Information on Colt 1851 Navy

[AQUAINFL]

I have a Pietta Colt 1851 Navy [steel frame].I just picked up a R&D Drop in Conversion Cylinder which allows me to shoot 38 long colt cartridges.You can also shoot 38spl.if you use wadcutter bullets.
I was just wondering if years ago,in the 1800's any were converted like this?It is very slow to load but once loaded shoots great. :hmm: javascript:void(0)

 

[Blizzard of '93]

from what I've read yes, conversions were common to C&B pistols after about 1875-80.

 

[philo426]

DK2,where did you get the conversion cylinder?And how much did it cost?

 

[Dave Rosenthal]

Yes some of the Colts were converted, but the most popular conversion in use today is the 1858 new model army Remmington. The top strap allows a quick-change of an entire pre-loaded extra cylinder! These cylinders are getting so popular as to garner their own division in some cowboy action club shoots. The Remmy I spoke of will handle .45 LC Black Powder Goex cartridges as the bore diamiter is .451 . I have read that with practice, one can change-out a cylinder in a 1858 quicker than reloading a SAA. Clint did a pretty good job illustrating this in at least one of his movies :thumbsup: . I bought a 1858 specifically to shoot cartridges, and am looking at the two main companies to decide which of the two to buy. Any further input by a conversion cylinder shooter would be great...since the cylinder costs just as much or more than the gun did :shocked2: Can't wait to fill the air with lead, Dave

 

[Leatherbark]

Midway sells one for 200 dollars...........Bob

 

[AQUAINFL]

I bid for it at gunbrokers,it usually retails for $240.I got it for $170 new in box.Thats what I paid for the pistol.

 

[[email protected]]

DK2,where did you get the conversion cylinder?And how much did it cost?

Here is a link to an article on the history of conversion:[url] http://www.riverjunction.com/kirst/history.html[/url]

I used to have a couple of links bookmarked, but cannot find them offhand. So, I did a Google search and some sites include (but not endorsed by me) are:

[url] http://www.randdgunshop.com/[/url]
[url] http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=126824[/url]
[url] http://www.possibleshop.com/cylinder.htm[/url]

They usually run more than the replica themselves and at least some require machine tooling.

 

[AQUAINFL]

I just went to google and entered KIRST KONVERTER,Check this out

 

[[email protected]]

I just went to google and entered KIRST KONVERTER,Check this out

I added a bookmark, thanks.

1. Purchase a Remington New Army Revolver.
2. Get converter.

I've been wanting to get a New Army as my 4th revolver anyway. Just keep buying Civil War manure and now mountain man stuff.

 

[philo426]

I checked the Kirst Konverter website and it looks good.Correct me if I have this wrong,but if I purchase the kit for my '51 Navy,I can shoot .38 special by just changing out the cylinder!Cool!I guess I have to take off the loading lever and install the ejector rod.Doesn;t seem too tough!The only obstacle is the relatively high price!The kit costs twice what I paid for the revolver!Well I guess I will have to think about it!

 

[[email protected]]

I checked the Kirst Konverter website and it looks good.Correct me if I have this wrong,but if I purchase the kit for my '51 Navy,I can shoot .38 special by just changing out the cylinder!Cool!I guess I have to take off the loading lever and install the ejector rod.Doesn;t seem too tough!The only obstacle is the relatively high price!The kit costs twice what I paid for the revolver!Well I guess I will have to think about it!

I really can't say for sure as I just looked at the this site yesterday or the day before, but it looks that way. It would still be easier on a Remington New Army, then our 1851 Colt Navies. And yes, the cylinder alone costs more than the revolver. An extra $125 or so for the optional ejector (and could you really pass that up? :shake: ) This line also scares me a tad, "Simple, step-by-step instructions and a loading port template are included ...." Is it ever really "simple?" Do ya feel lucky punk? Well, do ya?

 

[philo426]

Yes I wonder...If you have to "mAke"a loading gate you would somehow have to cut the recoil shield and hinge it somehow.Not an easy task for a person who is not a gunsmith or may not have the tools and or expertise.

 

[Russ T Frizzen]

Some Kirst converters don't use a loading gate. The one in my Remington isn't gated, and cartridges don't fall out. You can use .45 Colt cartridges in the .44 Remington and get good accuracy. You may have to use special bullets in a Navy, because the .36 Navy has a bigger bore than a modern .38. For best results, a heeled bullet is a good way to go. Walt Kirst is a gentleman and a scholar and makes a great product.

 

[mike101]

You don't have to make a loading gate. It's built into the breech ring of the cylinder. You would have to cut a loading port in the recoil shield, if you want to load from the back.

The first FACTORY conversions, the Remingtons, hit the market in 1869, when Rollin White's patent on the bored through cylinder expired. Colt started producing the Richards Conversion in 1871, soon followed by the Richards/Mason Conversion.

Where did you find a Kirst Konverter without a gate? They do make one without a gate, but it still has a breech ring, so the back of the cylinder is closed, thus preventing cartridges from falling out.

 

Colt factory conversions modified the original cylinders in the six shot revolvers and replaced the five shot cylinders with six shot cylinders in small frame pistols. A metal plug was inserted between rear of the cyinder and the frame and a percussion cylinder could be interchanged if desired.

I don't know if the Remington factory actually did any conversions. Remington 1861 Armys and Navys were converted by a indepandant contractors who manufactured new cylinders.