Cattleman II piercing primers

J

Jakeway

New member
I have a new Uberti Cattleman II with the retractable firing pin. I've only fired it 25 times so far, and all the primers have very deep craters. Two of them actually pierced to the point you can see light shining through.

These aren't powerful loads: Winchester Cowboy Action 250 gr LFPRN.

The firing pin has very squared off edges, not the typical rounded firing pins on other guns.

Have others experienced this, either with Cattleman II or the original versions of Uberti SAA?

(I'd post pics, but I haven't found a photo posting site I like since Photobucket started charging.)
 
No firing pin should have square edges. Try stoning them off so you have a radius. That will probably fix the problem.
 
Closeup of firing pin profile, light showing in pierced primer, outside of pierced primer, and two that didn't pierce but were close. They all looked like this.







 
It's hard to imagine that got through parts inspection then fitting & final inspection. That's a defective part. Too bad it is not mounted on the hammer. I can see the recoil shield getting scratched trying to file it round.
 
It looks like they put the pin into a fixture and ground the end to make it the proper length. Not only is it squared off, but very flat and shiny on the face. I look a diamond file and rounded it some, then used a very fine stone from my knife sharpening kit and smoothed out any burrs. Hopefully this weekend I can get out and test it some more.
 
Jakeway said:
It looks like they put the pin into a fixture and ground the end to make it the proper length. Not only is it squared off, but very flat and shiny on the face. I look a diamond file and rounded it some, then used a very fine stone from my knife sharpening kit and smoothed out any burrs. Hopefully this weekend I can get out and test it some more.
Click to expand...

Let us know how it does! Hope it performs a bit better now in this regard.
 
I need clarification: is the firing pin mounted on the hammer or in the frame with a spring that retracts it when the hammer is pulled back (at safety, half or full cock)?
 
You can do a search on YouTube that explains it better, but it's a new form of safety (release din 2016) that looks like a fixed-position firing pin mounted on the hammer, but in reality the firing pin "floats" loose inside the hammer. There's a rod or pin that rides in a channel cut inside the hammer; when the trigger is pulled and held pulled, a spur on the trigger pushes the rod upward inside the hammer, which forces the firing pin to be extended fully. The firing pin stays out as long as you hold the trigger. When the hammer falls, the trigger fits through a hole in the frame, striking the primer on the cartridge.

This allows you to safely carry six rounds in the cylinder, because if you drop the gun or strike the hammer, the firing pin stays retracted inside the hammer and doesn't touch the primer with enough force to fire it.

In the picture above, I had to pull the trigger in order for the pin to stick out so you could see it.

Having said all that, I think I'll still only load 5 rounds and leave the hammer on an empty chamber.
 
My dies and reloading supplies for the 45 Colt came in this week, so I rounded off the firing pin a little bit, loaded up 10 rounds each of five different powder charges with 200 grain LRNFP bullets, and headed for the woods. Primers looked good and I think I found a good loading. I need to get used to the sights and the trigger pull (This is my first centerfire handgun of any kind, and I only shot it 25 times before today) but I think this loading will work for awhile.

One target is from 10 yards and the other from 20. The large black circle is 11", the light orange ring is 6" and the orange bull is 3". The one picture might show on your screen sideways; the ten yard target is centered but a bit low.



 
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