1851 Uberti - hammer binding

[dwildemn]

New .36 which I disassembled look more closely at inner workings. Taking apart went fine but when trying to reassemble I noticed it was very difficult to slide the hammer back in place - even trickier with the hand spring attached. When I do get it installed it binds at the base of the frame (bottom of the hammer) - there is no spring back to the hammer - when the hammer alone is screwed in place it moves freely! I'm new at this but it looks like I need to get rid of some material on the frame to eliminate the binding problem. Tool to use? I tried 320 w/d and it seemed to help a little but am thinking of something to remove the steel faster. Metal file to much? Thanks for any advice you can give

 

[tscmmhk]

I had the same problem with my Uberti 1851 .36 cal Navy London Model. You are correct in your assumption of removing metal from the inside of the frame near the bottom of the hammer. Take a close look at the metal surface on the inside of the frame and see if has a lot of uneven machining marks. Mine was not smooth so I used a medium grit stone and fine grit stone to smooth the metal surface. It took a little work but now the action is smooth as silk. Make sure you don't take too much metal. You want to take just enough to make it operate smooth.

 

[dwildemn]

Thanks, mine is a London too (coincidence?) - did you use India stones? Gun is almost new so am contacting Taylor to see if it is a warranty matter - not optimistic but worth a try. Glad to know the solution is not that complicated.

 

[tscmmhk]

I bought mine from Taylor's last year......Another coincidence. If I had to do it over, I probably would have call Taylors and asked what they would do for me. They're supposed to have great customer service. BTW--I used small polishing stones from Brownells. If I remember right they are made of carborundum.
Good luck on your Uberti Navy.

 

[4v50 Gary]

If there are burrs that are causing the problem, try some needle files. Go slow and test often. Changes to the frame are permanent and you don't want to ruin it.

 

[45 Dragoon]

Yep, what Gary said.
Stones will get a groove in them when you use them. Then (since progress is slow) you will want to be more aggressive and end up going too far. Files will stay flat and that is why I dont use stones for any gun work.

Mike

 

[Driftwood Johnson]

Howdy

Back up the bus for a minute. Was it binding before you took it apart? If not, then you may have not got it back together again just right. Another thought. Try backing off on the hammer screw just a tad and see if that helps. Sometimes tightening the hammer screw a tad too much with these pulls the cheeks together too much and the hammer binds.

 

[Old Fuff]

I second this suggestion.

Before you start filing consider that if it worked before it should still be working. If you assemble the hammer only and it cycles as it should then the binding you experienced is probably being caused by something else. Two possibilities are the hand (including the spring and plunger) and transfer bar.

 

[dwildemn]

Thanks for the suggestions. It was binding before I took it apart but I didn't noticel - with the mainspring in place it works fine - maybe that's all I need. The hammer screw is only finger tight so that's not the problem. I hammer and hand spring won't slide into place without being forced - I had removed a little material with 320 w/d backed by a 1/2" file so there is less friction now than there was - hammer still does not move freely as it does w/o the handspring installed. Maybe that's as good as it gets. Anyway, I did a little work on the hand with a needle file and 320 w/d and that seems to have really helped. If I get a stone I will give it a final polish but it's reassembled and seems to work well. Ready for the range - unfortunately it's still mostly flooded and we had 4" last night!

 

[tscmmhk]

You might notice that when you shoot it the hammer will bind up after shooting a couple cylinders. That's what mine did and at first it wasn't obvious where it was binding. At first I thought it was binding up where the back strap screws into the frame. It was after I tightened the back strap screws that the hammer actually bound up so bad I couldn't hardly move it. I guess I accepted that as typical Italian BP percussion revolver quality. Long story short as I mentioned before, I used a stone (I know I should have used a small file) to smooth the internal frame surface especially where the bolt leg rubs. That fixed my problem. Also I failed to mention that my Uberti also the typical Uberti short arbor. A couple small washers fixed that problem. You might check yours because it seems to be fairly common on Uberti Colt pattern revolvers.

Have fun.

 

[44 Dave]

I use lay-out blue or magic marker to find where things bind.
Also polish the slot where the hand spring runs.
There are quite a few "tune ups" that can be done, but these .36 '51s are the BEST shooting guns ever!
Have fun