remington newarmy 44

mauser71

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Hello guys

May be ugly questions

If someone own a frame of antique Remington 44 ,he Can make a pistol with new parts from Pietta???
 
If someone own a frame of antique Remington 44 ,he Can make a pistol with new parts from Pietta???

legally you can but technically maybe yes and maybe no. The biggest problem would be whether or not the cylinder and cylinder pin are compatible with the original frame

cheers mooncoon
 
It would be great if you could borrow a Pietta and see if it would fit together properly, if you can't borrow one you would have to buy one and if it doesn't work out you could sell it and look for original parts.
I have heard that a lot of Remmie owners back then carried spare loaded cylinders in which case there should be cylinders with no guns to go with them, an original barrel may be a bit of a problem.
Check on the web for parts, probably have to go to the U.S. for original parts and maybe there are repro parts available ie: Dixie Gunworks etc.
 
I've a 1858 with a new cylinder and bbl.
Look into the bbl threads; I suspect the Italian bbl's have a metric thread. Mine has never fit quite right; definitely something you want to look into. A load of BP sub compromised the thread connection to the point where I drilled and tapped it for an anchor screw on the top and a load of silver solder applied to the thread junction...very sad. Still shoots, but...it's just not the same. Once you lose the confidence...
Am still considering bobbing the bbl and discarding the rammer assembly...make a 'Whippit' pistol
 
Quick note

Did you know the Remington Army revolver .44 cal is in fact a Navy .36 revolver modified to sustain the pressure of the .44 cal ?

The first version of the Army .44 cal were used during the Mexican - USA war. Almost all of them exploded during service because of a metallurgy problems. Yep it was build using Iron not Steel.

We have to wait a couple of years before silver was added to iron to produce Steel.

But I have also a Pietta new Army .44 Cal and I loved it.
 
Quick note
Yep it was build using Iron not Steel.
We have to wait a couple of years before silver was added to iron to produce Steel.
.

are you sure it was silver added? It would seem more likely to me that either phosphorus and/or silicone was removed and/or manganese added

cheers mooncoon
 
are you sure it was silver added? It would seem more likely to me that either phosphorus and/or silicone was removed and/or manganese added

cheers mooncoon

Steel contains between .008 and 2.14 percent carbon ,above that it's called " iron" cast or otherwise below that it's referred to as ferrite.all other additives are steel alloys
 
Steel contains between .008 and 2.14 percent carbon ,above that it's called " iron" cast or otherwise below that it's referred to as ferrite.all other additives are steel alloys

I remain a bit puzzled about how that applies to the addition of silver to strengthen steel. The bessemer process was introduced in 1854 and removed silicone and carbon and allowed the iron / steel to become a homogenous material as well as bring the carbon content down from around 4% to useful levels in the 0.0!% to 0.1% range. British iron remained somewhat brittle because of the naturally included phosphorous and the process to remove phosphorous was not developed until the mid 1870s. That did not mean that all iron / steel was brittle however because there were sources of iron with naturally occurring high levels of manganese in Germany and the US.
I am guessing that the improvement in the revolver may have involved a better source of iron / steel to make the cylinder from and without measuring one, the use of a thicker cylinder wall

cheers mooncoon
 
Colt had the same metallurgy problems when the 44 Army was produced. They initially thought about using a rebated 44 cylinder on a 51 Navy frame, but the "steel" of the day wasn't up to the pressures. It was not possible until "Silver Steel" was developed. I have never heard what the new alloy was comprised of.
 
I remain a bit puzzled about how that applies to the addition of silver to strengthen steel. The bessemer process was introduced in 1854 and removed silicone and carbon and allowed the iron / steel to become a homogenous material as well as bring the carbon content down from around 4% to useful levels in the 0.0!% to 0.1% range. British iron remained somewhat brittle because of the naturally included phosphorous and the process to remove phosphorous was not developed until the mid 1870s. That did not mean that all iron / steel was brittle however because there were sources of iron with naturally occurring high levels of manganese in Germany and the US.
I am guessing that the improvement in the revolver may have involved a better source of iron / steel to make the cylinder from and without measuring one, the use of a thicker cylinder wall

cheers mooncoon
The point being you don't add anything to iron to make steel
 
Colt had the same metallurgy problems when the 44 Army was produced. They initially thought about using a rebated 44 cylinder on a 51 Navy frame, but the "steel" of the day wasn't up to the pressures. It was not possible until "Silver Steel" was developed. I have never heard what the new alloy was comprised of.

OK that makes more sense. The silver refers to its reduced tendency to rust. In the mid 1800s, german steel that was naturally high in manganese (2 or 3% if my memory is correct) was called "spiegeleisen" translating literally to mirror iron. In the US for a while there was a naturally occuring iron ore called Franklenite which was also high in manganese. The silver steel might also be compared to the later "nickel steel" used by Marlin.
In answer to Remac; iron is the element and steel is the alloy. Perhaps because it has not yet been refined to a useful alloy, cast iron (around 4% C) is called iron rather than steel. There is cast steel but it is an alloy refined to a specific formula and cast into whatever part it is intended for.

cheers mooncoon
 
Keep in mind that "steel" is not one specific thing, but a large family of alloys.
The comparison to soup is sometimes made. Mostly water, but its the other bits, whatever that may be, that give each type of soup its character.

Pure iron is too soft to be much use, so carbon is added for strength.
Any number of other metals are added to create specific alloys.
 
Quick note

Did you know the Remington Army revolver .44 cal is in fact a Navy .36 revolver modified to sustain the pressure of the .44 cal ?

The first version of the Army .44 cal were used during the Mexican - USA war. Almost all of them exploded during service because of a metallurgy problems. Yep it was build using Iron not Steel.

We have to wait a couple of years before silver was added to iron to produce Steel.

But I have also a Pietta new Army .44 Cal and I loved it.

I think you are wrong. Even a short check on US issued weapons of thier war with Mexico reveals only the Colt Walker in 44 calibre as the only issue revolver.

Recheck your facts on the Remington as they are obviously in error.

edit: The Colt Walkers cylinders were manufactured in iron by error. Samuel Colt did not point this important fact to Eli Whitney when they discussed manufacturing his Colts at Eli's factory.
 
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Quick note

Did you know the Remington Army revolver .44 cal is in fact a Navy .36 revolver modified to sustain the pressure of the .44 cal ?

The first version of the Army .44 cal were used during the Mexican - USA war. Almost all of them exploded during service because of a metallurgy problems. Yep it was build using Iron not Steel.

We have to wait a couple of years before silver was added to iron to produce Steel.

But I have also a Pietta new Army .44 Cal and I loved it.

Umm. , the Remington Army was introduced in 1858 after Colts patents ended. The Mexican War was 1847. Colt-Pattersons (36 cal) were available, mainly to officers and texas irregulars, in 1847 but most dragoons were armed with a brace of 1842 percussion horse pistols on saddle holsters, although an increasing number of Walker Colts in 44 cal were issued as the campaign went on. This is interesting:

"The black powder Colt Walker is often regarded as the most powerful commercially manufactured repeating handgun from 1847 until the introduction of the .357 Magnum in 1935"
 
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"silver steel" doesn't actually have silver in the alloy. When i apprenticed (all those years ago) under grumpy germans, they still called drill rod "silver steel" It was just the term for a high alloy water or oil hardening tool steel. iron alloyed with maganese chromium and silicon

The actual alloy added was most probably what mooncoon suggests in his first post.

The remington revolver wasn't around at the time mentioned, the revolver that split cylinders was the walker, and they where iron cylinders, which just didn't stand up well to the full charge if there where any inclusions in the billet they where machined from.
 
Keep in mind that "steel" is not one specific thing, but a large family of alloys.
The comparison to soup is sometimes made. Mostly water, but its the other bits, whatever that may be, that give each type of soup its character.

Pure iron is too soft to be much use, so carbon is added for strength.
Any number of other metals are added to create specific alloys.

right in all you say. You would find that iron will not alloy with silver, it will separate out of the melt and sink to the bottom. It won't hold in solution.
 
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