Pietta 1858 New Army

[Fran49829]

I just ordered a case hardened 44 cal 1858 from Cabelas. I think it is made by Pietta.

What are you using for balls and caps?
Do I need a special revolver nipple wrench (I read that some break)?
Should I buy new nipples? If so what kind?
Should I buy spare parts? If so how many of what?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Fran

 

[Blizzard of '93]

congrats on the New Army. if .44 cal (most are but some .36 cal are made) you need .454 balls and #10 caps. yes a special nipple wrench is required. Treso nipples are said to be the best - I haven't exhausted my supply of std so haven't tryed them yet. the hand and spring takes a beating, a spare is a good idea.
a .357 mag case makes a good 'warm' powder load measure, a .38 a good 'target' load and a 7.62X39 (the AK or Sks case) a good 'hot' load of 3F. leaves room for a felt disc under the ball and not much else, maybe little more powder. 3F.

 

[Leatherbark]

Pietta will say use a .451 ball, but a .454 will work and will probably be more accurate, but will load a little harder. Dont use CCI No.10 caps as they will be too small. Remington No.10's will fit the best. If you have to use CCI use the No.11. I assume you have a flask. If you dont get one and a 25 and 30 grain spout. My Pietta 58 is more accurate with a grease lube over the ball than a wad under it, but that is not always the case. Shoot it alot before you mess with the sights until it settles down..............A standard revolver nipple wrench should work, but sometimes those nipples are in very tight. The only parts I would get would be a hand with spring and a trigger/bolt spring. If I was to tune it any at all I would make sure the bolt fits into the notches in the cylinder all the way. Some Italian revolvers cylinder locking bolts are too wide and it Peens the cylinder notches because it doesn't fit into the nocth very well.................Good Luck........Bob

 

[Poor Private]

Yep get the springs. I just broke one of mine on my Uberti Remington. And I have no spare :cursing: . So now that revolver is down until I order a couple of each. Get em and always don't run out, when down to the last one and installed don't wait to order more. Otherwise you will be like me and can't use the bugger. Guess I will use the Roger&Spencer for a while. :grin:

 

[LeMat1856]

.
. june 15 / 9:05pm


nice going !! you should have many years of good use from that beast but don't forget to get some 'real' gun powder.. there is a difference between that and the products offered at cabela's called 'pyrodex.' i can't go into all the details but suffice it to say that most shooters here seem to prefer the made in u.s.a. product called goex which comes in several granulations - f, ff, fff, ffff.. 3f is recommended for pistols.. good places to look for reasonable prices are: graf & sons, powder inc., track of the wolf, and ... (the mind goes blank) others all of which will mail to you and take orders online..

figure 7000 grains per pound, each chamber can use 20-40 grains per round times 6 chambers and you can calculate how many lbs. you should get.. if you shoot an average amount, get 5 lbs, if not scale down.. it's always better to have too much than run out.

be prepared for a $20 'hazmat' fee per shipment (not per lb.) - another good reason to buy in quantity.

also, look into cleaning and lubricating products.. plan on cleaning thoroughally after every shooting session.. non-petroleum oils will prevent rust and keep parts from binding.. good liquid soap and hot water will handle cleaning well enough.

and lastly i'll recommend a book - 'the complete blackpowder handbood' by sam fadala (try alibris or amazon or ebay $5-10) for a good introduction to muzzle loading in general.

see ya' on the range,

~d~

 

[Blizzard of '93]

if you camp out and take your revolvers as I do then take along some WHITE hand cleaner such as Goop or GoJo and an old t-shirt to wipe your pistol down with after shooting session unless you strip it down and wash it.
I pull the cylinder and wipe it and the frame good and swab the bore out and wipe the pin with a bit of rag saturated with the cleaner. then reload. it keps it OK until I get home and can strip it down for thorough clean job.

 

[Fran49829]

Thanks for the information. I'm sure I will have more questions once I use the the pistol. I have a Traditions Pro Hunter 50 cal single shot pistol which is quite accurate,

Fran

 

[Leatherbark]

Fashion a hand spring from a "Bobbie Pin" while your waiting on one to be delivered.....................Bob

 

[Dave Markowitz]

I use the same .457 balls in my Pietta and Euroarms 1858s as I do in my Ruger Old Army. Simplifies logistics and they shoot well.

 

[mazo kid]

Fashion a hand spring from a "Bobbie Pin" while your waiting on one to be delivered.....................Bob

Good idea, also can use a small safety pin cut to size (or so I have been told). I have 2-3 spare trigger/bolt springs just in case.

 

[jan buck]

i just had one delivered in the mail this morning and gonna take it out and shoot it. in my manual pietta recommends .454 ball. will try 30 grs fff at 25 yards.

 

[single shot]

let me know,because i have one here i havnt shot yet

 

[jan buck]

i shot it[1858 rem] with 30 grs fff at 25 yards. .454 ball cci#10 cap. i could hit a pie plate with it. shot some old flower pots my wife didn't want. fun stuff. thing really roars. really gotta bare down with the sights. i load five clylinders with powder then put a ww in each hole then seat the balls. i got the pistol,holster, cap box, caps, colt flask, capper six extra nipples, wrench for 185.00 shipped.

 

[LeMat1856]

.
. june 24 / 00:15am


that really is a great deal considering they don't have a new army close to $200 now - without extras..

i've got my eye on their .44 navy and 'civilian' which are now around $139 - $199 respectivly.. problem with cabelas is ya' snooze, ya lose....

oh well, i really don't need 'em either way so no sweat.. now, if they came up with a '62 euroarms murray carbine, i'd jump through hoops.... ha!

enjoy and see how well you can do in this months postal shoot sponsored by nmlra: 25yd, 5 shots, off hand on a target that's only 6" in diameter (target *.pdf download here)

 

[jmforge]

I saw a couple at Cabelas this past weekend. Now I know this is not PC, but the 5 1/2 inch stainless model was a VERY nice looking gun as far as visible fit and finish go. Bad news is that it was $300, which is not expensive for a modern stainless gun, but it was a fair bit more than the blued steel ones.

 

[LeMat1856]

.
. JUNE 24 / 01:50AM


uuummmm, yes nice and not terribly overpriced, but i'm just not into 'show pieces' whether stainless or plated.. for me these were made to re-create the experience of the 1800's and when i get one, i'm going to shoot the heck out of it - forget the notion that i might someday sell it, thus need to keep it vaccuum packed in original box just so i can get what i paid for it..

from my limited research few of these will ever be worth what we paid originally.. the exception is the colt 2nd and 3rd gen, early navy arms and uberti items, plus some (hideous) commemorative and limited edition items from the historical societies.. and, that might even require 10-20 years of hold "on to it, never firing, keeping the box from even the smallest scratch, etc, etc".. what's the point in that ? they might grow at about 10% per year in value.. one decade for a $500 colt to double in price... ? shoot 'em if ya' got 'em, that's my motto.

now, a gen 1 colt made in 1851... that's a whole different story....

~d~

 

[Fran49829]

I just picked up my 1858 Army from Cabelas in Dundee, MI and it is the best looking firearm I own.

451 Hornady balls were a little small as there was a small spot that was not shaved off. 454 Hornady balls were great. I rammed a balls down and then screwed a sheet metal screw into the ball. My leatherman pliers pulled the balls out easily. Remington #10 caps work fine.

Question: Do you use a 45 cal jag and cleaning patch to oil the bore? I have not been able to locate a 44 cal jag.

Fran

 

[zimmerstutzen]

If your 45 cal jag is too tight, chuck it in a drill and spin it while taking off a wee bit with a flat mill file. Should take only a few seconds and then clean up the burrs with fine emery cloth.

I made a special stainless cleaning rod, about 13 inches long with a good stoutly fastened handle for shooting my pistols. I have about a dozen from 36 caliber to 54 cal. (including an odd 43 caliber single shot made in Italy) I have a different jag for each caliber, along with two worms and a ball puller and they all store in my pistol stand.

 

[jmforge]

Yeah, I would buy a blued or case colored one too, but I would lean strongly toward the 5 1/2 incher even though it may not be historically correct in .44 or at all for that matter. It just looks slick. :wink: The thing that struck me about the stainless gun was that it was, for lack of a better term, a good canvas for Pietta show show off their finish. Every thing just looked right. I personally have never bought a stainless steel gun, but I will be the first to admit that some of the stainless revolvers out there are nice.

 

[Fran49829]

Has anyone have experience with the cap and ball revolver wads from "The Possibles Shop"? Are they as good as Ox-Yoke wads?

Fran