Nine years after and still it goes on ... HeeHee! :O)
Face it the 1851 Pietta brass or steel frame .44 is a real revolver ... has not been disproved to have ever existed as a prototype , experimental model, or an aftermarket modification... NO Records they burned ...
Anyway the South made Brass framed Revs and .44's along with .36 cal so without too much of a stretch of the imagination the Brass or Steel Navy in ..36 or .44 is a replica or call it an original :O)
I like the 1851 Colt Navy in .44 cause I like the Navy feel but I like a .44 boolit ...