Fluted Army Sings Sweetly

[azmntman]

Funny thing is I'm not even an open-top Colt fan. But it's hard to walk, and especially look, away from some.

My first handgun was an Armi San Marco Colt 1861 Navy. What a beauty. This one is special too including all the right lines in all the right places.

Interestingly I'm going thru the same thing with a woman in my office... LOL

DO NOT try fondling the woman at the office like you do the gun on the rack! I did this and she has not left yet (27 years!)

 

[DOUBLEDEUCE 1]

:rotf: :rotf: :rotf:

 

[BillinOregon]

Azmntman: NICE!

:hatsoff:

Alden, have you shot your specimen yet? I went ahead and ordered a set of SliX-Shot nipples for mine. I have found these to be more reliable than the factory equipment on both Uberti and Pietta wheel guns.

 

[BillinOregon]

Mine arrived today. The whole point of the 1860 was to give soldiers the punch of the dragoons in a Navy-esque package. The full cylinder flutes really make this .44 feel like a .36 in the hand. Can't wait to shoot it! Thanks for the enabling, Alden.

 

[Alden]

Definitely a slightly different, I'll say better, feel to it. I won't begin to hava a chance to do anything with it till Fall or 2016 even...

 

[Grumpa]

As stated above, most of the early New Model Army Colts ( up to about serial number 6500) were made with full-fluted cylinders, The idea was to reduce weight, and also equalize stresses in the chamber walls, an idea suggested to Colt by Wade Hampton of South Carolina.

Early on, there were problems with some cylinders blowing up, and Colt replaced these free of charge. (This would probably not be a problem with modern repros. :grin

Many of these early fluted guns were bought by the South, prior to the outbreak of hostilities. So they are considered secondary Confederate Martial Pistols. Four days after Fort Sumter was fired on, Lincoln called for troops, and Colt ceased all shipments to the South.

So, Alden, your gun is very historically correct - it was the original model first accepted by Ripley. And very beautiful it is, too.

The stud for a detachable shoulder stock was done away with, as not necessary for use of the stock. And the entire stock idea (Jeff Davis')fell by the wayside with the advent of countless repeating carbines for the cavalry.

I suspect the flutes were later omitted as a cost saving measure.

Most of the above information is from Civil War Guns by William B. Edwards, Stackpole, 1962

 

[Dave Rosenthal]

I gifted a charcoal blue fluted 1860 Army by Uberti to my son years ago. Imported by Taylor's in Winchester, VA & sold to me by Gregg Dixon, this handy revolver has the tightest lockwork & smoothest trigger out-of-the-box of any of my Cap & Ball collection.

I don't buy things to look at, I buy them to SHOOT & man did we put that little .44 through its' paces! Using 27 grains of Goex FFFg, an Ox-Yoke pre-lubed wonder-wad & a .454 Hornady ball, with a NRA B-6 50 yard slow-fire target I managed to score in the low-mid 80's from 50 yards distance. Taking this same set-up to a 25 yard B-19 target (where the outer scoring ring has a point value of ONE POINT & the ten-X ring is less than a Kennedy Half Dollar) and nailing it with something in the mid-upper 80's, resulted in my obtaining the Country's first-ever NRA Distinguished Expert rating in Muzzleloading Pistol. Out of a total of (5) Aggregates needed for my DX, (4) were shot with my Son's charcoal-blue "out-of-the-box" 1860 Army w/ fluted cylinder.

To say that revolver is a "Tack Driver" is an obvious understatement to be sure. According to Gregg Dixon, NO ONE has ever complained to him about one being made "sloppy". I believe Uberti has a somewhat stricter tolerance for these examples, as the fluting on the cylinder requires that the timing be dead-on so as not to cause shaving of the lead balls as they enter the forcing cone. This "tightness" of the "lock-up" is similar to a modern S&W out of the Performance Center. NO side-to-side wobble at all.

It has been suggested by several knowledgeable Shooters that Uberti only produces a limited run of these revolvers every-so-often and no more than twice in any calendar year. As you may guess, Taylor's gets as many as they can & back-orders on this model are common.

Dave
NRA Distinguished Expert

 

[BillinOregon]

Dave, congratulations on your DX with a percussion revolver!

 

[Dave Rosenthal]

Thanks for the kudos Bill! "knowing your equipment" sure comes into play to make this a reality. Interestingly enough, several of us at Old Bridge Rifle & Pistol Club have this specimen & they all shoot like Tack-Drivers! Guys are switching from single-shots with adjustable sights to the Colts to finish their DX's! That's how nice these things SHOOT!

Again, thanks for reading.

Dave

 

[Grumpa]

I just saw one of these fluted Uberti 1860s at Sportsman's Guide (on the internet) for $306.
One in stock. :shocked2: Who's quick on the draw?

 

[Alden]

What have I done!? LOL

The charcoal-blue finished gun is an exquisitely beautiful version...

...I won't be buying anytime soon I don't think.

 

[Dickydalton]

I have a 3rd Gen. Colt Calvary fluted. It has beautiful bluing, little Gold crossed sabers on the barrel and it shoots pretty good.30 grains of 3F and a wad under a .454 ball is all that it holds.

 

[Dickydalton]

Here it is.

 

[davidmc62]

Yes sir fell hook line and sinker back in the early 80's for the same model from ASM. Something about that model that just looks and feels right in the hand and looks better than any other 1860 in my opinion. Mine is still working after many years of reenacting, a couple hand and spring replacements and just replaced the wedge. Next is to replace the nipples as they are a little worn and I have no doubt she will last a while longer.

 

[cynthialee]

I am so jealous. That is a fine shooting iron!
Makes me want a new pistol, which I really don't need. {I figure once I have enough stuff it would take two or more trips to get it all outside to the range, I am at my limit.}

But I really love this pistol.

 

[Dickydalton]

Thank You, Cynthialee.

 

[azmntman]

I am so jealous. That is a fine shooting iron!
Makes me want a new pistol, which I really don't need. {I figure once I have enough stuff it would take two or more trips to get it all outside to the range, I am at my limit.}

But I really love this pistol.

AWWW Heck Cinthia, you just need a bigger range box, with wheels!! :metoo:

 

[wb78963]

that full flute clipped to a shoulder stock is SEXY!!
Here is the story on the gun. Originals are super rare

WB

 

[sourdough]

Not a McCullough but it'll do. Armi San Marco 1860 Army Full-fluted cylinder with spare cylinder and shoulder stock.

Regards,

Jim