How much force replacing a wedge?

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If it fits snugly enough with thumb pressure to not loosen during shooting, fine. If the wedge loosens during a shooting session, seat it more firmly with a judicious tap with a mallet. If it still loosens after that, I would fit a new wedge.

In the real world, some wedges are not perfectly fitted.
 
The wedge should draw the arbor tight into the barrel, so a good strong thumb or a slight tap should be about the same. I have a plastic handle screw driver that I tap them with.
 
rdstrain49 said:
damoc is correct, thumb pressure only.
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The Colts instructions say to "drive the wedge in . . . ".

I agree as you can't remove the "slop" (of the arbor fit in the barrel assy) with thumb pressure. Of course, if you have a short arbor, you'll lock the cylinder up. In that case, you can't shoot a Colt copy open top that performs correctly anyway. The open top fires as if it were one piece when set up correctly and will also be the same revolver (dimensionally) each time it is assembled and each time it is fired.

Mike
 
Samuel Colt died in 1862. That would give him roughly 11 years experience with his basic 1851 design. I've been shooting that same design for roughly 55 years. I say thumb pressure.:)
 
restrain,
What you are doing is fine, you can be wrong for a hundred years if you're lucky but that doesn't make the design any different. Just because you've been shooting inferior guns for 55 yrs, only makes you an avid shooter of inferior weapons.
Maybe one day you'll get to experience what Colt really had and hopefully you won't feel "cheated" for the last 55 +yrs.

BTW, that "basic design" was around much longer than 11 yrs.


Mike
 
rdstrain49 said:
Samuel Colt died in 1862. That would give him roughly 11 years experience with his basic 1851 design. I've been shooting that same design for roughly 55 years. I say thumb pressure.:)
Click to expand...

I do the same thing with my 1851 Navy type pistols, but I defer to Goon. If the arbor is properly fitted to the barrel lug recess, the wedge is of hardly any significance other than to keep the barrel secured to the frame, and that is not a small deal.
 
With Piettas, which virtually always have arbors that correctly bottom out in the barrel arbor slot, firm thumb pressure or a gentle tap is all that is necessary. Ubertis of course always suffer from short arbor syndrome and require a metal slug in the barrel arbor hole to take up the excess space and allow the gun to function as a single solid object with no slop.
 
denster said:
With Piettas, which virtually always have arbors that correctly bottom out in the barrel arbor slot, firm thumb pressure or a gentle tap is all that is necessary. Ubertis of course always suffer from short arbor syndrome and require a metal slug in the barrel arbor hole to take up the excess space and allow the gun to function as a single solid object with no slop.
Click to expand...

My experience with Piettas, especially many older ones, say 1993 through early 2000s, is the wedges were mashed in by Guido the Gorilla. Ubertis can also be tight ....but I have an 1861 from @1993 that works well with just finger pressure.
 
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