CVA 1851 Navy .44

[Swandog]

I built mine from a kit back in the 80's and have never shot it. I'd like to now and the manual says use .454" balls. My lgs has .457" balls and the the owner said they would work and be safe. I'm checking in here for other opinions before I load it up.

 

[Kansas Jake]

.457 balls should be fine. They will shave a little more lead when loaded and maybe be slightly harder to load, but that will be the only change you will notice.

 

[drobs]

+1 to what Kansas Jake said - a .457 round ball will work just fine. Is you CVA 1851 a brass frame or steel frame?

If brass, I'd limit the powder charge to about 20gr.

If steel, I prefer a 30gr load of FFFg. Mostly because that is what my powder flask throws. Remington #10 caps should work.

I like a wool felt wad between the ball and powder and will add a dollop of T/C Bore Butter on top of the wad before pressing the ball down. This keeps the lube going down the barrel vs all over the outside of the gun. If you don't have wads - lube on top of the ball works just fine but = more mess.

I also find a little Bore Butter on the arbor (cylinder pin) keeps my Pietta Colts running longer.

 

[Swandog]

It's brass framed and the manual says 20ffg is a good place to start so I'll follow that guideline. I have wonder wads and a Maxie Ball lube which should be OK. What I don't have are #10 caps but plenty of #11's Will they work? I've never seen #10 around my neck of the woods.

 

[Kansas Jake]

Try the #11s. Depending on the nipples and the brand of caps they may be fine. I've pinched caps a bit to use on a revolver in the past, but many here think that may lead to a possible chain fire of other cylinders. I don't recommend it regularly, but have done it in a pinch. How's that for a bad pun.

 

[Swandog]

I'll check the fit and pinch if I have to. That pun was too easy! lol I built the gun over 30 years ago and can't wait any longer. Oh, and I meant I have fffg not ffg Goex so it looks like I'm all set. Thanks guys.

 

[drobs]

Cabelas carries Remington #10 caps but they are kind of spendy.
I bought 5000 Remington #10's from Mid South Shooter Supply for $278.33 delivered. They work perfectly on my 6 Pietta C&B revolvers plus my Lyman Great Plains rifle. Something to keep in mind for down the line.

For clean up - water works best. Can take the barrel off and run it under the faucet in the kitchen. I usually step outside and use the garden hose. I follow that with normal gun oil / gun cleaning for storage.


I bought my 1st C&B revolver in 2001 with a conversion cylinder. I didn't shoot it with pyrodex till 2014. I was instantly hooked. Tons of smokey good fun!

One last tip - aim low. Depending on the size of the target you are shooting at, a 6 o'clock hold will get them near the center. They shoot high.

 

[Swandog]

I've been reading here about cylinder gap and what is acceptable. Most advise .002 thru .006. My 1851 Navy is .020" and that's what the manual says is fine. What can I expect with such a large gap? Sorry about the poor quality photos.

 

[hawkeye2]

.020" is far too large, I would consider .010" about max for a fun gun/plinker and if I were halfway serious about the gun I would want the gap to be even smaller than that. It's quite safe with the gap you have provided you don't have any body parts in line with the gap. It may have some affect on accuracy however accuracy is dependent on far more than the barrel/cylinder gap and that includes your skills too. Fouling will build up faster affecting the cylinder's turning and making the gun hard to cock but that's easy to deal with. I have an abused (not by me) Euroarms Remington with a .010" gap and it shoots quite well (Disclaimer, I know we aren't susposed to talk about conversion cylinders but I include this as an example of a large gap) I dropped a Uberti conversion cylinder in it as an experiment and ended up with a .014" gap and no noticable loss of accuracy.

 

[Swandog]

I spent a couple hours shooting today and had a ton of fun with this Colt Navy 1851 kit build . I got brave enough to load 5 cylinders after loading single for a while. It shoots high for sure at 7 yards but consistent. Jammed once with a spent primer but remembered to hold it vertical when cocking and no problems after that. I think I'm hooked. My steel range is out in the field and I've got to plow a path out to it for some more shooting at 25 yards instead of futzing around next to the garage on paper.

I'm already looking at Pietta 1860 Colt Army and the 1858 Remington but not sure which I want next. The CVA 1851 has a tiny grip in my XL long fingered hand so the 1860 Colt might be better than the 1858 Remington as far as that goes. I sure like the look of the Colt.

 

[hawkeye2]

My Pietta '51 and my Pietta Remington, both of which were made in recent years have nearly the same size grip and trigger guard clearance. My Pietta '60s have a much larger, mostly longer, grip with the same trigger guard clearance. The 60 does however feel quite different in my hand, possibly the way I grip it. If you are serious about shooting it takes less work to make an accurate gun out of a Remington but they don't approach the Colt for looks or pointing. If you want a fun gun and can live with their issues, not a big deal, the Colt is the way to go.

 

[drobs]

I spent a couple hours shooting today and had a ton of fun with this Colt Navy 1851 kit build . I got brave enough to load 5 cylinders after loading single for a while. It shoots high for sure at 7 yards but consistent. Jammed once with a spent primer but remembered to hold it vertical when cocking and no problems after that. I think I'm hooked. My steel range is out in the field and I've got to plow a path out to it for some more shooting at 25 yards instead of futzing around next to the garage on paper.

I'm already looking at Pietta 1860 Colt Army and the 1858 Remington but not sure which I want next. The CVA 1851 has a tiny grip in my XL long fingered hand so the 1860 Colt might be better than the 1858 Remington as far as that goes. I sure like the look of the Colt.

Good to hear.
Regarding picking up another revolver, you know you need to get both. Just depends on which is bought 1st. Go for steel frames this time around. You can really cram some powder in the chambers.

 

[azmntman]

For plinking fun my favorite is my 1849 .31. Not a heck of alot or power but it's a HOOT to take can and pinecone hunting! And youngsters and women LOVE it (I watch closely when I take my daughter in law, she wants it bad LOL). VERY small grips tho.

When I hunt and carry I take my ROA most the time but also like the pietta 1858 12" "buntline". Both are accurate and powerfull. I NEED another 1851 tho.

 

[Swandog]

OK, problem solved, I'll get both and at the prices for these guns it's not critical to clear it with my wife! I just brought home a Marlin lever 1894 in .44mag so I've got to cool it until after Christmas, unless an insane sale shows up.

 

[Eutycus]

I bought a ASM 1851 Navy several years ago. Have yet to shoot it. Brass frame, 44 caliber. Are the specs. About the same as a CVA? Like bore size, 10 or 11 nipple size etc. Bought this used and have no manual to go with this revolver. Oh and are these CVA kits still on the market?

 

[Swandog]

No, CVA kits are long gone. Pietta have kits at Dixie Gun Works though. I use #11 caps and 20grs fffg Goex BP.

 

[Eutycus]

Are you thinking the 11's would fit the ASM? I was planning on more like an 18grs. Of pyrodex.

 

[Swandog]

Yes the 11 will fit but might not be ideal. You may have to squeeze them a little to hold on. Start with loading one cylinder and see how it goes.

 

[Eutycus]

I'm talking factory nipples, I think. They look it.

 

[Eutycus]

The nipples seem to have been put on this cylinder by a 800 pound gorilla. It took me several months to get them off. Lots of penetrating oil and several home made nipple wrenchs. You can bet they will be greased before going back on the cylinder.They appear to be factory nipples though.