uberti 1858 barrel problem

H

Hardy

New member
I have an 1858 uberti cast frame w/ conversion cylinder. Nice gun!

After shooting 20 or 30 rounds of cowboy load 45's , one round went POOF.

I broke the gun down and saw a lead ring arond the front of one chamber of the cylinder but after minimal cleaning it looked fine. I just recently decided to polish it and noticed a small bulge 1 inch from the cylinder on the left and right slants from the top of the oc barrel. You wouldn,t notice it unless you ran your finger across both sides. I am going to send it to the gunsmith and get a new barrel. I am now wondering what happened but if I hadn't checked it it might explde next time. I now wonder about why the barrel heated up(or what did it do) to form those small bubbles and I wonder about the safety of these cylinders . Please be careful w/ these coversions or am I just paranoid

WBH
 
Wait let me clarify. It was one inch up the barrel not from the cylinder and I didn't shoot those many rounds that day--mabe 7. I only shot 20 or 30 since Ive owned the gun for maybe 2 years.

Thank you

WBH
 
It sounds like one of your bullets didn't make it out of the barrel and the next one stopped on the obstruction and caused the barrel to bulge.

Jim
 
I believe you might be right James. I thought when the bullet went poof. I checked the barrel. Maybe it flashed too hot too quick before it exited with nopunch. Is that possible?
 
After several private conversations it is what I always thought--conversion cylinders for these guns are dangerous. Buy a colt/ruger etc that handles metalic cartridges. If you have a bp gun w/ conversion then just keep it for home protection. If I didn't know some bit of these things I would have shot it again and maybe not be around anymore. HA maybe some of you would have liked that--just kidding... hopefully? I want use them anymore but I never used them much it just so happened what could have happened a lot worse with my desire to shoot a few rounds. Im glad I wasn't injured.

WBH
 
I did a search and couldn't find any info on conversion cylinders causing barrel bulge. I hope it isn't common. I got one and was under the impression that cowboy loads are safe to use.
 
OK I would buy a blackhawk or a colt that costs more than 600 to shoot bulletrs

BP guns need no more than 23 to 24 grains of pyrodex in a 36

30 to 32grains in a 44

after shooting a cowboy load plese check your barrel and cylinder and be meticulous about it. They are legal and you be careful
 
Squib loads are a hazard of the sport, especially reloads. If these were factory loads I would contact the manufacturer.
 
What you had was a "squib" followed by a good load. The bulge is a result of the stuck bullet getting pushed out by the next round.
Several years ago I thought I had a bad cap, but the ball only went part way and the next one fired. The barrel has the slightest bulge, almost need to need a micrometer. I still shoot it and it doesn't seem it effect any thing.
The lesson= Ever have a round that doesn't sound right fire no more till you check the barrel.
 
After several private conversations it is what I always thought--conversion cylinders for these guns are dangerous.
Click to expand...

You can't be serious?!

No disrespect intended, however I can't imagine your conversion cylinder had anything to do with the bulge in the barrel unless you want to consider a squib round the conversion cylinder's fault. And that could happen with any firearm regardless of it being a cartridge revolver, semi-auto or rifle.
 
The lesson= Ever have a round that doesn't sound right fire no more till you check the barrel.
Click to expand...

Yup! I have only ever had one squib - was shooting my old 1904 .32 S&W revolver and one shot sounded funny, and smoke tendrils lazily drifted up from the face of the cylinder.

I popped the cylinder and sure enough, there was a bullet wedged down the barrel. If I had fired a second shot, it might have been bad.

Every time I'm at a range and here someone pulling the trigger as fast as they can to unload a firearm like Hollywood I think about that.

Steve
 
I was in a dark room designed for a recording studio but has adequate ventalsion. When the gun went poof-I rolled out the cylinder and checked the barrel and it appeared clear so I finished out the remaing 2 rounds. It might be possible that the bullet split and left extra lead coating in the rifling and inside the barrel that caused the other 2 shots w/ unseen obstruiction. But I did not rapid fire it.
 
I am confused. I looked through a pietta manual and it said to use only 17 grains of pyrodex in a 36 and 28 in a 44 but you can use 22 in a 36 and 32 of real bp. Since I shot one -I remember the 36 spouts on a colt flask did not give enough for a good fire. Isn,t 17 grains not enough? Is that what the flask spout holds. I no longer have a powder measure since i liquidated my store but I always used 38 special spent shell to load 36 navys. I think they held around 23 to 24 grains of pyrodex. WAs I using too much? Or the manual is just covering their a..
 
robhof

The new manuals are bowing to the lawyers. Load data from 20 yr old manuals are much more liberal than todays manuals. With real b/p it would be next to impossible to overcharge a revolver cylinder, after all they will only hold a specific amount of powder to properly seat a projectile!:D:cool::confused:
 
There used to be a magazine called Black Powder and I remember they never said how much BP to put in them. Why would pyrodex be more volutle or powerful than the real stuff? I always thought a 38 spent shell was great for 36 and a 45 long colt was a good measure for a 44. But as a lot of our members know--I'm still learning---I'm going to send that 1858 to Tom at Taylors w/ notes and get him to put on a new barrel. It was a uberti w/ case hardened frame. And I put the conversion cylinder away
 
And one other thought and I'll leave you alone. Before 1873 conversion cylinders and tooled conversions were made but they still shot only bp. Even the colt preacemaker was shooting BP. The guns today have a superior quality of steel and better tooling to handle metallic cartridges. Buy a quality one.

wbh
 
IMO Pyrodex is not quite as strong. I use 25 grains of both Pyro and Swiss in .36's and 30 in .44's.
 
I'm sorry but this is the biggest bunch of hogwash I've ever heard!!
The modern cylinders are as fine as a modern revolver. The barrels are capable of handling jacketed ammo. The rest of the gun is for support. The steel is better than the iron the original 1873 SAAs (a cartridge gun, fairly famous).
The frame doesn't know it's a frame, the barrel doesn't know it's a barrel and believe it or not, the cylinder doesn't know it's a cylinder!!! Yet a "cartridge " gun is somehow "better " at shooting cartridge ammo than a re-fitted c&b gun?
Because someone had a squib load suddenly all of those type guns are " not safe"?!!!

Were there other people involved in these "conversations" or was it you talking to yourself!!?
Somebody !! Quick!! Tell Kirst they need to shut down . . . . . somebody shot a squib load!!!!

GIVE ME A BREAK !!!!

Just for the record, I've never shot anything less than "normal" factory loads and my own loads are not even close to anemic. All my c&b revolvers are converted and have been for years with outstanding performance (of course i havent told them they're conversions!!)
 
Last edited:
Why do say this is hawgwash. The new guns have been designed with better steel, engineering and tech advanced by learned knowledge.I was trying to say what people think is safe lookback at 2 year old post of a pietta conversion cylinder that blew up on the left side--it is there
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top