Sketchy 1860 Army

tokguy

tokguy

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Buffalo Republic
Not trolling ( I hope anyhow ).
The other day I was in the local gunstore and noticed a nice used Pietta 1860 Army. After receiving permission to handle it I noticed that was almost new (IMO) and badly out of time. Like, you could see a black quarter moon visible to the side of the forcing cone as well as see where the hammer had contacted the cylinder beside the cut-out (term?) notches for the nipples.
I pointed this out to the clerk that assisted me & told him that I thought that it was extremely dangerous as is ( for 400 $ no less...WTF?).
He shrugged and retorted (politely though) that there was no one local who could fix it.
He then placed it back among the others on display.
The owner was dealing with another customer 6 ' down the counter and may or may not have heard me. Black powder guns are not this shops forte.
Was I remiss in not being more aggressive that it was dangerous?
 
Was the cylinder going past where it should or coming up short??
If it going past it can be fixed using the hand that is in it,it could be a replacement that wasn't cut to the right length.
If it comes up short of the proper position a new hand is in order.
The gun is not safe as is and should be fixed before going on sale.
At $400 and needing work.. not a good deal.
I am not a gunsmith but have fixed both a Pietta 1851 .44 Cal. and a Uberti 1851 .36 when the hand spring broke. I had two replacement hands for the Pietta and got one to fit the Uberti with a bit of work.
If the gun is on consignment there may not be any room to lower the price, if it is a trade then offer $250 as is (near new)and fix it yourself.

Here is a link to the parts you might need (a supporting dealer):
http://www.marstar.ca/gf-pietta/ac-revolver.shtm
 
I'm not needing another BP pistol, LOL. I agree with wild bill Hickock's opinion; Navy pistols are the trick.
I'm more thinking what if a Newb loads her up and it goes handgrenade on him. I know I'm not liable but should I have done more when you look at it from a morale standpoint?
 
tokguy said:
I'm not needing another BP pistol, LOL. I agree with wild bill Hickock's opinion; Navy pistols are the trick.
I'm more thinking what if a Newb loads her up and it goes handgrenade on him. I know I'm not liable but should I have done more when you look at it from a morale standpoint?
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You told the clerk, that's all you can do. After that it's none of your business.
 
I think your concern for others safety is not misplaced and black powder shooters need to be extra vigilant to prevent unfortunate mishaps.
If the gun shop had other revolvers (smokeless) that didn't index properly would they let it out???
It is possible that the people don't know what is normal for these guns if they have never seen one.
 
MauserMike said:
$400 its going to be there until the human race is extinct. They aren't that much new from Marstar...
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Not that many people know that like us BP geeks.
Probably priced that way so they can give you a special deal
The owner of the original downtown gun store; Baptiste; he did that. French fella "Special deal, just for you". Even though it was priced a tad high ( sarcasm font ) IMO, to begin with.
 
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