CVA Remington cap and ball

[Rich427sw]

Hi, I have a Remington cap and ball revolver that I got from a friend. It is a little rusty and missing parts. The only markings on it are Connecticut Valley. Will Pietta or Uberti parts fit this?
The cylinder will not rotate and it looks like the hand is broken where it comes through the frame. The hand is basically flush with the frame. It also is missing all the nipples and the pin that holds in the latch for the ram. Thank you

 

[William Lincoln]

Cannibalized revolver. You should find a manufacturer's seal.
Even on many CVA imports the original maker's seal can
be found somewhere. If not, measure the gun's cylinder
and barrel carefully and compare to the makers. Also
you can still search CVA's past products in the old
Blue Book of BP revolvers. Most were ASM made but
cannot be sure. Again look for marks. Put up a photo.
You need a good single action cowboy gunsmith to be sure your
lock-up,timing and centering is safe before firing.

 

[sourdough]

Photos of everything pertinent are a must if you want a good assessment.

 

[Rich427sw]

I took some steel wool to underside of barrel. It’s an ASM

 

[Rich427sw]

Pictures

 

[Zonie]

Most likely, the pistol was made back in the '70's by a company that is long out of business.
Most of these revolvers were close copies of the original guns so parts are usually available but they might need some hand fitting to get them working right.

As for when the gun was made, it should have Italian proof marks on it. If it does, there will be a rectangle with a Roman numeral or some letters in it.

Here's a link to the date those letters mean.

https://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/threads/modern-replica-dating-by-proof-marks.49482/
A good place to start looking for replacement parts is Dixie Gun Works. They used to have all of the parts but lately their selection is getting smaller.

Here's a link to the Dixie site

https://www.dixiegunworks.com/index...roduct_position&search_params=&search_params=

 

[Whitworth]

The hand spring is probably bent, when the cylinder gets sticky it can be bent trying to rotate the cylinder. You may be able to carefully bend it back into position. Don't ask me how I know

 

[Dude]

That doesn't look too horrible. Mix up a small batch of equal parts Power Steering Fluid and Acetone. Put some on the arbor (cylinder axle) and let it soak in. Every once in a while try to rotate the cylinder with your fingers, one way then the other. It might take a couple days or a week but it'll eventually break loose - be patient.

 

[B P Arn]

I like it!!!

OP: let me know if you want to get rid of the fine Remington, please!

 

[jdesro]

Last year I brought back to life an ASM 1858 that was in similar condition to yours. I used (a lot) of Kroil to loosen up the rusted bits.

The hand spring on mine was pretty much turned to dust by rust, and I fount that a Uberti hand was a near perfect fit. If there are any other parts that need replacing you may have to experiment between Uberti and Pietta parts to see which ones will work best in your revolver.

So it's not dead, yet. A little bit of soaking, elbow grease and tinkering should get it back up and running.

 

[B P Arn]

Before...

After...

Plus holster...

 

[leadhoarder]

Before...
View attachment 63260
View attachment 63261

After...
View attachment 63268
View attachment 63270

Plus holster...
View attachment 63271
View attachment 63272

That looks better than a new one. Has a nice authentic look to it.

 

[B P Arn]

I soaked it in penetrating oil for a long time. Being careful not to force anything, I carefully disassembled it. I continued to soak it in penetrating oil, and scrubbed the rust with a brass brush. The rust eventually let loose. I polished the metal with steel wool and oil to blend the existing good blued areas with the bare areas.

More rust came off for the next year or so, as I shot and cleaned the gun.

In my opinion, less is better in a situation like this. I did not want the gun to look like new, and I did not want to go overboard with the cleaning and polishing.

 

[William Lincoln]

Nice job on the 1860. Revived it from near death.

 

[B P Arn]

Last year I brought back to life an ASM 1858 that was in similar condition to yours. I used (a lot) of Kroil to loosen up the rusted bits.

The hand spring on mine was pretty much turned to dust by rust, and I fount that a Uberti hand was a near perfect fit. If there are any other parts that need replacing you may have to experiment between Uberti and Pietta parts to see which ones will work best in your revolver.

So it's not dead, yet. A little bit of soaking, elbow grease and tinkering should get it back up and running.

Pictures, please!

 

[TNGhost]

I have a CVA 1858 Remington that was built by Pietta and even current Pietta Cylinders work in it.

What is the date code on your revolver?

 

[Rich427sw]

I ordered some parts for it. The hand spring was bent and I just barely tried to bend it back and it snapped. I cleaned up the heavy rust.
Before

after

 

[Kansas Jake]

That cleaned up pretty well. How is the bore?

 

[B P Arn]

That gun is PERFECT!!!!

 

[Rich427sw]

I agree, it has a real good look