What Is The Fix?

[DuncNZ]

I had 3 Colt Navy pistols in the shop , they were Belgium made fakes , but they were made when the real Colts were in production ,so they were antique fakes , no one would buy them .
Ps they looked like Colts had Colt marks but the giveaway was Belgium proofs

 

[William Lincoln]

We are all prejudiced towards what we own. We defend our decisions, no matter
how the flaws show. I have had the BP revolvers over the years. Different repros.
Had ASM, Euroarms ,Ubertis,Piettas & Palmettos. About half needed tuning or some improvements.
Find a good pistolsmith with revolver experience. Spend on it. Remember to put your
stuff in top order. The supply chains and future are uncertain. Have pieces that you can
rely upon under use. "45D" and others work on these to improve their reliability. Keep
contact info and send your nicer pieces for custom inspection and tuning.
Original Colts and Remingtons were hand fitted and smithed--these Repros are not
and vary from piece to piece a little-- hence the importers often charge for a hand selected
piece. Times are changing--guard your stuff and maintain it.

 

[CaptainKirk]

We are all prejudiced towards what we own. We defend our decisions, no matter
how the flaws show. I have had the BP revolvers over the years. Different repros.
Had ASM, Euroarms ,Ubertis,Piettas & Palmettos. About half needed tuning or some improvements.
Find a good pistolsmith with revolver experience. Spend on it. Remember to put your
stuff in top order. The supply chains and future are uncertain. Have pieces that you can
rely upon under use. "45D" and others work on these to improve their reliability. Keep
contact info and send your nicer pieces for custom inspection and tuning.
Original Colts and Remingtons were hand fitted and smithed--these Repros are not
and vary from piece to piece a little-- hence the importers often charge for a hand selected
piece. Times are changing--guard your stuff and maintain it.

Well said!

 

[bang]

I often hear that Uberti made Colt clones have a "short arbor" and that it is a "pretty easy fix". Can someone explain this for me as I am looking to buy one, maybe an 1860 Army or Dragoon.

Fixing a short arbor is easy. The arbor should bottom out just as the frame mating surfaces make contact.
Put a thin washer in arbor hole till there is as small a gap at frame as possible. Thin the washer till frame gap is eliminated. A drop of epoxy in hole and put the shim in and assemble till set.
If the arbor doesn't bottom out the the wedge can be put in far enough the barrel to cylinder gap will close and sometimes bind. Obtaining proper arbor fit makes both parts fit solid and act as a single unit.

 

[French Colonial]

I bought a Uberti 1851 navy from DGW last summer and then read on these boards about the short arbor.

OMG I bought a lemon!

Put the smallest and thinnest washer I had in the arbor hole and then the gun would not go together all the way.

Lucky for me I bought the only correctly made revolver, with the correct size arbor, Uberti ever made!

 

[Bdamdifino]

I've asked the question before on this forum and now seems a good time to ask again. Has anybody contacted, and received a reply, from Uberti (in Italy, not a stateside distributor) to find out why they produce revolvers with "short arbors"? I've studied the almost countless posts and replies on this subject since joining the forum and have yet to see anything quoted from the manufacturer. From what I see on Uberti's website, one will need to speak or understand Italian (which I do not) in order to contact them. Until I see something from the manufacturer, I consider all else conjecture.

I have contacted the manufacturer directly over my swivel breech and Pedersoli got right back to me, through Christmas even. They were extremely helpful in identifying my Rifle as well as getting me the key that came with the original sale to disassemble the barrels for cleaning. If they were that helpful to me, I'm sure someone could reach out to them for this issue and get some insight.

 

[Johnny Tremain]

This might be the scariest thread I've read here yet.
Guess we lucked out, the freebee revolver here is the good kind with a normal arbor.

 

[45D]

Pietta changed because of the wants/needs of the CAS community. I'm pretty sure it was also easier for them since all their open tops are the same platform. Uberti on the other hand offers actual reproductions of actual models on the three major platforms. It would make for a much more costly "correction" for them. It would be nice if they did (definitely make things a little easier for me) but I'd rather have them the way they are than Uberti offer a single platform and have to make fantasy offerings as "other" models.
Currently, I think, it's a nice balance with each company offering what they offer. I like them both and both make (for the most part) the best offerings ever!!

Mike

 

[45D]

This might be the scariest thread I've read here yet.
Guess we lucked out, the freebee revolver here is the good kind with a normal arbor.

Not really something to be scared of. Just folks wanting to know how to fix a well known "deficiency" in the production of Colt type reproductions of open top revolvers. The freebee is the knowledge and shared fixes so folks can diy. The entertainment value of "all the other stuff" is the icing on the cake!! Lol

Mike

 

[Old Hawkeye]

No sir, you have an Uberti Navy Colt that may have decent timing but definitely has a short arbor. Everything has already been posted as to how to tell if it's short and the reason it matters if the arbor is short (even a half brain could read it), so if adhering to the main design feature for an open top Colt type revolver doesn't matter to you, then maybe you shouldn't gripe as to why there is a discussion about it in a public forum!! The title of this thread is about this particular subject. What do you expect to see in a thread about this subject. Telling a beginner it's no big deal sounds in and of itself "half brained"!!
By the way, all the reproductions ever made (save for one company as of late) isn't a small sample.
I also find it funny that the " Uberti snobs" was gone since I read this earlier this evening. I'll remind you that the Colt 2 nd gen castings came from Uberti . . . not Pietta.

Mike

Without examining my revolver how can you say it "definitely has a short arbor"? Do you have psychic powers? I'm not "griping" about anything. I didn't say that anything you said wasn't correct about the "short arbor problem", but just said my personal opinion is that it is not as big of a problem as it's made out to be & even a "half brain" can easily correct it if he wants to. Most of these revolvers aren't shot enough by the average recreational shooter to matter ( as evidence by the number of "like new" examples for sale) & any serious shooter is going to take care of the issue. So, what's the big deal? I guess no one is entitled to an opinion that differs with yours & that we all shoot inferior revolvers. Does every discussion on this forum have to be insulting & confrontational? Lighten up, for crying out loud. Just sayin'.

 

[Old Hawkeye]

I bought a Uberti 1851 navy from DGW last summer and then read on these boards about the short arbor.

OMG I bought a lemon!

Put the smallest and thinnest washer I had in the arbor hole and then the gun would not go together all the way.

Lucky for me I bought the only correctly made revolver, with the correct size arbor, Uberti ever made!

Hope 45D doesn't read this post or you may come under attack! BTW, I have the only other Uberti with a correctly fit arbor.

 

[CaptainKirk]

Hope 45D doesn't read this post or you may come under attack!

"Under attack?" Seriously?
First off, Mike is not the only one that offers correction of short arbors. Jackrabbit, Outlaw Kid and several others offer services of this nature and have been quick to affirm the problem does exist. If your Uberti does in fact not have a short arbor condition, consider yourself one in a million and never sell that gun, as it's rare as a double-stamped coin and probably as valuable.
Second, Mike hasn't attacked anyone I know of, he just stands firmly behind his knowledge and expertise on the matter. Neither is he creating a 'false scenario' to dupe people into sending him their 'imaginary problem' for correction; far contrary to that, he has offered (on at least 4 other forums I know of besides this one) a crystal-clear description of the issue, both in text and actual detailed photos, a very concise description of how to identify the condition, and most importantly, he goes out on a limb to assist people in making their own corrections of said problem, rather than the usual "send me your gun and your money and I'll fix it". Mike has done three of my open top revolvers to date, ALL had short arbors (none were Ubertis) and ALL are the finest action guns in my collection. Hands-down.
Please don't take this as an attack on you; if you have the ultra-rare Uberti with the correct length arbor I'm truly happy for you. I'm just confirming that the problem is real, and that all my open tops (including the 3 Mike worked on) have this issue, Uberti included, but also numerous other makes. The problem is real; the fix is easy and cheap, and thanks to guys like Mike, the "how to" is available for anyone who wishes to address the issue.

 

[Zulch]

How about a challenge?? Good clean fun here. Anyone out there, see if you can put a small washer in the arbor hole and close her back up with no interference issues? Does it matter? That’s up to the individual. Really, simple as that. I took my own challenge. I did my own test on a pair of late model Uberti Walkers. The washers fit into the bottom of the arbor hole and they did not interfere with closing her up. If the arbor had been long enough the washers would not have allowed the guns to close up and seat properly.

 

[CaptainKirk]

How about a challenge?? Good clean fun here. Anyone out there, see if you can put a small washer in the arbor hole and close her back up with no interference issues? Does it matter? That’s up to the individual. Really, simple as that. I took my own challenge. I did my own test on a pair of late model Uberti Walkers. The washers fit into the bottom of the arbor hole and they did not interfere with closing her up. If the arbor had been long enough the washers would not have allowed the guns to close up and seat properly.

Easier than that, measure your end shake (cylinder to forcing cone) gap with a feeler gauge. Should be .002-.005.
Now, using a wooden or plastic mallet, give the wedge a couple of good whacks, driving it home as far as it goes. If your gap changes or the cylinder locks up; bingo. Short arbor.

 

[CaptainKirk]

Until I see something from the manufacturer, I consider all else conjecture.

Consider all you like. Bottom line is, check your Colt repro's (with the exception of Pietta) and see for yourself if you have a short arbor. What the manufacturer says (or doesn't say) has no bearing whatsoever. Your arbor is correct, or it's not.

 

[user 48679]

If they address the issue, then they have admitted there is an issue. And then they are liable to fix it.

Which opens the door to fixing every pistol they ever sold under warranty...…….

 

[Wildrangeringreen]

So why doesn't the Uberti company address this issue? Why is it that only the BP guys know and care about it? Just wonderin'.

Because most of the guns we like to use here on the forum are regarded as "novelties" by the rest of the shooting world. Novelties need to look the part, but long-term, heavy use survivability isn't their concern. Most people who buy this stuff take it out once or twice a year to shoot, then put it away. Pietta has realized the issue and has decided to fix it(to make their products more appealing to the growing number of dedicated ML shooters)Uberti has elected to not fix it (or if they have, it has been very recently in response to Pietta).

All the issues with these repro's are fixable, realistically. For the price of a Pietta made 1851 colt or 1860 colt, I am more than willing to do all the stuff to fix it... once we get up into the price of Uberti Dragoons and Walkers, I get more picky. Still waiting on an Adam's repro to come out lol

 

[CaptainKirk]

Still waiting on an Adam's repro to come out lol

Don't hold your breath.

 

[CaptainKirk]

Which opens the door to fixing every pistol they ever sold under warranty...…….

Exactly.

 

[Bad Karma]

Exactly.

I seriously doubt that’s the reason Uberti hasn’t addressed the “problem”. If it were, there’s not a manufacturer on earth that could escape liability and… Pietta would have had to ”fix” every revolver they’ve build since the 60’s.