Colt-Walker Cylinder Jam

S

sfhurst

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I have a Colt-Walker .44 sold by Colt, but built for them by Uberti. VERY high quality, but if I correctly tighten the wedge that binds the barrel to the receiver group the cylinder will not turn, i.e. tightening the wedge forces the barrel back against the front of the cylinder eliminating the very small gap.

Help. Any others experiencing this problem? Any solutions?
 
How far are you inserting the wedge, and are you inserting the wedge from the left side of the gun? The Walker wedge goes in from the right side. I don't know if that could cause your problems, but it's worth a shot.
 
I had the samne problem and the correction is simple, drive the wedge inuntil it stops and then reverse direction and when the small finger touches the frame, stop. The cylinder should turn with no binding and the barrel clearence should be very close.
 
I had the samne problem and the correction is simple, drive the wedge inuntil it stops and then reverse direction and when the small finger touches the frame, stop. The cylinder should turn with no binding and the barrel clearence should be very close.
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Doing that creates undue wear on the wedge. That much wedge showing might be alright on an older gun with some wear on it but not on a new one or one that hasn't been used much. Ideally you should have .006-.008 cylinder gap altho more wouldn't hurt. Too tight a gap and you won't fire many cylinders before it starts to bind. Just because it turns free when it's clean and unfired doesn't by any stretch of the imagination mean it'll turn once it's fouled.
 
Had the same problem on my Uberti Walker. I adjusted the wedge slightly to correct the problem but wasn't happy that the gap was that tight. I filed down the barrel forcing cone a bit, polished it off, and re-blued it. Problem solved.
 
While you can use the wedge to control barrel gap to a certain extent, having the proper arbor length is the correct method. Plus it works so much better and you don't fubar the wedge. You should insert the wedge with firm thumb pressure and a gentle tap should remove it.
 
I have a Colt-Walker .44 sold by Colt, but built for them by Uberti. VERY high quality, but if I correctly tighten the wedge that binds the barrel to the receiver group the cylinder will not turn, i.e. tightening the wedge forces the barrel back against the front of the cylinder eliminating the very small gap.

Help. Any others experiencing this problem? Any solutions?
Click to expand...



I have that same problem with a Colt cartridge conversion 44 Colt caliber- I don't drive the wedge in all the way, just enough to cinch it to barrel. It's not a bad idea to leave it that way, because if you shoot the gun a lot, eventually it's going to loosen up a bit, so having it tight to begin with, you're getting a head start on barrel/cylinder gap.
 
I've got six Ubertis, and only one shows that problem (arbor too long). It's a London model 1851 Navy.

I wound up finding some washers that were the same diameter of the arbor, after the chamfer (so really a little smaller than the arbor). I built them up until the fit was correct, then JB Welded them to the end of the arbor. Problem solved!
 
I wonder what people do when they add washers to the end of the arbor so the cylinder gap is wide enough and then find the space between the barrels bottom lug and the frame is too wide or find the wedge won't go into it's slot anymore?
 
I wonder what people do when they add washers to the end of the arbor so the cylinder gap is wide enough and then find the space between the barrels bottom lug and the frame is too wide or find the wedge won't go into it's slot anymore?
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That's a very good question. You fit the arbor length for proper barrel/lug fit to the frame, .000-.002. If barrel gap is tight you remove material at the forcing cone. If the gap is excessive you go back, remove material at the lug/frame, that moves the barrel back. The 60 and 61 model you can remove at the barrel lug, the 51 you have to pull the two pins and remove from the frame.

If you only are making a very minor adjustment, .005 to .010 you generally do not need to alter the wedge slot. For larger adjustments you need to weld the front the the arbor slot and file/machine it for proper fit. The wedge contacts the front of the arbor slot and the rear of the barrel lug slot, be sure you are working the right area.

For short arbors I machine a button from drill rod that fits the arbor hole in the lug. I drill and tap a 6-40 hole in the center so I can remove the button if needed. I make the OD a light press fit.
 
Madcratebuilder, the 6/48 is a good size for that since it's small. Do you drill a blind hole that's only a few threads(like the holes in a barrel when installing a Hawken Rifles under rib) deep? Keep as much of the end of the arbor intact for strength? I like to do blind holes with an end mill bottom cut so the bottom of the hole is not concave. That way I can keep it shallow and still get a few threads to screw on the button. I grind a bottoming tap flat across the bottom so it can tap right to the bottom of the hole.
It onmly takes a few threads to keep the button on the end.
I like to take the button and leave it a little long. Make a hole in the middle.....have it welded to the end of the arbor so there's no weakening of the arbor end. The heat doesn't seem to bother it. After it's on I file it to the diameter of the arbor so it's always even with the end of it. Works out good.
I've used a screw that works real well but the smallest it comes in is 8-32. The lock screw than keeps the lock on a muzzleloader rifle. Has a big head that really works nice for making an arbor end button. You know...for people without a lathe. Track of the Wolf sells the lock screws. It's like the tang screws but the tang screws have a domed head.
 
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