Colt Vs. Remington

[Celt5494]

Sitting up tonight thinking about some of my revolvers and the differences in them. I don't want to start a squabble between the two in these forums. In my opinion I prefer the Colt style to the Remington. The Colt has a smoother hammer draw to them and the trigger just seems to be more comfortable and a smoother action. I have larger than normal hands and the Colt's just seem to fit well with perfect balance. They seem to have a larger trigger guard on the average as opposed to the Remington models I have. Much of that technology was developed when the average man was much smaller than that of today but I'm always amazed at how advanced it was and still copied today.
I'm not trying to say anything bad about the Remington designs they are fine pistols and know it's a very stout frame. I enjoy and shoot them regularly, I just seem to be partial to the Colt design, it just looks, feels and shoots better in my opinion.

What do you Men think?

 

[arcticap]

Every design has it's respective advantages and disadvantages. And then each individual revolver is built to better or worse levels of quality depending on the manufacturer and the particular gun. So in effect a well built Colt is more desirable than a poorly built Remington and vice versa.
Plus, in addition to the Colts and Remingtons there are other cap & ball designs that introduce even more variety for folks to choose from.
I think that it's always preferable for folks to have more choices rather than less, such as only being able to select between "one design or none".

 

[Don]

Colt-cool styling and pointable as all get out.

Remington-Tough, strong and mine have never choked on a spent cap.

Conclusion- I'll keep both.

Don :hatsoff:

 

[ebiggs1]

The funny thing is this, the Remington is obliviously the superior design but the Colt was the more successful revolver!

 

[shadowhawk]

ill agree with Don on this i have both and would not sell either of them. they each have there good pionts and bad. :thumbsup:

 

[Leatherbark]

If I want to hit what I'm aiming at consistantly I use one of my Remingtons. But those Colts are so cool!
Seriously.........I can hit with a Colt pretty fair if I've done my homework and tuned the sights. It just seems more work to make the Colt a shooter than the Remington............The Remington darn sure dont draw and shoot as fast as the Colt..................Bob

 

[Stophel]

I find the Colt has a MUCH nicer grip, particularly the larger Dragoon and the 1860. There's a bit of a "fillet" behind the triggerguard where there should be. The Remington needs a grip adapter!

 

[smoothy]

I remember reading a while back that the Remington was built with tighter tolerances. You can take a Colt and hear it rattle when shaken. But....the Remington would foul and become inoperable faster due to the tighter tolerances when the loosey/goosey Colt would keep going on. The open tops of the Colts have a more appealing appearance to me so I have an 1860 Colt. My brother, a more conservative man, has the 1858 Remington. We have enjoyed trading while target shooting in the past. I was also given a 1847 Colt Walker to shoot for a weekend. Awsome. Remington doesn't have a counterpart to that.

 

[Celt5494]

Those Walker's sure do have an appeal to them don't they? I appreciate all the discussion on this thread. I'll never part with my Remington's and think they are fine pistols but those Colt's are just plain sexy.

 

[DOUBLEDEUCE 1]

I like the Colt. It fits me better. I also like the design etc. The Remington never did feel good to me. For me it's a matter of personal fit.

 

[Chilidog]

My vote goes with the colts. Apart from the looks (aestetics is everything) I just like the way the colts feel. They come on target right away and just seem to point on their own. The weight and balance are just about perfect. And did I mention that they just look cool? :grin:

 

[CoyoteJoe]

Surprisingly we all seem to agree for once. The Colt design has the better grip and balance, the Remington has better sights. The problem I have always had with the Remington is that the trigger guard sits right on the knuckle of my second finger very uncomfortably. I have modified several Remingtons by cutting out the back of the guard, flipping the cut out piece over and soldering it back in. The result resembles a "square back guard" as used on some Colts or the Ruger Super Blackhawk. That gives me enough "knuckle room". The grip however, still isn't the equal of a Colt.
I don't believe the Remington was a "superior design" compared to the Colt. Target shooting with revolvers just wasn't done in those days. Pistols were built for combat and the pointing qualities of the Colt far outweighed the sights of the Remington. That is totally reversed today. No one would consider a C&B revolver for combat, they are used exclusively for target shooting of some sort, thus the standing of the two revolver designs is reversed because the usage is reversed.

 

[fraungie]

I read some where that the Remington is a stronger design than the Colt but the Colt always out sold the Remington. They said Mr Colt was a better marketer that was why they out sold the Remington. I spent 30 years as a mechanical designer and a few years as a machinist. The Remington is a better stronger design. However I have three colts and one Remington. Nothing past or present points like a Colt and no Colt points like an 1851. Mr Colt and Mr Remington are long gone and so are their marketing skills. The Colt still out sells the Remington and the forum is running that way too. My Remington 1858 with adjustable sights is the most accurate pistol I own, but when I go out can bustin and point shooting I take the Colts. They shoot a foot to 18" high when I use the sights.It is frustrating trying to guess how low to aim and hit a target but I just love them when it comes to point and shoot. The Remington just ain't got that swing.

 

[Dave Rosenthal]

:thumbsup: Nicely stated!

I use my revolvers for target shooting. So far I've earned my Expert rating. Overcoming the obstacles of the Colt sights was interesting. Each model/loading has it's own set of parameters. My Walker, with a 52 grain charge has to be aimed 6.5 inches low at 25 yards. The 3rd Model Dragoon with a stout 45 grains needs about 18" at the same yardage! As a "horse pistol" it was sighted-in for 75 yards, or so they say! :haha:

Dave

 

[DanChamberlain]

"The funny thing is this, the Remington is obliviously the superior design but the Colt was the more successful revolver!"

My theory is "pointability" rather than mechanics. I'm a "self-taught" pistol shooter and as such, found the "Colt" style single actions to be the easiest to shoot for some really basic reasons.

Back in the era to which these guns are samples of, pistol craft was pretty much non-existant. The guns that were the easiest to shoot were the single shot dueling style guns. The Colt revolvers sort of matched this feel and grip profile on the back strap.

Shooting one was sort of like pointing a shotgun. The sighting plane was right down the barrel and the 8" barrel made striking a man sized target a snap for the uninitiated pistol shooter.

The Remmy was a stronger design, but it didn't "point" nearly as well as the Colt and most guys probably just couldn't shoot one as well. This probably led to word of mouth misstatements about its accuracy when compared to the Colt. Just like the "inaccurate" Colt 1911!

If you look at drawings of men with pistols from that age, you will see that they held the guns in a manner that is quite alien to our standards today. The wrist and elbow was bent (think limp-wrist) and the stance was upright and bladed to the target. Just like a duelist.

The Colt "shines" in this manner.
The Remmy is a great revolver. The Colt was a "natural" pointer.

Dan

 

[Legionair]

I have the same problem as CoyoteJoe, my remington bumps my middle finger uncomfortably. It's not so bad for a handful of slow shots, and if I alter my grip to cock it I don't feel much. I'd hate to have to fast fire the whole cylinder though.

The Colt just feels right in my hands (which I would not call large at all). And my 1851 nearly cocks itself on the draw (scary... almost like it was possessed... :shocked2: ).

I really like the Remington but the Colt is the best (for me anyways...)

Just an opinion

Legion

 

[ebiggs1]

There is only one pistol that can challenge the “best gun ever feel” of the Colt 1851 Navy. And that gun would be the Luger. Both are wonderful firearms.

 

[the Black Spot]

i have shot the colt for over 20 years. i bought my first rem this year. i would take the rem over the colt. rem never hangs up, switches cylinders faster, just as easy to clean, and shoots to point of aim.
am i getting rid of my colts, no way. but if i am going into the woods i take the rem.
i think the rem is just as fast out of the holster from a STRONG side draw as the colt, but not from a cross draw.