Pietta 1851 wedge giving me fits!

[kevthebassman]

I bought it today and took it out to the range and had a wonderful time, but now it's time to clean and the dang pin just doesn't want to budge. I've been hammering away at it with a wooden dowel rod and then I tried an empty brass cartridge case. So far I have succeeded in marring the finish and making myself mad, but not in getting the pin out. :cursing: :cursing: :cursing:

Is there some kind of trick to this that I'm just not getting?

:surrender: :surrender: :surrender:

 

[jtmattison]

Did you take it out shooting before giving it a thorough cleaning?

All I can guess is it's gummed up and stuck in there.

Mine took a little effort to remove the first time. I used a brass drift punch.

I took it completely apart and removed all of the packing oil then I lubed it lightly with Rem-oil.

The wedge was very gummy from the packing oil. Now it's clean and it is much easier to remove and install.

Try a flat screwdriver with a large tip to tap it out.

HD

 

[kevthebassman]

It was a display model and had been cleaned and lightly oiled by some Cabela's employee. I'm guessing that they didn't get inside there though. I'll have to figure out some way to get a screwdriver on there without marring it. I'm wishing I had a gun vise I could tighten it into for this.

 

[mykeal]

If you're near that Cabela's, take it back and have them remove it.

If that's not possible, hold the gun in your lap across your legs with the left side of the gun down and use a bronze drift punch and hammer to drive it out. You shouldn't need a gun vise.

 

[JackAubrey]

A few thoughts.First,put a flannel over the muzzle and give her a tap or two,then tap out the wedge pin.Best regards,J.A.

 

[rebel727]

If you don't have a brass punch try a penny.

 

[torn moc]

Kev..remember that the wedge has a spring thingy in it that must be held down at the same time that you are knocking out the wedge....
if you dont hold it down the " lip" on it will
catch on the frame and it wont allow the wedge to move.....

 

[mykeal]

Scalper makes a good point. It is possible that the wedge has been driven through to the point where the lip on the wedge spring (which is intended to catch on the screw head on the other side of the slot to keep the wedge from falling out completely) has caught on the side of the barrel and is not allowing the wedge to be driven through.

First, tap on the end of the muzzle with a bronze hammer or a piece of wood, like you were trying to drive the barrel back towards the cylinder, as Capt. Aubrey said. This may help loosen the barrel assembly and wedge interface.

Second, tap the wedge further into the slot, which should free the lip of the spring from being caught on the barrel assembly.

Third, tap on the end of the muzzle again, in case the second step tightened up the wedge/barrel interface.

Fourth, and this is the hard part, use a small screwdriver to depress the spring (push down on the spring) while tapping the end of the wedge to drive it out of the slot. This last maneuver may require three hands. I hold the gun between my knees, press down with the screwdriver with my left hand and tap the wedge with a brass or plastic hammer with my right hand. If you need a hand to hold something (like a penny) between the hammer and the wedge, well, I hope you have a friend you can trust to perform one of those operations.

 

[kevthebassman]

The spring is what was giving me trouble, was caught on the barrel like you said. I had tried wedging it before but no luck. Tapping on the end of the barrel is what did the trick. These cap 'n ball revolvers sure do have a lot of little nooks and crannies that catch dirt.

Thanks for the help guys.

 

[torn moc]

Yeeeee Ha!
:thumbsup:
&&& Mykeal,,,thank you for being more precise than I....
Glad we got him going again!!!

 

[philo426]

I use a nail set to knock it out if it gets stuck.One sharp tap ought to dislodge it.

 

[kevthebassman]

Now that I've done it a few times it comes out much easier. I discovered a new trick too. I use a breech scraper (brass) that is the perfect size to knock the wedge pin out. I put my nipple wrench over the threaded end to protect it and then a rap with a mallet knocks it right out.

 

[brubincam]

-----tap it flush with a wood block then push it the rest of the way with a popcycle stick

 

[Rikeman]

I bought a small nylon head hammer for my walker. The nylon is nice stiff material that allows for some athority when smacking out the wedge. It is soft enought that it has no effect on the finish. One shot and the wedge shoots all the way out only to be stopped by the screw. :thumbsup: