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Collecting and brands

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Let's say somebody is going to collect a few choice revolvers. Enough to have a few but not too many so it's not a burden on the family.
Would it be wise to collect all from one maker such as Uberti or Pietta or actual Colts so all parts match with in reason or is it just buy what catches your attention?
I myself find Pietta good enough. Would I be missing out on something if I did not own a Uberti. I eventually want to learn to Smith and modify on these to fit my desires.
 
I wouldn't call myself a collector, just an acquirer. I have about 28 revolvers by Pietta, Uberti, Euroarms and 2 or 3 makers long gone. I like variety and if I were to confine myself to just one brand I would be very limited in what I owned. I have a Walker, 60 Armys, 51 Navy, Patterson, Wells Fargo, 49 Colt, .36 Pocket Navy & Police, Dance, Rogers & Spencer, Spiller & Burr, Griswold & Gunnison, Schneider & Glassick, 58 Remingtons. If I were to stay with one manufacturer I would have a very, to me, bland grouping.
 
Let's say somebody is going to collect a few choice revolvers. Enough to have a few but not too many so it's not a burden on the family.
Would it be wise to collect all from one maker such as Uberti or Pietta or actual Colts so all parts match with in reason or is it just buy what catches your attention?
I myself find Pietta good enough. Would I be missing out on something if I did not own a Uberti. I eventually want to learn to Smith and modify on these to fit my desires.
I’m with the buy what you like when you see it crowd. Then enjoy it. Wouldn’t worry about burdening the family. If you plan well (document your collection) and have a solid family, there will be no burden, just fond memories.
 
This afternoon I began to compose a message much like Hawkeye's then got distracted and didn't finish. I'm much like Hawkeye. I've become another "acquirer," mostly by accident, so I have a variety of Ubertis, Piettas, Armi San Paolos, Armi San Marcos... If you try to limit yourself to one manufacturer your collection will also be limited.

From my limited experience I've also noticed that none of the Italian manufacturers whose guns I own is consistent in quality. Uberti has the best reputation, I believe, but a friend of mine bought a new Uberti Colt that should never have passed the proof house. The machining was incomplete and left burrs, rough spots - even a stray piece of waste that didn't get entirely separated from the frame inside the channel for the hand. Then I have had one or two guns from the 1960s, ASPs and ASMs, that were very nice, with excellent fit/finish, solid action - nothing to complain about at all.

FWIW, the revolvers I own or recently sold that I think are the best overall in accuracy, fit/finish, action, and even appearance are, more or less in order:
  • 2018 Uberti 1861 Navy
  • 2014 Uberti 1851 Navy w/ short barrel
  • 2015 Uberti Walker
  • 2020 Pietta 1860 Army
  • 1986 ASM 1860 Army
  • 2013 Pietta Remington NMA
I also have a 2nd Generation Colt 1851 Navy with a 1974 serial number that doesn't even make my top 10. Go figure.
 
I’m not terribly specific as to brand, but I am very cautious of “impulse buys”. I used to buy different models because I liked them, or they had a great history, or they were in a movie/ tv show that I liked. I found that after a while I had more than I would ever shoot and some ended up doing no more than taking up space, while others became favorites. I now consider carefully whether or not a firearm will be used and fed and cared for properly before laying out the coin. Now if I could just find a reason to buy that LeMat...🤔
 
Johnnie, you're a more evolved being than I am, but I did finally start culling the herd a few weeks ago. I do try to shoot everything, but...well, I probably don't have to tell you. (It's the too-many-guns-too-little-time lament.)

LeMat? Agreed. And I would have to add the Starr DA, Colt Root, Remington pocket...and the 12-pound Napoleon I've always wanted.
 
Yes, the Root and the 12 pounder, I almost forgot about those! Oh my wife is gonna be ******...

Seriously though, I think the current trends in availability and pricing are going to have us all making careful choices from now on.I’m afraid the days of $200 Remingtons from Cabela’s are long gone.
 
My family, with the exception of one great granddaughter, really aren’t interested in cap and ball stuff so each of them gets one to remember the old man by and she gets the rest.
Most of the pistols are Uberti, Colt and 2nd gen Colt. A couple Cimarron and a Pietta or two. (I’m a sucker for the Shooters Model. Even though they do not fit my hands very well.) I like replicas that are as close to original form as possible (most are if you squint from 40 feet away.) so that’s my primary reason for buying, after they’ve been shot a while I get rid of the ones I can’t get to shoot the way I believe they should. What’s left are mostly languishing in the safe except for the 3 or 4 I’m trying to wear out before I shuffle off this mortal coil.
 
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