Maybe I'm an Idiot: Barrell Wedge Won't Go Back In

[ValleyForge]

It's enough to make you...well, never mind.

I just took shipment of my new Uberti 1861 Navy revolver, and like a dutiful soldier, took it apart & cleaned out enough oil to light San Francisco for a week. But now I can't get the freaking barrell wedge back in!

Is there a trick to this (boy, does this make me appreciate my Remington!)

The wedge has a little tongue (for lack of a better term) that seems to hit the slot on the right hand side -- the thing won't go through.

Is this an intelligence test? And did I just fail?

-- Valley Forge

 

[bezoar]

http://www.cimarron-firearms.com/Parts/1861-navy.htm that link will take you to an exploded parts diagram that you can use to help reassemble the gun.

Are you inserting the wedge from the correct side of the pistol? Hold it in your right hand with the barrel pointed directly infront of you. then take the wedge in your left hand and insert it with the grooved side up into the revolver from the left side.

the wedge itself is a wedge shaped piece of metal with a groove machined into the topside into which the wedge spring is placed and screwed in.

Is there a way you could post a photo of the problem?

 

[jdixon]

On a Colt the barrel wedge should go in from the right side (the side with the retaining screw) of the gun, w/the spring on the top. You may have to loosen or most likely remove the barrel wedge retaining screw and then put the wedge in, replacing the screw. No need to tighten the retaining screw all the way in, leave enough slack so that you can punch the wedge out from the left side without much effort. Once you get the wedge back in place there is no need to completely remove it in the future. Simply push the wedge through from the left to such a point that it disengages from the barrel slot and leave it hanging out the right side. The retaining screw holds it in place. Finally, pushing the barrel wedge too far from the right of the left will over tighten the barrel against the face of the cylinder and make it impossible for it to rotate. Should this happen, back out (push to ther right) the barrel wedge just slightly, only enough that the cylinder will rotate without binding. Uberti makes a tight weapon, most I have seen will do this. Good luck - hope this helps. BTW - If this gun is new and you have not shot it yet and you find that your gun is shooting a foot high at 25 yards when you finally do - check back on this forum and do a search - there are posts here about what to do about that little problem as well.

 

[jdixon]

Vally Forge:
BTW - you are no idiot - you found this forum and knew to ask didn't you??? Cheers!

 

[ValleyForge]

Hell, this forum's taught me more than Melanie back in 11th grade....

 

[ValleyForge]

Yeah, I'm doing it from the right side (barrell facing forward) - I don't think my digital camera will get in close enough to take a picture that'll show anything, but I'll try -- more later.

VF

 

[Zonie]

I believe only on the Walker does the wedge go into the barrel from the right side.
By right side, I mean when the gun is in your right hand, pointing away from you, your right is the guns right.

With that frame of reference, if your gun is any Colt except the Walker, the wedge goes into the barrel slot from the left side.
It's the side with the little screw above the barrel wedge slot.

The wedge on my Colt has a small tang which points down on the underside of the wedge. This is machined into the wedge and it's purpose is to keep people from pounding the wedge too far into the barrel when they assemble the gun.
On the top, there is a groove machined down the center of the wedge.
In the bottom of this groove is a flat spring which has a little hooked tab on the end, pointing upwards. This spring with the hook is the wedge retaining spring. It is supposed to catch on the screw head just before the wedge falls out of the gun.

If the wedge retaining screw is removed from the barrel, place the wedge into the slot, spring side up. You may have to push down on the bent up end to get it into the slot.

With the barrel fully seated on the frame, push the wedge on into the cylinder pin that's going inside of the barrel below the bore.

There will come a point that the wedge will not go in further with hand pressure. At this point, use a block of wood or some other soft pounder and tap the wedge further into the slot.
You should be able to get it far enough in that the end of the wedge starts to come out the far side of the barrel slot.
This is about the point to stop pounding.

Don't attempt to pound the wedge in until the hook on the left underside hits the barrel. It almost never does.
In fact, this hook on the bottom is clearing the side of the barrel on my Colt by about 1/8 inch.

After the wedge is in place, pull the hammer back to the first click. This position will allow the cylinder to rotate freely in a clockwise direction (pointing the gun away from you).
If the cylinder is frozen and won't rotate, it is because the barrel wedge is in too far.
Tapping it back out of the slot until the cylinder rotates is the place to leave the wedge.
Good luck, and if it still won't work, let us know.

 

[Smokin6Gun]

Back off or remove wedge screw. Depress wedge spring while pressing it into barrel assy. When started tap with a rawhide, teflon or similar mallet. Then tap harder. . Reinstall or tighten screw as it goes in. Did you lube the Cylinder pin before installing? Wedge does not need to go all the way thru on a new revolver, just factory shipped that way.

 

[Smokin6Gun]

Left side... it goes in from the Left side...

 

[Smokin6Gun]

On a Colt the barrel wedge should go in from the right side (the side with the retaining screw) of the gun, w/the spring on the top. You may have to loosen or most likely remove the barrel wedge retaining screw and then put the wedge in, replacing the screw. No need to tighten the retaining screw all the way in, leave enough slack so that you can punch the wedge out from the left side without much effort. Once you get the wedge back in place there is no need to completely remove it in the future. Simply push the wedge through from the left to such a point that it disengages from the barrel slot and leave it hanging out the right side. The retaining screw holds it in place. Finally, pushing the barrel wedge too far from the right of the left will over tighten the barrel against the face of the cylinder and make it impossible for it to rotate. Should this happen, back out (push to ther right) the barrel wedge just slightly, only enough that the cylinder will rotate without binding. Uberti makes a tight weapon, most I have seen will do this. Good luck - hope this helps. BTW - If this gun is new and you have not shot it yet and you find that your gun is shooting a foot high at 25 yards when you finally do - check back on this forum and do a search - there are posts here about what to do about that little problem as well.

You wanna read the first thing you said again? :what:

 

[ValleyForge]

How do I post a photo here? I don't have a personal website?

 

[ValleyForge]

Now THAT'S interesting. What happens is that the wedge sticks out on the left about 3/8 of an inch. The tang on the wedge seems to butt up against the barrel just as it hits the right side, and it won't go through at all.

It doesn't even look right -- while the barrel seems secure, I wouldn't fire anything that isn't properly assembled. I'm gonna see if there's any human beings at Uberti who might answer this.

Thanks!
-- VF

 

[Bill Austin]

My Uberti wedge acted the same way and I noticed it wasn't wanting to go in straight. When I looked down on the barrel, the wedge would'nt be perpendicular so I would tap it back straight and it would then tap into place.

 

[WV_Hillbilly]

Someone may already have said this, but I'll put my foot in my mouth for a while here.

The wedge goes in from the left side of the gun (looking at it when you're pointing it towards a target). Gun's left side is same as toward your left side. EXCEPT on a Walker it goes in from the right side. Was Colt a left handed shooter? Anyway...

That tongue on top of the wedge is a spring that has a little ELL in it at the end of the wedge. If it works like it should that ELL on the spring should kind of lock the wedge after it is in place.

I won't forget to say also. IF you took out the wedge retaining screw you need to start the wedge in and then start the screw in and put it in all the way AFTER the wedge has started going through the keyway.

Are you sure the barrel assembly is seated fully againt the frame of the gun and against the cylinder pin? Sometimes that can cause the wedger to try to go in at a tough angle and you would really have to pound the manure out of it to make it go in. It should NOT be that hard though.

Check the keyway in the barrel assembly and in the cylinder pin for burrs. That can mess things up too.

If you could take that picture and show us what is happening, it would help a LOT!

Good Luck on your efforts!
WV_Hillbilly

 

[jdixon]

Gottcha - I was referring to a Walker when I mentioned the left vs. right thing. I hadn't my hands on other Colts in a while, forgot they switched this design around.

 

[ValleyForge]

Gentlemen --

Thanks, everyone, for your suggestions. It turns out I'm neither insane nor incompetent (at least not for this reason). I took the Uberti back to the dealer -- the gunsmith fiddled with it for 25 minutes and came out as frustrated as I was.
Something ain't machined right.

So back it goes to Uberti -- it'll be an interesting test of their customer service to see how quickly they replace it. Interesting also, given the debates on Pietta vs. Uberti as far as quality goes, don't you think?

In the meantime, back to the range with my Remmy .44. Happy blasting, and thanks again to all respondents.

-- ValleyForge

 

[bezoar]

Well at least it should get replaced or fixed. Just makes me wonder how the factory got the wedge in the gun in the first place.

 

[ValleyForge]

I can't tell you that, but I can tell you it wasn't easy getting it out! Well, I hope the replacement works better -- I'm anxious to shoot the thing.

Thanks for the help!

--VF

 

[musketman]

Can the wedge be flipped over and inserted?

Some times wedges get a slight bend in them from wear and will only reinstall if the bend is going the same way...

Pins are the same way...

 

The little flat spring will also slide back and forth so sometimes the end can be tapped so the wedge end can go in, then the spring is moved back under the screw.

I never take out the screw on the side of the barrel because it can be tough to get started with the wedge in place plus I figure it will get loose over time with repeated disassembly, which brings up another topic...

I had a professional gunsmith living in my old neighborhood who was adamant about not disassembling any gun more than was absolutely necessary. He said screws would stretch a bit every time they were tightened and eventually the gun would shoot loose in short order unless Loc-tite or something similar was used. It's interesting that my old SAA 44-40 has a tendency to loosen grip frame screws just by carrying for a long time in a holster.

Anyone else noticed or been told this?