Current quality of the Italian makers

[mkabe]

I have an SP101 .357 I would never part with it. It will outlast me.

I took my SP-101 to one (and only one) Church security training class once. I usually use my Glock G30S 45 acp or my 40 S&W G23. Let me tell you the report from that high pressure 327 Fed. shook the room. I’d think your 357 would as well.
Worse, we were practicing firing from contact distance, where the aggressor is in contact with your body or very very close. We were to pull or strong hand arm back close to our body (hip) and fire. Humph, BAD idea with a revolver. The barrel/cylinder gap side discharge bloodied my weak hand forearm which was holding the aggressor off. No metal shavings just the force of hot gas.
I shot very well with it otherwise and could complete the drills with it being six shots.

 

[gunpa]

I was looking at Midway's site yesterday and the new army Remington I bought in 2017 for $329.00 is over $400.00. Mine is built well so they must be even better now! 75 bucks worth anyway.

 

[Stantheman86]

just before the covid mess started, I bought a single shot percussion pistol at my LGS. $10.

My best deal there was a TC "Hawken" for $80. Great bore but trigger was wonky. $10 at the gunsmith and it was GTG.

Lots of gunshops/dealers won't mess with used BP stuff. Makes for great deals.

My coworker is offering me a clapped out brasser for free . Whenever he remembers to bring it to work which may be never. I'm honestly not even motivated to get a most likely inoperable Brasser but free is free.

In my entire adult life so far of going to gun shows, I've seen at least one used and abused older Brasser at every show , prices are all over the place but I feel like if I offered them 50 bucks they'd probably just take it. In reality, he probably gave some guy a couple boxes of 9mm for it at his shop. And now it haunts his table, and no one is looking for beat up brass frame percussion revolvers for any kind of actual $. I make a little game of it, like, ok there's the prerequisite trashed .44 Brasser , I've seen it.

I often wonder how many Colt and Remington brassers were made by the various Italian gunmakers over the past 50+ years. It has to be over 500,000. Who knows. It seems like they're everywhere. Like Zoli Zouaves. They must have cranked those things out like the Russians cranked out Mosins in 1942 because I feel like I've never not seen a thrashed Zoli Zouave at any given gun show.

People beat on these guns, gave them to kids to pop caps with and they got used hard. Then they get found in basements and garages , after uncle Roy goes into the home and basically given away.

 

[fireman1]

I think they cranked out a ton of Zouaves and brassers to take advantage of the CW and AWI 100/200 anniversaries. Yes I know they had ziltch to do with AWI but it was still a throwback gun.

 

[Stantheman86]

I think they cranked out a ton of Zouaves and brassers to take advantage of the CW and AWI 100/200 anniversaries. Yes I know they had ziltch to do with AWI but it was still a throwback gun.

That's what I heard, they wanted to cash in on our Civil War centennial and the Bicentennial, and the Zouave was an easy rifle to copy because minty originals were easily found. It seems like every single person with any interest in guns had a brass frame Navy stashed somewhere. It seems like yesterday they were 99 bucks at Cabelas. Today's 99 buck brasser is the 250 buck Brasser apparently.

They were both pretty cheap back then,I think even in "adjusted dollars " because things hadn't gone nutty yet with gun prices or Italian imports .

I have a Sears Roebuck marked Zoli Zouave in my closet that I haven't even fired yet. I got it off GunBroker for like $300 or something like that about 6 months ago . I figured I might as well have one.

 

[Stantheman86]

An example of people paying for niche gun stuff is unfolding on EBay right now, a Pietta shoulder stock is about to crack $500.

I know they were $350 originally, and that's fine, but someone is willing to pay for what they want. If anyone thinks people don't have deep pockets to throw at muzzleloader stuff, start watching the online auctions. $550 will buy you a new Remington 1858 Carbine......you get a stock, and a gun with it. This stock will probably go for more than a Uberti revolving carbine.

Revolver stocks were never popular , and a lot of people don't like them but watch this stock go for over $1000

 

[nick_1]

I would love a Pietta stock for my Bison. 12" of BBl is a bit hard to hold steady off hand. it might actually be a useful piece with a stock. My fear is that the length of pull will be too short making that setup essentially useless.

 

[Stantheman86]

I would love a Pietta stock for my Bison. 12" of BBl is a bit hard to hold steady off hand. it might actually be a useful piece with a stock. My fear is that the length of pull will be too short making that setup essentially useless.

I have a Pietta "Buntline " 12" .44 and they don't even bother to cut the grip for a stock anymore

I had wanted to swap the grip frame from an older Pietta to the Buntline, I thought it would make a cool little Carbine with a stock but it's not an idea that's $5-600 cool. I bought the 1858 Carbine instead

 

[CaptainVane]

I wish this thread was still going as I see a lot of posts from new guys buying since March, including me, and like to hear new owner’s thoughts.
After reading all these posts back in spring, I decided to buy Uberti - only - all 3 of mine and no regrets. Fit, finish, all perfect. No brassers, steel for me, and no plastic grips. When i read that about Pietta it was a never getting those.

 

[springfield art]

The Zouave replicas varied a lot in quality; the parts were made by shops in the Gardone Valley, and assembled by various shops; sometimes the stocks would be poor quality, etc. The one I have now is the best of 3 or 4 I've had over the years.

 

[nick_1]

I would never get plastic grips but I have two Pietta 1858s and both are excellent. My 8 inch I messed up the front sight by grinding it down too far so yesterday I replaced the front sight, very carefully ground it down to correct elevation then worked on the windage and was quite happy with the results. Took about 3 cylinders too get it dialed at 30yrds . Not a single Miss fire or Cap jam. Rang some steel with the fourth cylinder. Hit a 5" plate first shot at 20yrds and a 5"x6" rectangle at 50 yards. Six inch circle at 40 yards. I am used to set triggers so neither one of my piettas are great in the trigger department. Going to eventually get a trigger job.

 

[CaptainVane]

Nick, re trigger. My Uberti Navy trigger almost a hair trigger from factory. I have let others at range shoot it and all are surprised how touchy it is. I like it. Its as close to the set trigger on my TC Hawken as i would want.

 

[nick_1]

You got lucky.