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View Full Version : what could a used BP revolver sell for?


shoebox1.1
December 30, 2006, 12:32 AM
i havent purchased a new 1851 steel .44 pietta yet.... that is the gun i want. would a used BP revolver be ok as long as its in good order? i cant seem to find a used pistol at this time although there is a huge gun show next weekend. ive been to the shows on and off for years but never looked at percussion revolvers so i dont know if there are many. if i found one that seems to be in good order what kind of money are we talking about? 50-75-100.00?? i know it depends on the gun and condition but on AVERAGE do BP replica revolvers sell for about 75.00-125.00? im going to try and get a good used one (for my 1st BP). and i still have to buy all the goodies to go with it. id like to spend as little as possible.. xmas wasnt easy on me! lol

pohill
December 30, 2006, 12:45 AM
I spent $75 for a used Pietta 1851 .36 and it's a pretty good shooter. I spent $375 for a used Colt Colt 1861 .36 and it's perfect. I spent $125 for a used Spiller & Burr brass frame, and it's a good one (gotta be careful of used brass framed guns). It all depends on the gun.
Check for a loose barrel/frame connection - that can cause headaches. Alot of the fun of these revolvers is working on them - they are works of art, but they're pretty simple in design.
By the way - the 1851 Navy was never made in .44 caliber, just .36 caliber (if that's important to you).

shoebox1.1
December 30, 2006, 08:50 AM
thanks for the tip

marcseatac
December 30, 2006, 10:14 AM
1851 Civilian Colt .44

http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h84/marcseatac/1851CivilianColt.jpg

pohill
December 30, 2006, 12:03 PM
I meant the original 1851 Navys were not made in .44.
Nice looking revolver you have there...is there any brass on it at all?
Uberti or Pietta?

marcseatac
December 30, 2006, 12:40 PM
That's the Pietta Steel Frame Civilian in .44 w/silver plate, it makes me feel like a New Orleans pimp it's flashy, fun gun. Don't know if the trigger guard is plated brass or steel have not taken it apart yet. My guess is plated brass.

Hafoc
December 30, 2006, 02:19 PM
I would also guess plated brass. All the Piettas I can remember seeing have brass backstraps and so on. It would be odd if they made one out of steel just for the silver plated model. Although it would also be good, since it would show less if the plating started to wear.

I second the motion on "1851 Navies weren't .44." I'd say the .44 version of the 1851 Navy is the revolver Colt should have made, though. They could have done it easily enough, obviously.

Much as I love the looks of the 1860 Army and the 1861 Navy, I never thought they were brilliant designs. The rack and pinion "creeping" lever they used looks good, but functionally it has no advantage over the two-pivot design everyone else had. Including Colt, up to that time.

Some book I lost years ago even said that the creeping lever was worse than the old two-pivot design. Given the soft metals of the day, there were cases where the gear teeth on the lever pressing into the pits machined to the underside of the barrel actually raised dents inside the gun's bore. These days, when the average pop-top can has more advanced metallurgy than revolvers did in 1860, that's probably not much of a consideration.

This same book said that the creeping lever did have two advantages. First, it was easy to install. Second, and perhaps more important, it allowed Colt to claim their revolvers were patented when all their original and important patents had just expired.

marcseatac
December 30, 2006, 03:19 PM
It's true, I have read everywhere that the 1851 Navy was only offered in .36, thats commonly accepted.

Most the 1851's Pietta makes have brass trigger guards that I have seen. What is interesting though is the all steel 1861 Navy has a steel triggerguard. Now it appears that these parts would be interchangeable.

The Civilian 1851 silver plate could be steel w/silver if they used the 1861 handgrip frame. The interesting thing is the 1861 steel Navy is their most expensive 1860-1861 and the 1851 silver is also their most expensive 1851 model, but I am still guessing it is brass w/silver plate.

marcseatac
December 30, 2006, 10:20 PM
My refrigerator magnet tells me that it is in fact brass. Now I'm wondering if by silver they mean element or color. It may be chrome plated brass. I actually hope it is chrome because it's harder and won't discolor.

arcticap
December 30, 2006, 11:04 PM
A highly polished nickel maybe?

marcseatac
December 31, 2006, 02:19 AM
Nickel, yes mystery solved. Just like the ornamental ones that are nickel and gold. Case hard steel frame, 7 1/2 inch barrel, .44 cal, nickel plated brass backstrap. Yep got to be!