1858 Remington Pietta and Cabela's review and general questions

[The Red Hot Rider]

Wow!! I think I Have just rejoined the legions of the followers of the holy black! My wife purchased an 1858 Remington revolver from Cabela's for me for Christmas. Isn't life much easier when you have a great wife? Yesterday I totally disassembled the gun and cleaned it and loaded it and shot two cylinders through it. I was very impressed at the accuracy of the gun out of the box. I was shooting without support at about 10 yards and making one ragged hole.

Now, after praising the pistol, I have to talk about the starter accessory kit that I also purchased from Cabela's. It is crap! I would not recommend it to anyone. The in line capper broke almost immediately and the nipple wrench wore out not long after.

However, I am very satisfied with the gun. It makes me want to break out my old Thompson muzzleloader and start shooting it again. I think I can see you more cap and ball revolvers in my future. I am thinking about purchasing a colt navy or army maybe for next Christmas.

I do have a question for you guys. What is the best way to clean the inside of the cylinders? I tried swabbing and I also tried a brass brush.

What is the best and appropriate use of bore better? I used it to seal the ends of the chambers after I had loaded a bullet in each one. For cleanup I disassembled the gun and used break free for cleaning and Remington oil for oiling. I have heard that some people apply a liberal coat of bore butter all over the gun. What do you guys use/do.

I loaded this gun with about 23 grains of Pyrodex P in each chamber of the cylinder. This was a very nice load and seemed quite accurate. I am not a person who likes to push the limits of their firearms, but how much do you think could be reasonably applied to this gun if I ever wanted higher velocities from it? In other words, I want to know how much powder can I put in this gun and not risk blowing it apart.

One last question. Is this gun legal for sass matches? I have recently traded some guns and procured a full set of firearms that would be appropriate for sass. I got a hold of two Ruger vaquero's one Rossi M 92 lever action and a century arms double-barreled shotgun. I think it would be fun to sometimes use the cap and ball revolver with one of the Vaqueros in a match instead of using both vaqueros. Is this legal?

Thanks very much in advance for any answers, advice and information you guys can give me.

 

[g.willikers]

I clean mine with soap and water, (grip panels removed) and dry it in the oven at a low temperature.
Compressed air or fast evaporating brake cleaner works, too.
Then oil as usual.

Yes, they are used in Cowboy matches, as they are replicas of the real ones.
But maybe not mixed with smokeless guns.
Different categories.
Your 23 grain load is about perfect for accuracy and fun
I use 25 grains of 777.
They will take up to 35 grains, though, without harm.
Just make sure there's no air gap between powder and ball, per BP usual.
Gooping over the ball is the time honored way to seal and lube the loads, but I prefer wads under the proper size ball.
Less messy and more reliable, especially if it's hot out.
Enjoy your new toy.
Hard to believe that wars were fought with these, isn't it?

 

[kBob]

Red Hot,

I bumped the Remington Club so you could find it easy. Plenty of comments there.

You will need to post a picture of your Remington to "join".

I like mine and it shoots OK. Wife got it for me as an early Christmas gift a couple of years back.

So far mine has only used BP.

Hot soapy water, clean hot as I can get it water, ballistoil.

Straight line cappers do not normally fit these guns without modifications described in a club posting.

Shoot safe and enjoy your new revolver.

-kBob

 

[The Red Hot Rider]

Thanks, gents, for the info so far.

 

[44 Dave]

The SASS group I shoot with doesn't mind when I use one cap and ball pistol with other cartridge guns,as it is seen as a disadvantage. You can't do it the other way, if you are shooting Frontier.
Remington 1858s don't work well with most capers.

 

[NCWanderer]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Remington oil a petroleum based product and therefore shouldn't be used in a black powder revolver.

 

[The Red Hot Rider]

NC,

I used remoil. I will check today and see if it is petroleum based. If it is, I'vegot some cleaning to do. Thanks for pointing that out.

 

[DD4lifeusmc]

cleaning etc

I already gave you my input on another forum.
As I said there, everybody will hve their preferred
loading method, lube and cleaning styles.

enjoy your new Revolver

 

[ivankerley]

depends on how and where ya used the remoil, ive used it for a quick wipedown of the external surface, ie barrel etc nothing internal though never had a problem with anything
id like to use ballistol cept i cant find the stuff locally
gene