My very own Pietta Target Model (and first appearances)

Thoughts from another owner

I own 2, a 8" stocker and a 5' factory "Chopped" revolver. Really love the chopped bbl, as it handles qiuck and dose't suffer at all in the energy or accuracy dept!
Power gets awsome with 35 gr and up loads!
Both exhibit fine workmanship and smoothness.
BPDave.
 
Gonna be getting my revolver back from the machinist Tuesday! I had a Ruger Blackhawk rear sight dropped in and a new fix for the incorrect height of the front sight. A trigger stop screw was being added instead of my cheap but effective pencil eraser and electrical tape, and a grip button/extension was added to the grip frame. Pictures soon to come.
 
I GOT IT BACK!!! Post modifications.

This afternoon I got the gun back from the machinist. I had a button added for grip, a better trigger stop added instead of the tape and eraser I had, a Ruger Blackhawk rear sight, and a little material added to the top of the front sight. I haven't shot it yet. I will shoot it tomorrow. Shoot results will be posted.









 
Shoot results at 25 yds!

This picture is of the gun, and two targets I shot for practice or pretend record. The left target is a 25 yard slow fire (10 shots in 30 minutes) and the right target is a 25 yard limited time fire (from the report of your first shot, of ten shots to be fired, time starts leaving you ten minutes to fire 9 more shots. You start with a loaded five shot cylinder and obviously need to reload during the 10 minutes.) these two targets were fired one handed, standing at 25 yards, and one target right after the next.

I tested a .445, .451, and .454 size ball and the .454 shaved the most lead (and quite a bit more than I'd prefer) but it shot the most accurate at 25 yards than the others. I used 17 grains (by weight not volume) of FFFg Goex, corn meal, .454 ball seated just below the surface or face of the cylinder and white lythium grease as a lube.

EDIT: I also want to add that NOT ALL Pietta 1858 New Model Army Target Revolvers are going to be this accurate. This gun was one of seven that were examined and this one was found to be the best. We were looking for chambers lining up with the bore, timing, and lock up. This gun just happened to be the lucky lotto number that came out of the factory "correctly". Amazing quality for the price. A near stock $350 gun turned out match accurate. Who would've thought....

 
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50 yard slow fire target (10 shots in 30 minutes). I fired two targets before this one to find my zero then I shot the one pictured below. One handed standing at 50 yards. I used the same load mentioned before - 17 grains (weight not volume) 3Fg Goex, corn meal, .454 ball seated at the surface and white lythium grease as a lubricant. Not bad at all. Actually I'm quite impressed with this gun all around.

The conclusion to all this is that Pietta makes damn fine guns. But you have to inspect them and make sure that you get one where all the chambers line up, good timing and tight lock up. You may want to change the sights out on it but if you get one that's right... It'll flat shoot that's for sure!

 
Rookie

Still a little curious about the front sight fix. What was the material added?

I wondered if your smith added a soft metal, like bronze perhaps, that you could then file down to go with the new Ruger rear sight height? I am presuming that he left it to you to coordinate front height with the adjustment markings on the rear sight?
 
The front sight had a hole drilled into the top. Then a new piece of steel was "stamped" or "pressed in. The new piece had a pin on the bottom. Much like a fixed front sight on an old M1911. Then it was milled on either side to match the thickness of the original material. He left it tall in case we needed to file some down. But it seems to be tall enough. It's not a pretty fix or original or factory looking but it was a quick job done to get me back on the firing line quickly so I could practice for the nationals this September.
 
No I do not use wads ever. Just powder, corn, ball, grease. Wads are an unnecessary thing maybe to help keep fouling down? ... I don't know what their for but I think their useless. Extra expense I don't need nor want.
 
Rookie

Thanks for the front sight info. And I guess corn is better than wheat because it will compress better, to get just the right height in the loaded cylinder cavities?
 
I've been told corn meal won't compress but the powder will. So the trick to getting a consistent load is

1.) have a way to measure the powder out so it's the same every time.

2.) make sure that each chamber gets the same amount of corn meal each time. Don't just wing it or guess. Don't tap or settle the corn meal (some people do some don't- I don't ... Much) until all the chambers have their fill. That way no one chamber gets settled more than the others.

3.) your seat depth needs to be controlled. Your press should have a stop on it that only allows you to seat the ball a few thousandths below the face of the cylinder. That way you seat to the stop. Depth and travel or jump is now consistent.

The key in any firearm be it black powder cartridge, smokeless, muzzleloaders, single shots, shot guns, percussion revolvers.... Consistency is the road to accuracy. But it only counts for a small percentage. The rest of it depends on the shooter. His stance, grip, trigger control, breathing, his mental state of focus, etc.

For the hobby shooter, the once in a while guy, dumping stuff down the chamber and crushing a ball on top with the guns loading lever is fine but if you want performance then you'll need to get scientific. Consistency is crucial.
 
Corn meal or cream of wheat - it does not matter which. Corn meal will not compress so the more you use the more you compress the powder. Compressing the powder increases pressure and velocities some and potentionally changing point of impact or group size. I don't know if cream of wheat will compress or not. The simple trick is use the same each time, and a consistent seat depth. This gives you consistent compression and pressure and velocity.
 
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