Smart answers to silly questions? Pietta '58

[switchkid0]

I am the proud new owner of a gently used Pietta Remmy in .36. As I was familiarizing myself with it's mysteries, a few questions came to mind.
As such,

Do all Piettas come with weighted grips? I have coils of lead embedded in the wood, and coils resting loosely in between them.

Are BP barrels commonly un-crowned? This one is as square-cut as can be.

I've heard of folks using coins to replace the front sight. Do most silver solder them, or do they mount them with a dovetail?

Thanks in advance for any answers, smart or otherwise.

 

[Tommygunn]

I have no idea why there would be "coils of lead" imbedded in the grips of any gun. I have serveral Piettas (two are Remmies) and none have that. Maybe a prior owner did it for some reason.
As to muzzles; all BP revolvers I have are squared off.
I have heard of people using coins for front sights when the factory sight breaks. I will leave it to others to answer how they are attached.

 

[Hobie]

Your Remington should have a dovetailed front sight. If you wish to replace it with a penny front sight you could find a vintage penny (for "character"), remove the sight, file the post to a flat and then slot the post. The penny could be pinned and silversoldered to the post, reinstalled and then filed to zero. Adjust the process as necessary to work with any undisclosed previous alterations.

A previous owner added the lead to the gun to increase weight to change the balance and/or reduce recoil. Not a factory option.

 

[O.S.O.K.]

answers

As mentioned, the previous owner(s) added the lead to the grips - the muzzle is normal.

Pietta's do not have dovetailed front sights - Uberti's do.

If I wanted to change the front sight, I would have a gunsmith cut a dovetail and order a Uberti replacement - that would result in the best of all front sight arrangements IMHO. That would be an easy and inexpensive thing to have done - dovetailing on a flat like that is a piece of cake for a good smithy.