new Uberti 1873

[Mungo]

Bought a NIB 1873 Uberti short rifle from a Calgunner who was kind of enough to deal with the hassle of shipping it to me. Any tips on basic operation, breaking in and maintenance would be appreciated. Dry firing okay? (manual refers to an unloading procedure that concludes with releasing the hammer gently, but that is conceivably a safety tip. Any disassembly advised for routine cleaning?

[golfish]

Brother, please post a picture if you can. I don't recall ever reading a bad thing about these guns.

What caliber?

[smle-man]

Bought a NIB 1873 Uberti short rifle from a Calgunner who was kind of enough to deal with the hassle of shipping it to me. Any tips on basic operation, breaking in and maintenance would be appreciated. Dry firing okay? (manual refers to an unloading procedure that concludes with releasing the hammer gently, but that is conceivably a safety tip. Any disassembly advised for routine cleaning?

Dry firing won't do your firing pin any favors.

[Mungo]

It's in 357 and still in jail . . . 20 inch barrel if I am not mistaken.

[golfish]

It's in 357 and still in jail . . . 20 inch barrel if I am not mistaken.

Yes, the short rifle should have the 20" barrel.

It doesn't get any better then a .357 lever gun. My .357 24" Rossi is my favorite gun to shoot.

Its perfect for pulling up to our favorite spot out in the Mojave and carrying it 10 feet to the shooting table, or hitting somebody over the head

[jimsguns]

get yourself some snap caps for dry firing. Also fun just to load up with snap caps and crank the lever action

I have a Uberti 1873 short (20") in .45LC....so much fun!

[Mungo]

How often do you guys remove the side plates and clean out the guts?

[golfish]

How often do you guys remove the side plates and clean out the guts?

I remove the mag tube and wood, then flush it out with break cleaner to clean the guts, but I'm talking the 92 model not 73.

[Calif Hunter]

I would use a snap cap myself - you can just cock the hammer and pull the trigger - or buy several and then you can run them through the action.

[Shakey]

They are fairly bullet-proof. The Cowboy Action folks beat on them pretty hard and they don't break very often. I put a few thousand rounds through one in 45LC. Only took the side plates off when the action got noticeably sticky or slow.

[Mungo]

I decided that I wanted to get the side plates off and have a look inside, and despite having enough common sense to acquire gunsmithing screwdrivers (Grace, made in the USA), I've managed to snap the tip off of the driver and now it's wedged into the screw which remains firmly in place. It's like the screw no longer has a slot anymore as it is completely filled by the broken tip, and of course the break is aligned with the face of the screw so there is nothing to grab on to. Leaning towards handing it over to the folks at the Cowboy and Indian store in Santa Anna and getting this resolved along with an action job. The finish hasn't been marred yet, but I'd be interested in any other suggestions.

[johnthomas]

I decided that I wanted to get the side plates off and have a look inside, and despite having enough common sense to acquire gunsmithing screwdrivers (Grace, made in the USA), I've managed to snap the tip off of the driver and now it's wedged into the screw which remains firmly in place. It's like the screw no longer has a slot anymore as it is completely filled by the broken tip, and of course the break is aligned with the face of the screw so there is nothing to grab on to. Leaning towards handing it over to the folks at the Cowboy and Indian store in Santa Anna and getting this resolved along with an action job. The finish hasn't been marred yet, but I'd be interested in any other suggestions.

Unless you are told somewhere along your life journey the difference between tapered screw drivers and hallow ground screw drivers, you don't know. I myself, bought a driver and bit set from snap-on with just about any bit I might need.

http://www.tngun.com/differences-between-normal-and-gunsmith-screwdrivers/

[Mungo]

Alas, I used hollow-ground "square shanked" drivers, and it still broke.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0030HL5O0?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s01

[golfish]

Could you get a dental pick in the slot of the screw and pull the broken piece out?

Is the screw that tight? I wonder if they used some kind of Loctite?

[Mungo]

The dental pick is a good idea -- I only had plastic picks and they couldn't generate enough force. I suspect there is no Loctite, but simply a highly torqued screw from production, and the tool I was using was of insufficient quality. I have pretty much resolved to turn it over to a pro for an action job, and in the course of doing that they will deal with this and re-fasten every other screw to a reasonable level.