Pietta 1860 army reliability problems

[54mountain]

I won a very nice Pietta 1860 army a couple of years ago in a raffle, the man who donated it is a colt collector and reworked the trigger and smoothed up the action on it so it now has a glass smooth hammer release. the problem is that with cci no. 10 caps I have to hit them twice to get them to go off which is very annoying. Any ideas?
I can only get cci caps here and have tried RWS #11s with the same results I really like this pistol and it is very accurate when it does go off I just hope that I can find a quick and or cheap fix

thanks, Galen

 

[fitter]

Sounds like the caps are too small. Try cci#11. Best of all would be Rem. #10. You might want to invest in Treso nipples, more consistant in size and the flash holes are better as well. That will definitely fix your problem.

 

[Don]

I'll second what was said already. I've found CCI #10 caps too snug and RWS too tough to pop easily. If available to you CCI #11 caps will work fine as will Remington or Winchester.

Don

 

[54mountain]

Thanks both Don and Fitter I do have some CCI 11s I will probably have to pinch them to keep them on the nipples but will give it a try, I have looked at Treso nipples but at $6.00 apiece I was hoping I wouldn't have to go there. :grin:

 

[Zonie]

As I've mentioned before, with an electric drill and a fine toothed flat file you can fix your problem.

Chuck the nipple with the cone sticking out and the jaws locating on the outside of the nipple. Do not locate the jaws on the threads.

With the drill on your left side, pointing to your right start the drill and hold the file at the same angle as the cone on the nipple.

Lower the file to contact the nipple and give one light push forward. Then stop the drill and try a cap on the nipple. If it still won't seat so that you can feel the priming compound stop against the tip of the cone, repeat the filing operation.

Don't get carried away with the filing. Just a few thousandths of an inch of material removed will make a significant difference in how the cap fits. The priming compound should seat against the tip of the nipple while the inside of the cap should be a 'snug' fit with the cone.

 

[TNHillbilly]

I too have had this problem. For one thing I've found caps vary in size/fit. You might try a little candle lamp black on the hammer/ recoil shield and try snapping a few caps ONLY! I've had one where the hammer was actually hitting 'sideways'. Chucked the hammer in the vise and cranked a couple thousands with a wrench...problem solved. Another needed a few file passes across the top flat of the recoil shield. Please tell us your solution!

 

[54mountain]

Well I did go out and shoot it with CCI#11 caps yesterday and they worked well just had to pinch them a bit before placing them on the nipples.
I will try the file and drill thing and let you Know how it goes

thanks GALEN

 

[fitter]

The rem #10 are a tad smaller than cci #11 and would probably work well. Thats been my expierence with an Uberti gun. Bestof all get the treso nipples. I got better groups with them as well because the flash holes are more consistant.

 

[Blizzard of '93]

sounds to me as if dry-fireing w/no caps on 'mushroomed' the nipple ends a bit so's the #10 caps don't fit on correctly.
try the drill&file and see if it works I'm betting it will, and press the caps down firmly with a wood dowel after you finger press them on. point muzzle to the ground of course while doing so.

 

[brpc]

Had the same problem with any number of Ubertis and Piettas. Did the file thing. It worked OK.

Remington 10's do work on just about all models without filing. They are hard to find. Maybe someone knows an internet source?

If there is a black powder club near you....join. Many clubs buy components in bulk for their club members convenience. Saves on the hazmat fee.

 

[1911nutjob]

I've also had great results with remington #10's, particularly on a uberti 1860 where the #11's would not clear the recoil shield. For those of you with a cabela's nearby, I always find them in stock. I haven't checked their catalog, but I'm sure you could mail order them. I'm going to be trying the #10's on my other BP guns, in the hopes of going with a "one size fits all" approach.

 

[54mountain]

My only source of powder and caps is my local club,and we generally get CCI caps 5 or 10 thousand at a time. A few stores here used to carry Remington but with the whole Inline thing they quit selling any traditional supplies. :cursing: The last Remington caps I found was at Wally world 2 years ago but they were asking over $7.00 a tin and I was still paying $2.50 a tin for CCIs through the club.

I'll ask around, maybe one of the members has a stash of Remingtons I can talk them out of

Thanks
Galen

 

[Jim/OH]

Yes, the Remington #10's would be easiest and quickest fix. Also the go off a bit easier then other brands, so that should help. But if you can't get them, then the nipple in the drill fileing trick will get you by with the least expense. Just file a little, then try a cap, file some more if needed. It doesn't take much. :thumbsup:

Hope this helps, see ya, Jim/OH :hatsoff:

 

[WRustyLane]

:blah: Your hammer main spring has probably been altered in the action job. You may need to install a new main spring. I did an action job on my Pietta 1860 SAA and took out the center of the main spring to lessen the force to cock the revolver. If the mainspring is cut too much, it won't be able to pop a cap.

 

[54mountain]

I cleaned the nipples up with a file and drill and it got better but still had missfires now and then. I finally started paying attention to what was going on while slowly letting the hammer down and felt a bit of drag on the hammer where it was rubbing on the frame

I got out my polishing stones and went over all the surfaces and corners to remove any rough spots and she seems to be a keeper now. :thumbsup:

 

[nightsilver]

you have to use #10 remington caps. I ran into the some problem.

 

[Mike 56]

I saw this on another thread you can buy a dollar store wire cutters and drill a 11/64 hole in them so you can crimp or resize #11 CCI Caps. #11 CCI Caps fit really good after being resized.
Mike

 

[WRustyLane]

Wow! I am amazed at all the home-made tools that get invented and shared on this forum. The more home-made tools the better and it definitely keeps the cost down. I guess it's true...necessity is the mother of all invention!

 

[hawkeye2]

Mike, thanks a million times over for posting that simple solution to the problem. Pinching caps between thumb and forefinger usually results in an out of round cap that can be a real pain to put on a nipple.

 

[JLDee55]

I ordered my caps from Cabela's, Ya had a hazmat charge but 1000 #10 remington's will last me for a little while..Also found that the "Whinchester Magnum BP" caps from Wally World appear to be the same as the Remmys...Just a thought..