Opinons on 1890/1875 Remington Uberti Reproductions

[curioushooter]

Are there any enjoyers of the "other" cartridge single action of the era?

I have recently started to become fascinated with single actions at first with a New Model Flatop Blackhawk Bisley in 44 Special which is very nice indeed, and unlike many came to me with properly sized throats, not much of a barrel construction, and it shoots well with the usual suspects. I really enjoy the skeeter load 7.5 Grains of Unique with MP's clone H&G 503. Sometimes I heat it up to 8 grains. It's almost like target ammo and is very mild shooting. I have just a few complaints. 1) the Bisley grip frame is too large and heavy for me and replacement stocks have only helped this a little 2) The rear sight pin drifts out especially when you fire heavy loads. 3) Even after a professional trigger job there is some creep and it just doesn't break like an icicle like all my S&Ws do.

I wanted a companion revolver for my Marlin 1894 in 357 Mag so I purchased a very affordable Uberti 1873 SAA in 357. Despite having almost a 10 thousands cylinder gap, it shoots well with the 358429 and even the copper diapered and jacketed bullets. Not great, but ok. Mine has a retractable firing pin which works well and the trigger is about as good as the Blackhawk--that is not as good as a S&W but serviceable--and I've done nothing to it but clean and lubricate the internals. I am just blown away by the much celebrated 1851 Navy grip frame on these. It's too small. My pinky has nowhere to go, and when I hammer it back it touches the web of my hand. To me the 1860 Colt Army (my favorite grip) and the 1858 Remington (close second) cap and ball revolvers have the best grips!

It's rather embarrassing I suppose but I recently learned that Remington continued to make the 1858 pattern revolver updated it into a fully cartridge design ending with the model 1890 which I just like the look of. Right barrel length, Looks sturdy but not chunky. I especially like their grips, which seem like the 1858 but slightly elongated and pushed back. This would result in a forward heavy balance which I find helps with accuracy and an easy reach to the hammer.

Uberti makes a reproduction which has some favorable reviews, but all the ones I've read/watched are by people why don't shoot cast bullets for accuracy or at much of a distance. I was thinking of taking a dip in the 45 Colt pool with this one, and noticed that there are 45 ACP conversion cylinders for these, which means being a CIP regulated product, means these are proof tested at 1690 Bar/25,000 PSI. These would seem to be plenty safe for full powered standard 45 Colt loads or even slightly hotter ones, but certainly not with full size blackhawk/contender 45 colt loads.

Has anyone worked with these for cast bullet accuracy out to about 50 yards? What can be expected of the throats, the barrel? Constrictions? Trigger quality? Are the cones and crowns and throats cut so it will work well? Any favorites for bullets?

[MostlyLeverGuns]

Before You jump, you might handle some of the 1858 Remington's, the Remington's have a completely different feel than the Colt copies. I cannot easily cock and fire the Remington's with one hand, I wear L/XL glove. Two handed, cocking with my non-firing hand works just fine but cocking and firing the Remington's with one hand is awkward while it seems comfortable and natural with the Colt clones and the Ruger single-actions. YMMV

[rintinglen]

^^^+1
The Remington 1890 I had was just "wrong" enough in my hand to make cocking it difficult one handed. Mine was not very accurate, so it went down the road. But definitely, try before you buy. There's a reason why they have fitting rooms.

[Bent Ramrod]

I have a replica 1890 Police in .44-40. It only seems to shoot one load really accurately, requiring the Ideal 42798 hollow point. Cartridge length and crimp are critical; there isn’t the extra length of cylinder that the Colt SAA has. If the boolits are seated slightly too far out (or work their way out) the cylinder won’t turn.

If you like the 1858 Remington grip, you will like this one as well. It feels odd to my hand. On the other hand, the solid grip frame (no screws to loosen on firing) and the way Remington handled the cylinder arbor removal is a real advance on SAA technology. Long ago I took it apart for cleaning and recall being impressed at how Remington had simplified the lockwork, while still having it effective, but I can’t recall the details now.

The rear sight groove was too tiny to see the front sight clearly; I had to open it slightly with a screw-slot file. The brass trigger guard will get green corrosion on it if the gun is stored in a leather holster. But the gun is very compact and looks “neat,” so I still have it.

[curioushooter]

I didn't know the cylinder is shorter. This could be a big problem. Most bullets in 45 colt are set up for the SAA length cylinder I suppose. Thanks!

[Texas by God]

I had a Uberti nickel plated 5-1/2” 1875 in .45 Colt. Due to the short cylinder I used 230 gr rn cast bullets for my loads. When I candled the sights it shot very well. It was a nice revolver and felt good in use.
I didn’t like the shiny finish so I sold it back to the reinactor that I bought it from.


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[jreidthompson1]

I didn't know the cylinder is shorter. This could be a big problem. Most bullets in 45 colt are set up for the SAA length cylinder I suppose. Thanks!

If I measured correctly...

Edit to
Add measurement across middle center of cylinder including the ratchet.

[35 Whelen]

I didn't know the cylinder is shorter. This could be a big problem. Most bullets in 45 colt are set up for the SAA length cylinder I suppose. Thanks!

The cylinder length (1.557") plus the rim thickness (.060") equals 1.617", which is .017" over SAAMI for the .45 Colt.

35W

[curioushooter]

My 1873 Cattleman II (Uberti) 357 cylinder is 1.625" long and 1.671" in diameter. My New Model Flattop Blackhawk (44 Special) is 1.617" and 1.675" in diameter.

The Remington is 1.557 long and 1.670 diameter. So the Remington is 0.068" or about 1/16th of an inch shorter. That isn't much but I am surprised because the Remington looks larger than the SAA. the diameter (which is more important from a strength standpoint) is only .005 less than the New Model Flattops (same as new Vaqueros) and almost .050 larger than the SAA.

[curioushooter]

The blot stop cuts seem larger on Remingtons, or is this just me?

[StrawHat]

There are now conversion cylinders to use 45 ACP in the 1860 clones.

Kevin

[curioushooter]

The cylinder length (1.557") plus the rim thickness (.060") equals 1.617", which is .017" over SAAMI for the .45 Colt.

So Remingtons don't have recessed rims I assume. It seems most load data is for 1.6" OAL, so the Remington should be fine.

[curioushooter]

There are now conversion cylinders to use 45 ACP in the 1860 clones.

They are!?

[StrawHat]

They are!?

Yep!

https://www.thehighroad.org/index.ph...#post-12771395

Kevin

[armoredman]

All I can say is I had an 1875 44-40 briefly, and it was FUN to shoot. I really like that grip.

[curioushooter]

Anybody mic or gauge the throats? Also, do any of these have a hammer block or retractable firing pin or transfer bar safety?

[Bird]

Anybody mic or gauge the throats? Also, do any of these have a hammer block or retractable firing pin or transfer bar safety?

The throats on my 2022 cattleman measure 0.366''and are made to Uberti's specification. It will not shoot boolits without severe leading of barrel. It shoots jacketed ok to 30 feet, but nothing I would call great accuracy. They are not worth the money as a paper weight in my opinion.

[curioushooter]

So I purchased an 1875 "Outlaw" by Taylor's manufactured by Uberti. Very good price. Upon getting it I made several measurements. The cylinder wall thickness between the chambers is greater than a New Model Small Frame Vaquero despite the Vaquero having a slightly larger cylinder in diameter. The top strap is ticker and wider than a SAA. The cylinder is shorter however, and only slightly greater than the 45 Colt OAL limiting bullet selection. Pretty much to RNFPs and other snort nosed bullets (it has a max of about .330" from crimp to nose). I believe these are as strong, or stronger than an Uberti SAA and possibly a Ruger Vaquero considering their thicker chamber walls (minium is .045 while Vaq is .037). It took the .452 pin gauge in all 6 throats but hung up the .453 in 5 of the throats and would not accept the .454 in any. Interestingly it seems to slightly constrict at the very end of the throat near the front of the cylinder. I am thinking this may need to be reamed or polished out. I am pretty excited about the throats though not being wildly oversized. Undersized can be fixed. The barrel has a nice finish and seems to be free of constriction. The barrel cylinder gap will take a .004 feeler gauge on all 6 chambers but rejects a .003+.002. So pretty decent. I actually think the sights are pretty decent; I have yet to see how they are regulated. The finish is good with a few flaws. The grips are disappointing being dyed this ugly red color and they don't fit well. Undersized and gappy. I like the balance. The ejector housing is clever and well made. I like it better than a Colt's and it has a longer ejector rod. The finish inside the chambers seems great. But the finish inside the hole for the base pin was rough. It needs to be polished. It was covered in smelly packing oil. I did a complete disassembly and cleaned it out. Did no polishing. But did use Ballistol to lightly lubricate. Excellent trigger break. No creep. Fairly light. Like an icicle. As good as my best S&W (a 624). The safety mechanism is ingenious. There is a hole bored though the hammer from the quarter cock notch to the pivoting hammer block. A spring loaded plunger rides in this that resets the hammer block to the non-interference position. When in the quarter cock position the trigger's sear surface contacts the quarter cock notch and pushes the plunger so that it moves the hammer block into the position that interferes with the frame. As long as you carefully decock without your finger on the trigger the hammer safely falls into the quarter cock notch and the hammer block is positively engaged. This safety seems at least as robust as that found a S&W double action with exposed hammer and hammer mounted firing pin. It worked much better after I cleaned it out and put a few drops of Ballistol in it. There is almost no over-travel for the hammer; you must hammer back positively or you will short-stroke the cock. It is somewhat easier to short stroke the hammer on a Remington it seems than a Colt. All the parts are a bit more robust than on a Colt but are all similar. The hand spring has a lot more space to operate in and I would think is fare less likely to break. The trigger guard is held by just one screw. There are fewer screws (no frame screws) and no pins. Only one very small, small, and medium screw driver are needed for disassembly (except for the safety which you will need a tiny roll pin punch for but will never need to disassemble). The barrel has a flat milled on it for the ejector housing. The barrel thickness in 45 colt is not all that great but I would think that this could pose a problem if one wants to turn back the barrel for some reason. I like the feel of the grips but wish they were about 3/8" longer. I like them better than the 1851/1873 Colt, but not as much as the 1860 Army. I definitely prefer the very sturdy grip frame of the Remington design over the multi piece design of the Colts. I'll see how it shoots and report back once I get a mold and something cast up!

[Good Cheer]

We had a hunting buddy in the 70's that packed a 1875 from EMF.
Only guy I ever saw could head shoot quail with a 44-40.
But what he did with a .50 caliber flintlock was plum inspiring.

[gunther]

Did you measure the depth of the bolt notch and subtract that from the cylinder wall thickness? That is supposed to be the weak spot of a revolver cylinder.