1861 cva colt kit

[jalex1941]

Hey guys, my father bought this pistol as a kit 20 years ago and gave it to while he was cleaning out the attic. So after several weeks of working on it I have finally finished all the wood work, and bluing (except for several screws). Just assembled the pistol and really enjoying it hope to go shoot it this weekend. Note: I forgot to take before pictures because of the excitement :/.

 

[Hellgate]

You did a good job on it. I use 15grs FFFg + a LEE 130 gr conical or 20 grs + lube wad+.375 or .380 ball or I use 23grs + .375/.380 ball and over ball lube w/o the lube wad in my '61 Navy.

 

[BowerR64]

Yeah that looks like a nice gun!

Ive been using a level scoop from a .40 S&W shell of tripple 7 3F or a level scoop from a .45 ACP shell with 2F tripple 7

You can get almost everything you need to shoot it from walmart. This all the stuff i got from my walmart.

Im not shooting the pyrodex right now but it would work if you couldnt find any place else to get black powder stuff.

The winchester percussion caps are a tad big for most of my guns but ive used about half the tun by pinching them a little so they dont slip off.

Only thing walmart doesnt have is the round balls.

You did a good job on it. I use 15grs FFFg + a LEE 130 gr conical or 20 grs + lube wad+.375 or .380 ball or I use 23grs + .375/.380 ball and over ball lube w/o the lube wad in my '61 Navy.

How can you tell what caliber his gun is? It looks like a .44

 

[kituwa]

Looks good but your gun has timeing issues,from the look of the bolt notches on the cylinder. Also hold the gun up to the light and make sure the barrel is seated all the way against the frame where the two pins line up, from your pics it looks like it may not be.

 

[kituwa]

http://www.theopenrange.net/articles/Tuning_the_Pietta_Part_One.pdf

http://www.theopenrange.net/articles/Tuning_the_Pietta_Part_Two.pdf

 

[jalex1941]

Thanks for the link Kituwa, I wasn't sure why the cylinder was getting those marks on it, definitely going to fix that.

 

[BowerR64]

The cylinder must be really soft, i cant believe its all peened up already.

You must be working the action alot

 

[J-Bar]

"How can you tell what caliber his gun is? It looks like a .44 "

A .44 would have a rebated cylinder and a corresponding notch in the water table. This cylinder is the same diameter all along its length, and the water table is straight. Therefore, you would expect it to be a .36 caliber.

 

[J-Bar]

Cylinders and water tables

Photos of .36 versus .44 cylinders and water tables:

 

[BowerR64]

Photos of .36 versus .44 cylinders and water tables:

AHHH i see it, i have 2 colts each in both calibers and i do see the difference. Also in your photos.

Good eye

My .36 looks slightly smaller also. The barrel is about an inch shorter and the grip is about an inch shorter. It just looks slightly smaller but his doesnt for some reason.

I like the .44s better but the .36 is a little cheaper to shoot. They shoot less powder and you can use reloading buckshot for shotgun shells and get a way better deal on the balls for them. Something like $50. for 900 .380 balls is a steal of a deal.

 

[ironageman]

A .44 would have a rebated cylinder and a corresponding notch in the water table.

J-Bar, I have not heard the term "water table" before in regards to guns. Will you please explain it to me?
Thank you,
Steve

 

[J-Bar]

J-Bar, I have not heard the term "water table" before in regards to guns. Will you please explain it to me?
Thank you,
Steve

Man I wish I could!!

I comes up ever so often when nomenclature is discussed and to my knowledge no one has ever been able to adequately explain its origin. I have a suspicion it dates back to the days when there were cannons on sailing ships and the carriage upon which the cannon was placed had to be above the water line of course, but that is just my guess.

I most recently saw the term in "Shotguns and Shooting" by Michael McIntosh. Chapter 6 of the book is devoted to identifying the parts of a side by side double barreled shotgun in detail. I quote:

"The flat top surface of the action bar is called the action flats in England. We sometimes use the same term, but more often we call this the water table, why I don't know. An English friend suggested a possibility: When the action of a side-by-side gun is properly fitted the barrel flats and action flats don't actually touch, and the few thousandths-inch gap between them is enough to collect and hold water on a rainy day. This makes as much sense as any explanation I've heard, but I have a notion water table is one of those terms that will forever remain a mystery."

So when an expert like McIntosh can't explain it, I don't have a chance!

But I have seen the term used to denote the part of the frame directly under the cylinder, and that's why I used it in my previous post. I know it has been used in other posts in this forum...you could do a search for them.

Now you have a bit of trivia with which to amaze your friends!

 

[kituwa]

Follow the instructions in those links. It requires taking the gun apart and putting it back together many times to get it right, but when you are done the gun will no longer feel like a toy. It will be slick as a wistle and even sound different when you cock it. Then get it shooting to point of aim and then its time to work up a load that you like. After you are done you will know the gun inside and out. Most of them are very accurate when you get them tuned up. The down side is,,,you will want more of them.