His cap and ball test: Pietta vs. Uberti.

[Darto]

There is a clear winner. you can fast forward to near the end to see. Piettas tend to have overly long barrels and tighter cylinder chambers and smaller loading port windows and not as deep rummer recess in the noses. He is demonstrating the arbor length too: both are perfect and so is the original. I have percussion guns from both Pietta and Uberti and like what I have. Video is only 2 weeks old.

[Maltese Falcon]

I wonder how they would do with cartridge conversion cylinders like this: https://kirstkonverter.com/1851-61-colt-navy.html

.

[Darto]

I use the ones made by Howell which are much cheaper. I have 4 or 5 and all work very well. The Pietta 1860 were out of stock for about 5 years but they are back in stock now. PIetta makes the snub 1860s. Kenny Howell used to make them, I think his wife does now.

https://howellarms.com/product-category/cylinders/

[Spyder]

I've got a stainless 1858 I've been meaning to get a conversion cylinder for for years. Need to bump it up my list.

[Darto]

If the 1858 is made by Uberti, then the conversion cylinder will also fit in this. As of tonight, Midway 20% off of everything in your cart is still in play. It has been good for a few days now. code is 20MUSA.
I think you have to not have purchased in awhile. What I did was just create a new account with a new gmail address and the 20% code worked.

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1002300125?pid=633440

[Darto]

...

[NapalmCheese]

I have 2 1851s and 1 1861 that I use for Cowboy Action Shooting. The 1861 is a Uberti worked over by Longhunter, one 1851 is a stock Uberti on which I've put SlixShot nipples, and the other is a stock Pietta on which I've put SlixShot nipples.

Hands down the Pietta is the better 'out of box' gun. The 'too short arbor' issue is a real problem when you're trying to shoot six stages with minimal clean up. I actually plop a #10 stainless split ring on the Uberti arbor (held on with grease) before I reassemble as a quick fix. Most of the issues Larson Pettifogger wrote about the Piettas have been fixed or at least decreased over the last several years. All of the issues he wrote about the Uberti cap guns remain.

The Pietta guns are less historically accurate, since they make a lot of mix-n-match guns that never existed and tend to use the same frame for their 44 caliber and .36 caliber pistols.

[Spyder]

I also bought one of the 36 Caliber Navy revolvers planning on putting a 38 conversion cylinder on it from one of the KGC blem sales a year or two ago but didn't realize it was the 5 shot version that doesn't take the cylinder. Still haven't shot the thing, oughta sell it. But it's darn'd cute.

[NapalmCheese]

I've got a stainless 1858 I've been meaning to get a conversion cylinder for for years. Need to bump it up my list.

While the Howell conversions work well, I've found that after a few regional cowboy matches one of the cylinders ended up backing out a firing pin bushing which then a) prevented me from loading the cylinder, b) prevented it firing (light strike), c) bent the firing pin (I think).

So they work, but extra care needs to be taken with them, particularly if you're going to be doing a lot of shooting.

[Spyder]

I doubt I'd fire it more than half a dozen cylinder fulls a year, but good to know!