Man, I thought we was friends.

[tinhorn]

But did anyone tell me what a blast these little 1849 Pocket Models were? N-o-o-o-o.

Little buggers are like black powder Bearcats. (Long story, but Bearcats are the missus' favorite shooter, and I'm kinda liking them, too.) My new Wells Fargo drops right into a Bearcat holster. Su-weet! Haven't been able to shoot it yet but I spend a lot of time in the back room practicing my Curly Bill (Bill Akins) draw with a strip of leather under the hammer.

So tell me what I should know about that wedge. (This is my first BP Colt.) I've been shoving it in thumb-tight, dry-firing a cylinder or two, and then find the wedge to be loose. Should it be tapped in? Smacked in? Probably shouldn't have greased it, huh?

Anybody shortened the hammer spur a tad? I'm used to Bearcat and Single Six hammers, and the Wells Fargo is kind of a reach by comparison. Tried an online search but came up with nothing. Not sure I'd miss the last 1/8 or 3/16” of that hammer spur but I've heard of a myth called unintended consequences.

Can you fellers bring me up to speed? Thanks.

[Hawg]

First you're going to have to address the short arbor. There's several ways to do it. You can drop washers in the arbor hole or you can solder a plug to the end of the arbor. Or you can look up 45Dragoon's method for an adjustable screw. Whatever you do you're going to have to have a solid fit. If you drive the wedge in too far as it is you'll most likely bind the cylinder against the forcing cone. Once the arbor is seated properly you can drive the wedge in as hard as you like and it won't change anything. And yes wedges should be tapped in. As for the hammer I think you're going to miss the length of the spur. I've never done it tho so it's just a WAG on my part.

[Captainkirk]

Pretty much "what Hawg said".
The short arbor will be an issue...fix it first before anything. You can gussy up the innards with small files and sandpaper on the mating surfaces for a super smooth action...but leave the sear and half-full cock notches alone, or for the experts like Goon if they need attention. Lube it well with Lubriplate AA630 or pack it full of Mobil 1 grease per the Goon. Or, if you REALLY like it, just send it to Goon and get back a completely different gun (ask me how I know).
And then...go shoot the living crap out of it.

[45 Dragoon]

Thanks guys!!
They're right, make a single spacer (thick washer for the pocket guns) and thin it down till you get a .003 barrel/cylinder clearance  ( endshake). The arbor length is what determines that clearance. The arbor in the originals bottomed out in the barrel assy. The copies didn't get that right till Pietta did it around 2010.

Mike

[Sooty Barrels]

I did not know pre-2010 Pietta’s had short arbor problems. Thanks for the info. 

[Hawg]

I wasn't aware of it either.

[tinhorn]

Thanks for the advice, fellers.

I've slicked up the innards with some stones and some little polishing wheels in a Dremel. (I've learned to do that with any revolver I intend to play with.) Polish everything to 400 grit except the top of the bolt. I polish that to 1000 and then hit it with some Flitz—suckers look like an itty-bitty mirror and hardly leave any drag line at all, certainly no gouges.

I've read about the short arbor and various fixes. I might have some shim stock around here somewhere. Playing with the barrel-at-90-degrees technique, it doesn't appear to need much.

Also dehorned the hammer. Might still chop off 1/8” or so in the interest of Scientific Research. I discovered a pinch point when dry firing left-handed. Ouch. Got some dehorning to do on the trigger and guard, too. This little Wells Fargo ain't like the pocket Remington.

I use red Mobile 1 grease but, man, I can't imagine packing the innards full. What a mess when it's time to take the gun apart! Hahahaha! I don't get to shoot often (long drive to a range) but I sure do enjoy slicking up these replicas and playing with them. They're like fidget spinners but prettier.

[Hawg]

Turning the barrel 90 degrees doesn't work with Uberti.

[Captainkirk]

Tech Tip; Goon taught me that if you pack the innards full of Mobil 1, you don't have to take the gun apart. The grease keeps the dirt and powder residue out.

[Hawg]

All I do is spray the insides out with Remoil.

[Sooty Barrels]

I do almost the same except I spray it down with Ballistal (spelling ?)

[Zulch]

I do almost the same except I spray it down with Ballistal (spelling ?)

Tin Horn, nice post. I'm with Sooty. Ballistol spray down then lightly wipe the excess off. I have used Mobile 1 grease packing on the Walkers. Need to do the few other guns I have as well. 

[tinhorn]

As for the hammer I think you're going to miss the length of the spur. I've never done it tho so it's just a WAG on my part.

Dang, son, I stuck the hammer into a bench grinder, then hit it with a bunch of polishing wheels, and am really liking the results. Wanted to replicate the angle of an 1858 Remington but didn't have the courage to go full bore--went about halfway instead. Might just go ahead and grind off a bit more. Y'know what I always say, "In for a penny, in for a pound".

[tinhorn]

I think it all started when I bought a custom 3-1/2” barreled 1858 Remington off Gunbroker. Guy did a beautiful job. So I'm looking at this little 1849 Colt, looking at the Kirst .22 converter with its short little barrel insert, then I found this Youtube video showing how to shorten a gun barrel with hand tools, and things kinda got outta hand.

I like the way it turned out, particularly the big ol' front sight. That itty-bitty Uberti sight was hard for my old eyeballs to see. Did a little filing on the hammer/rear sight 'til my bore sighter lined up. Not sure about the grip color. Really, the cap on the can was a PERFECT match for the polished brass—the end result, not so much. (Long story—I've seen wood grips, ivory grips, bone grips, pearl grips, horn grips, pewter and sterling silver grips, and grips with naked ladies carved in them. Never saw brass grips before. Reason enough.)

The Youtuber was, I thought, pretty brilliant. I tell ya, I've taken lots of needle files and stones and sandpaper and polishing discs to my revolvers, but I needed a stiff drink before taking a hacksaw to one. Never done this before. Changes I made to the Youtube process were to make my 5/16” oak dowel the length of the entire barrel (and slathered it with grease), and to JB Weld a fender washer to the large dowel, snugged up to the original uncut muzzle while it cured so it would be square. I also cut Harbor Freight emery cloth into little squares and adhered them to the washer with permanent glue tape from Staples.

Maybe you smithies are cracking up, but drilling and tapping for the new front sight was a heckuva undertaking for a rank amateur such as myself. Bought the bit and tap set online—sight was from Midway. Ran into a problem when even the bottoming tap only cut a few threads before bottoming out. I ended up threading a 3-56 nut onto the otherwise useless taper tap, then grinding off the tapering part until just cutting threads were left. (Y'see, the barrel was 4/32” thick so I only drilled into it 3/32”.) Had to eyeball it 'cuz trying to turn my ancient table-top drill press into some kind of poor man's CNC machine wasn't working.

I'm gonna do it to another 1849. Sucker is just too cute to only have one. Might find some naked lady grips for the next one.

[Marshal Will]

Looks like you did a good job. That front bead would do a shotgun proud, too. Nice work.