1862 police/colt style revolvers...how slick?

[Blackpowderart]

I just got an 1862 pocket police from uberti yesterday... this is my first colt style revolvers. I slicked it up a little but the cylinder doesn't really free spin on half cock that much. If i have the barrel off and the cylinder isnt touching the hand it spins well but once It is put back together and the hand is engaged it barely spins. It Is not leaving a ring on the cylinder.. I have an 1858, my only other revolver...and that cylinder spins like the wheel of fortune. The cylinder isn't rubbing the barrel, I checked that. Am I expecting too much or is there something in particular I should focus on?

 

[Uncle Miltie]

Have you
oiled the action? If not liberally oil the action and it will likely work just fine.

 

[45D]

I just got an 1862 pocket police from uberti yesterday... this is my first colt style revolvers. I slicked it up a little but the cylinder doesn't really free spin on half cock that much. If i have the barrel off and the cylinder isnt touching the hand it spins well but once It is put back together and the hand is engaged it barely spins. It Is not leaving a ring on the cylinder.. I have an 1858, my only other revolver...and that cylinder spins like the wheel of fortune. The cylinder isn't rubbing the barrel, I checked that. Am I expecting too much or is there something in particular I should focus on?

It's not a design feature to have a "free wheeling" cylinder. Ruger SA's have a less than ideal hand spring and plunger setup that allows a more "freewheeling" cylinder but it's more to the detriment of the finish on the cylinder. Rather than a correction, the ring on a Ruger has been accepted as "normal ". Other makers like to show off the ease of cylinder spin as a show of "quality" but that's a false attribute. Throw-by ( over rotation of the cyl) is a symptom of a WEAK or broken hand spring ( which one can demonstrate at will with a Ruger) which is the method that most rings exist on a cylinder. Cylinder "braking" is the other job a hand has in a SA's action . . . It's a design FEATURE
. . . the primary job being carry-up ( cyl rotation). So, the fact yours seems to work as designed shouldn't worry you.
Comparing the open-top setup to a Remington top strap design is more an apples /oranges thing. The hand is more prominent against more aggressive ratchet teeth than the type used in the Remington. The Colt hand rises against a ramp, the Remington hand drops in a divot.
The main thing you need to do to your '62 is ensure the timing is correct. The bolt should be fully on the cylinder before reaching the locking notch. Lockup and full cock should be simultaneous. That will go a lot further towards the "health" of the revolver than a "freewheeling" cylinder ( there's also the short arbor to fix but that's another post).

Mike

 

[Jappo]

I think you’re expecting too much. Sounds like the cylinder is dragging on the hand, which is normal. Might try polishing the the tip of the hand and the ratchet on the cylinder. Don’t use a file, fine Arkansas stone works great. After normal use it will probably spin more. Just as long as the cylinder rotates without binding when you cock it, you’re fine.

 

[woodsnwater]

What length barrel did you get? I've been wanting a 6.5" for a while. Got any pics?

 

[TrophyGuy]

I just got mine from Midway and have discovered the same problem. The spring loaded hand is the problem. Any hammer position off fully down raises the hand and pushes it into the ratchet ramps, pushing the cylinder forward while rotating it. When the locking lug drops in cylinder end play is limited enough, at least on mine, to generate a small barrel-cylinder gap, but anywhere else in the cocking cycle the hand pushes the cylinder against the barrel breach causing friction. It's sort of harmless unless fouling accumulation binds up the cylinder. Pull the barrel off and see how far the spring loaded hand pushes the barrel forward. There's no fixing this with arbor correction. There might be a way to fabricate a spacer ring on the arbor to hold the cylinder position fixed. It would have to be cut out to clear the barrel and leave clearance for loading.

 

[smoothshooter]

I just got an 1862 pocket police from uberti yesterday... this is my first colt style revolvers. I slicked it up a little but the cylinder doesn't really free spin on half cock that much. If i have the barrel off and the cylinder isnt touching the hand it spins well but once It is put back together and the hand is engaged it barely spins. It Is not leaving a ring on the cylinder.. I have an 1858, my only other revolver...and that cylinder spins like the wheel of fortune. The cylinder isn't rubbing the barrel, I checked that. Am I expecting too much or is there something in particular I should focus on?

My experience has been that the quality control and fitting of parts is much worse on the Colt-type Pocket Models regardless of who made them. With everything being smaller, the parts having to do with the advancing of the cylinder lack the mechanical advantage that their counterparts in the standard frames have.
I have 4 pocket models, and they all came out of the box with significant problems.
I returned another one because the barrel was attached to the frame in such a manner that it angled off to the left about 10 degrees.
Sometimes I wonder if the Pocket Models are manufactured in another location from the main plants where Uberti puts their new employees and QC people for training.
Same for Pietta.

 

[Blackpowderart]

My arbor is only slightly short but I will address that in the coming days/weeks. My hand spring was loose like no tension on the back wall when the cylinder was off the gun. I thought this to be incorrect and slightly opened it up just to the point that it didn't rattle. Neither had any effect on the stiffer action

 

[Blackpowderart]

I just don't think they care. I just wish we had an option for a quality piece. We're already paying close to 500 for a sub par product. I want a nice functional pocket police/navy and I am willing to pay. I was looking at the colt black powder series and the reviews weren't any better, so where does that leave me as in options?

 

[45D]

My arbor is only slightly short but I will address that in the coming days/weeks. My hand spring was loose like no tension on the back wall when the cylinder was off the gun. I thought this to be incorrect and slightly opened it up just to the point that it didn't rattle. Neither had any effect on the stiffer action

There won't be any tension on the hand by the hand spring with the cylinder removed . . .

Mike

 

[Uncle Miltie]

Did anyone thoroughly oil the action before determining there were problems?

My Uberti had an 'inconsistent" action when I removed it from the box. I removed the barrel, liberally oil the action to soften any assembly/preservative lubricant and that did the trick.
I was impressed that the nipples were set up ad they should be, just long enough to detonate the cap without hitting an uncapped nipple.
And it really shoots well.

 

[springfield art]

I just got an 1862 pocket police from uberti yesterday... this is my first colt style revolvers. I slicked it up a little but the cylinder doesn't really free spin on half cock that much. If i have the barrel off and the cylinder isnt touching the hand it spins well but once It is put back together and the hand is engaged it barely spins. It Is not leaving a ring on the cylinder.. I have an 1858, my only other revolver...and that cylinder spins like the wheel of fortune. The cylinder isn't rubbing the barrel, I checked that. Am I expecting too much or is there something in particular I should focus on?

It will "break in" and loosen/tighten over time and use. Good luck!

 

[Pierre009]

Concur with springfield...don't mess with it until you shot it a few times. If it shoots fine don't mess with it. Uberti makes a fine product.

 

[Bad Karma]

Did anyone thoroughly oil the action before determining there were problems?

My Uberti had an 'inconsistent" action when I removed it from the box. I removed the barrel, liberally oil the action to soften any assembly/preservative lubricant and that did the trick.
I was impressed that the nipples were set up ad they should be, just long enough to detonate the cap without hitting an uncapped nipple.
And it really shoots well.

You’re right and you’d be well advised to do the same thing with a $1500.00 1911 clone…

 

[Ed C.]

Am I missing something here? Why does anyone feel they have to have a free running cylinder unless they are in a cowboy movie? If you can turn it easily with no bolt drag at half cock, you're good.

 

[Blackpowderart]

I wanna be a cowwboyee baaaby

 

[Coinneach]

Did anyone thoroughly oil the action before determining there were problems?

My Uberti had an 'inconsistent" action when I removed it from the box. I removed the barrel, liberally oil the action to soften any assembly/preservative lubricant and that did the trick.
I was impressed that the nipples were set up ad they should be, just long enough to detonate the cap without hitting an uncapped nipple.
And it really shoots well.

Fun tip, Grease (using a light lube like Vaseline) the grooves on the Spindle the Cylinder mounts on rather than Oil it.

 

[Coinneach]

I wanna be a cowwboyee baaaby

Consider holidaying in Thailand then.....

 

[Ed C.]

I wanna be a cowwboyee baaaby

Me too! As soon as I grow up. 78 now so it should be right around the corner.

 

[Bad Karma]

Me too! As soon as I grow up. 78 now so it should be right around the corner.

I dragged myself into the cafe one morning, on my way back from the vet’s office and I’d been up most of the night with calving heifers. I sat down at the bar for some coffee and Arturo’s huevos rancheros and the waitress flicked a bit of cow manure off of my jacket with the remark, “Boy, the life of a cowboy sure is romantic…” Here’s to the boys who make it work… I’d rather be a wealthy cattleman myself.