considering a walker

[TheBigAR2003]

not a complete newb to bp but still pretty green. also my first post!
considering an uberti .44 walker. have always wanted one and the guys in the thr walker club have my boiling jealous. it has always been my favorite pistol and would buy one for sentimental value if nothing else.
ive read reviews saying that people use .451, .454, and .457 balls for it. i have a 1858 remington that shoots .454 so i will probably stick with those for money and confusion sake.
what kind of loads would you use for general target. i know it will take 50-60 grains but if you dont want to burn your whole can of powder in one day how much would you normally use? also what load or what fixes work for keeping the loading lever up? ive heard rawhide straps, rubber bands, tape, decreasing the powder load, but what really works? also what size cap fits best. any help or suggestions would be great
thanks guys

 

[mykeal]

The proper size ball will be determined by the chamber mouth. If the .454 leaves a complete ring of shaved lead when the ball is rammed home, then that's what you should use. If it's too difficult to load, and the .451 leaves a good ring, then use that. If the .454 doesn't leave a good ring, then move up to the .457.

The Walker does quite well with 35 gr, but I get the best performance with .45 gr. You'll need to try different loads to see what your gun likes best.

The only 'fix' to the loading lever is to modify the catch. It needs to be filed just a bit to get the lip to match the lip on the lever.

Cap size is a crap shoot. Whatever size someone else may have found to work may not work on your gun, as there is no standard defining cap or nipple sizes (No. 11 means something different to every manufacturer). Caps are $4.00/100 give or take, so you may have to invest $20 to find out what size/brand is best.

 

[scrat]

40-45 grains. Does very well. HOWEVER that very BIG low tone BANG when shooting 55 grains is so awesome. Especially when everyone stops to see what you are shooting.

 

[PRM]

Got to agree with both Mykeal and Scrat - I have a Signature Series Walker - she really likes 40 grains FFG. I have no problem with the loading lever with this charge and it is one of the most accurate C&Bs I own.

Glad your thinking about joining the ranks - Walker owners are a separate breed.

 

[Peter M. Eick]

I love my Walker. I use about 50 to 55 grns most of the time. Much less and I ask why shoot a Walker. Much more and it is full. I also started out the Walker. It is an easy gun to learn on.

 

[madcratebuilder]

There was been some nice Uberti Walkers on Gunbroker lately, around the $300 area. They are powder eating, fire belching monsters. Imagine one hundred and sixty years ago if you had never seen a revolver before. You first encounter with a Walker would make it seem like the squad automatic weapon of it's day.

 

[husker]

iv shot a lot of BP revolvers navy's and new armys. but never the walker. my ? is= how strong is the recoil. my 44 new army feels alot like a ruger black hawk in 38 cal. i love my new army. but i sure like the looks of the walker and the bigger the boom and smoke the more i like it

 

[scrat]

What recoil. reallly what recoil. Your talking about a revolver that weights close to 5 lbs. at almost 16 inches long with that kind of massive ness its not a big deal on recoil. i almost think my 51 navies have a harder kick than the walker. With that much size and weight your problem is going to be holding it steady with out getting tired to quick. almost seems as though you need to always use two hands. Then once you pull the trigger it seems as though the gun never moves. as your still trying to keep it steady.

 

[Snaggletooth]

A Walker dont kick. Its just an old friend grabbing your hand.

 

[husker]

i just watched 6 clips on utube of the walker. the ram rods dropped every time they pulled the trigger. didnt like that aspect of the walker. theirs got to be something you can do to fix that?

 

[scrat]

There is but why. It was designed like that and the originals made in 1847 all did that when loading heavy loads. Now some quick fixes are to file a bigger groove in the loading lever. this usually does the trick. However back in the days men would cut a small piece of leather and slip it around the barrel and over the loading lever. kinda like a leather loop. That also worked. Now what i do is just remove the screw and take off the loading lever. as its just for loading and when im at the range i dont need it falling down. So off goes 1 screw and the loading lever is removed and there i go shooting.