BP cap and ball cartridge conversions...

[B27]

....are IMHO one of the most fun things you can do legally these days.

Take an Uberti (or Pietta or Navy Arms or whatever) repro cap and ball revolver, add an R&D cartridge conversion cylinder-





And you have a nice repro cap and ball pistol that shoots modern ammo loaded to cowboy, low pressure specs.

The one in the picture above is an Uberti 1861 Colt repro converted to fire .38 Long Colt.
Which ammo, thanks the cowboy shooters, is now readily available.

Eveyone who shoots mine is just crazy about it.

http://www.buffaloarms.com/r_and_d_c...s_pr-3787.aspx

[jack404]

but why ?

[B27]

Cause, as much as messing with percussion caps, black powder and lead ball ammo...plus the great fun cleaning up the gun after only about a couple dozen shots fired.
And mind you....all that IS great fun..

Just loading .38 Long Colt rounds into it really is less trouble all around.

Just call me lazy...

But when you have three or five people wanting to shoot the gun.....DANG, my way is easier.

[Alpo]

And we must not forget that the gun is cap and ball, so it is not a gun, and the conversion cylinder is a part, so it's not a gun, but if you buy them both you have a gun that there is no paperwork on.

Of course, you paid twice as much, but there's no paperwork.

[B27]

Alpo-
Mine only came to about $600 total so I'm not sure it cost twice as much, but I certainly agree with all your other comments.

Have you done one of these conversions?
Have you tried the 1860 Army/.45 Colt one?

That one kind of gives me the heebie jeebies but I have an unfired Uberti 1860 Army gathering dust right here.

[jack404]

Originally Posted by Alpo

And we must not forget that the gun is cap and ball, so it is not a gun, and the conversion cylinder is a part, so it's not a gun, but if you buy them both you have a gun that there is no paperwork on.

Of course, you paid twice as much, but there's no paperwork.

i wish they where that flexible here

sadly they know very well what a conversion cylinder is and does

and here that creates a hitch

you have one of these and all black powder pistols you own are now registerable hand guns and restricted as such and this includes by number

so i get one , and then suddenly i have 40 odd more guns that must be registered as hand guns and i way exceed my number permitted

same in the UK but there you can appeal and if you can prove that conversion cylinder wont fit your other pistols they are ok, but any it can fit become registerable and its very hard to get a handgun permit in the UK and why BP is so popular

here we dont get that option ..

[Alpo]

B27. I was up at Mule Camp, in Conyers a few years back, and thought I'd give it a try. Was gonna get a 1849 Wells Fargo Colt and a conversion cylinder for 32 Smith. Gun was 189 bucks. I was shocked. It'd been a few years since I'd bought any cap-n-ball, and while I knew Old Armys cost, I wasn't aware that Uberti had gone up like that. But anyway, the gun was 189. The cylinder was two and a quarter. I didn't do it. At the time I could get a new S&W J, or a Ruger Single Six 32 H&R for that same 400, or less.

[B27]

Originally Posted by Alpo

B27. I was up at Mule Camp, in Conyers a few years back, and thought I'd give it a try.....

Mule Camp! That's my gun club! South River!

Anyhoo....I certainly see how your math works on that price doubling up.

I was pretty much basing mine on a new S&W 329PD costing me $900 and a new Colt SAA .38 Special costing me $1100.....wait a minute.....I have a new Colt SAA I need to go pick up!

[Alpo]

With the big buffalo?

[B27]

Oh yeah...I gots that big buffalo....

[PanhandlePop]

Well, whether I wanted to or not, that's pretty neat and I did not know such a conversion was available. Does one have to change out the hammer for one with a firing pin?

Edit, I see that it has a cap to cover the cylinder that has pins integrated-still neat.

[Alpo]

You know, I've wondered, a time or three, if you would put an OM 45 Colt cylinder in an Old Army, and it would work. You'd have to play with the hammer, so couldn't use that for caps any more, but it seems like it should work.

[B27]

Originally Posted by Alpo

.....You'd have to play with the hammer, so couldn't use that for caps any more, but it seems like it should work.

Actually, no.

I mean YES it would work, but no problems with the hammer.

Each chamber in the cylinder has it's own firing pin.

Converting that Colt 1861 back to black powder and caps is accomplished by just putting the original cylinder back in the gun.

[Alpo]

You misunderstand. Not a conversion cylinder. Just putting a blackhawk cylinder in there. Basically it's the same gun. There is no ejector rod or loading gate, so you'd have to pull the cylinder to load and unload.

Since this would NOT be a conversion cylinder, there would be no backplate with firing pins. Would, most likely, have to reshape the hammer nose. Couldn't just stick in an OM Blackhawk hammer, as they used a flat hammer with a separate firing pin.

I'm not talking about a Colt Army revolver, I'm talking about a Ruger Old Army.

[B27]

Alpo-
I did indeed misunderstand.
The project you are describing is beyond my limited experience but I bet it could work.

[don 3]

Walker conversion like Gus had in lonesome dove