Brass frame rifle's durable?

[fatelvis]

I like the look of the Yellowboy and other brass framed lever guns, but are they as durable, and in your opinion will they wear as well as a steel framed rifle? Thanks-

[Texas by God]

I don't think the Henry uses actual brass. The Italian clones probably are and restricted to low pressure rounds. No reason they shouldn't last.
Best, Thomas.

[2ndAmendmentNut]

Durable enough for the intended purpose; which is black powder or the equivalent smokeless level loads. A lot of folks run Italian 1866 Yellowboys pretty hard in cowboy action. I myself use a brass framed 44W.C.F. 1860 Henry made by Uberti and sold through Cimarron. In my opinion the weak part of these rifles are not the brass frames, but the toggle link style action, but again the toggle links and brass frames are durable enough for standard level loads. If black powder is going to be used I would highly recommend going with a traditional W.C.F. caliber.

Edit: If we are talking about Henry Repeating Arms brand rifles I have never heard of a complaint or doubt about the strength of their actions.

[JBinMN]

I am in the market for one of those Henry .44 carbines (Goldenboy type, called a "Big boy"), & I was just at Wild Goose Sports in Rochester,Minn., asking the owner Ralph, about getting one through him. I asked him about getting a blued one though, as I am not into that fancy brass look & if I did use it , I would prefer the blued for hunting. He laughed & said that he could just make a phone call for a price & just let him know when. I am planning on waiting a couple months, but I wanted to check on if he would do it for me while I was in that area.

I don't know for sure & it might restrict the piece to low pressure rounds, but what comes to mind to me is an old saying when I was riding harleys years ago...
"Chrome don't get ya home." LOL
;)

So, I will stick to the blued one even if the pressures don't matter at all.

G'luck & hope ya get one if they are what you are after. I have a couple friends who have the .22 ones & they like them, but don't shoot them often since they don't want to get them dirty, scratch something, or make them lose value. "Safe queen" type weapons is all they are to them. I am not really that way. I like to use my stuff. I'm betting my granboys would rather say, This one is one my pappy used often.", than, "This one is one my pappy kept in a safe."
;)

Once again! G'luck!
:)

[John Boy]

Have a brass frame Rossi '92 with over 15,000 reloads of BP & Smokeless done the bore ... still no effects of frame damage being brass!

[Der Gebirgsjager]

In reference to the Henry rifles only, when they first appeared on the market Henry claimed that the material used in the receivers was just as strong or stronger than steel. Metallurgically speaking, their brass is probably more akin to naval bronze. I wouldn't hesitate to buy one if that was what I wanted.

[M-Tecs]

Have a brass frame Rossi '92 with over 15,000 reloads of BP & Smokeless done the bore ... still no effects of frame damage being brass!

Is that a true brass frame or plated?

[Griff]

Have a brass frame Rossi '92 with over 15,000 reloads of BP & Smokeless done the bore ... still no effects of frame damage being brass!
Is that a true brass frame or plated?It could be either, as Rossi did make some with actual brass. A magnet will tell.

[fixit]

i wouldn't rule out that they use one of the stronger bronze alloys

[Skipper]

Henry says the frames are " hardened brass with same tensile & yield strength as steel ".

[Wayne Smith]

Henry uses 'gun metal' which is actually a very strong bronze. It is the alloy that was used to make cannons back in the day. I have no idea what Uberti uses.

[jmort]

It is, as noted, a very stong brass alloy. It is way strong. The least of your worries.

[Multigunner]

If I'm correct the alloy used is one that is in fact far stronger than carbon steel.

The Beryllium Bronze alloys used by the USN and manufacturers of tools for use in areas where fuel vapors might explode if a spark were struck by steel tools are said to be three times stronger than tool steel.
There are other high strength Brass alloys that do not contain beryllium such as UNS C86500 (high strength yellow brass).

In any case there are modern copper based alloys that are far stronger than most of the steel alloys used to make guns in the Black Powder era.

[Soundguy]

In reference to the Henry rifles only, when they first appeared on the market Henry claimed that the material used in the receivers was just as strong or stronger than steel. Metallurgically speaking, their brass is probably more akin to naval bronze. I wouldn't hesitate to buy one if that was what I wanted.


I thought I heard a claim of 'red brass' for their rcvr material.

[KCSO]

With standard factory loads a Uberti 66 rifle will go at least 10,000 rounds without damage. On the other hand a 66 in 38 special will go less than 2000 rounds shooting Elmer Keith style loads...158 gr semi wadcutter at 1150 fps. Brass frames will lose headspace if pushed to the limit.

[The Ozzman]

I have a friend who has an Uberti 1866 in 44-40 which he used a combination of smokless loads and black loads.

His has developed some wear issues of some sort, though I do not know if it relates to the brass frame. Someone did look at it for him and "smoooth some edges off where it has worn" however again I do not know if this is correct or if that person is mistaken and there was another issue.

He runs it is western action, but not heaps and heaps. I beleive he has had it 10+ years. If I see him soon I will ask him exactly what the issue is.

As for true brass framed rifles in general, in the case of the toggle link actions, I feel that this would be a weak spot much more so than the brass frames. Do some research on the exact type you will be getting and ensure it is from a reliable source.

[John Taylor]

One of the brass imports of a Henry came in years ago, had over .050" head space from shooting heavy 45 L Colt loads. No ware just a stretched frame.

[OverMax]

If the rifle is a original 1866 winchester. (yellow boy as they were named by our Native Americans) Its receiver is solid yellow cast brass and very likely to wear do to use.

Currently made Henry's? There are brass alloys with tensile and yield strengths as good as or better than steels commonly used in firearms manufacturing. Thus highly unlikely to wear due to normal use.

[hp246]

I have an Uberti 66 Carbine with brass frame. I probably have between 3 and 4 thousand rounds through it the past two years shooting CAS. I've made a couple of changes to it, including short stroke and springs. 0 issues.

[indian joe]

Run it with standard factory loads and you will love it - put hot loads in it and you will stretch the frame - no ifs, buts, or maybes. I have a 66 uberti - my favourite shooter but seen two others bound up from rossi '92 level handloads.

[JNG3]

I don't know about the imports, but a modern Henry will have no issues with factory or handloads that don't exceed published data.