in boiling water first or get a brass punch. If you're careful and have a piece of scrap leather you might try a steel punch. Wedges are pretty tight in a new gun. However the more they're removed the easier it gets.
 
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madcratebuilder

New member
So I turned a copper penny on is side and held it with a pair of plyers on the right side of the wedge and beat on it until the copper penny was destroyed.
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Copper penny=incorrect tool.


You need to use a 1/8 inch brass punch and a 12-14 oz ball peen hammer. Support the revolver on the left side between two pieces of wood(2X4). Give it a good whack. Using a penny is trying to impact all the energy in to a very small area, that's why it bends. A 1/8 inch punch is .125 inch, most 51 wedges are .135-.140 inch. By using a brass punch you well not damage the surface of the gun or wedge.
 
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arcticap

New member
I recently removed a really tight 1860 wedge by wacking it with a large, cheap rubber mallet. Using a lot of force it finally moved, then I used some wood to punch it out the rest of the way.
The last owner must have forced it in too far and it was deformed.
 
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ClemBert

New member
Yeah, it shouldn't have to take a brass punch (something I don't have) to remove the wedge. A penny should work fine if it weren't for that big Italian gorilla at the Pietta factory.
 
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jcowan

New member
My favorite wedge removal tool is chopsticks. I cut them in half and have 2 rectangular punches and 2 round punches with rectangular tops. Most chinese restaurants have cheap soft wood chopsticks but the sushi place a few miles away has the good hard wood ones. I use the rectangular punch for the wedge. Sometimes if it is really stuck the punch will flatten out on the end, but I like sushi so I have an unlimited free supply.
 
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madcratebuilder

New member
Using a copper penny on a wedge is akin to using a pair of pliers to tighten a hex head bolt. If it works for you, go for it:)
I hope your not using an old Craftsman screwdriver to loosen screws.


My favorite wedge removal tool is chopsticks.
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I use them for seating caps, I'll have to try one on a tight wedge next time I'm in the field.
 
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Hawg

New member
Using a copper penny on a wedge is akin to using a pair of pliers to tighten a hex head bolt. If it works for you, go for it
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I know it's not proper but it usually works when folks have problems getting a wedge out. Like I said before everybody has a penny laying around. Not everybody has a brass punch when they need one.


I hope your not using an old Craftsman screwdriver to loosen screws.
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Course not, I've got a Swiss Army knife.:D:p:rolleyes:
 
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ClemBert

New member
So...I should use a brass punch huh? Well I don't have one and I looked at Ace Hardware, Home Depot, Lowes, AutoZone, etc. for one. No one carries one. Yeah, I can order one online but then I have to wait 7 to 9 business days for it to show up. I know...I'll just make one.

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This is going to be a 50 cent version of a brass punch made from a 3" #14 solid brass screw.

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I'll just take a file and file the end of that baby down to 1/8th inch.

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Check it out...this is gonna work great. It has a huge head to hit it with. Even I can't miss this sucker with a hammer. And, instead a a knurled area to hold it with the remaining screw threads make it easy to grip. That wedge is gonna scream "uncle" when I introduce it to my new brass punch.

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:mad: NOT!!!!!! :mad:

Argh!!! Does anyone have any dynamite laying around???? I know...I'll call 911 and ask them if I can borrow their "Jaws of Life".

p.s. Mr. Colt you can still bite my azz...as can you Mr. Pietta gorilla man.

SCORE: Gorilla 2 ClemBert 0
 
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crstrode

New member
Brass rod from the hardware store.

Most any hardware store has plain brass rod.

Very handy stuff for C&B revolvers.

I have a short one- about 2-inches long that I use exclusively for tapping out the wedges.

Yes, Guido the Wedge Killer still works at the Pietta factory. Last revolver I bought new in the box took several whacks with a ball peen hammer and my short 1/8 inch diameter brass rod.

Madecratebuilder is correct a brass punch will work every time.

I also keep a 9-inch long piece of the rod in my field kit. Great as a patch pusher and a ball poker-outer.

A smaller diameter rod is great for poking balls outta the cylinder now and then.
 
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ClemBert

New member
My home made brass punch is actually a lot heavier duty than a 1/8th inch brass rod. See the pic...the tip on that thing is 1/8th inch (0.125). The place where it bent is 0.200 inches. Your 1/8th rod would have given out much sooner than mine.
 
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ClemBert

New member
Okay...now time to break out the heavy artillery, the Jaws of Life. Well, maybe not the Jaws of Life but a big azz vice. Yeah, that's the ticket. We are going to show that wedge who is boss. We are going to press on that sucker till it bleeds and screams "uncle".

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First we cut a 6" chunk of 2x4 and drill a hole where the left side of the wedge protrudes.

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Ah, a perfect fit. Plenty of room for that wedge to slide out without touching the vice.

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Now this time we aren't gonna play paddy cake. We are serious about showing that wedge we rule. This time we take the upper 0.850 portion of that brass screw where the neck has a 1/4" thickness to it.

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Then with a file we angle the end so we have a nice wide flat area with thickness of 1/8th inch.

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Time for assembling "The Wedge Killer". Wood block with wedge hole on left. 1851 in the middle. Then the new heavy duty punch on the right side. All sitting nicely in position in the vice.

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A view from the bottom. Anyone care to wager who wins this battle? ClemBert or the Gorilla?
 
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