Remington 51

joe-lumber · January 14, 2013, 02:49 PM

I purchased a used Remington 51 but the barrel was with almost no rifling. It is possible to have it re-rifled? I purchased another barrel and had a gunsmith change it out so I am happy but wondering if there is someway to recondition the older barrel? Sorry if it a crazy question but I don't know what to do with the older barrel that came with the pistol?

Strafer Gott · January 14, 2013, 04:02 PM

Try cleaning the heck out of it with a good lead solvent. Sometimes leading can make it seem as though the rifling is gone, when it's only filled up.

Sharpsdressed Man · January 14, 2013, 06:01 PM

Not just lead, get some Sweets 7.62. It is a super strong copper cleaner. Just keep cleaning til the patch doesn't come out green anymore.

joe-lumber · January 14, 2013, 09:47 PM

Thanks for the info, I will try that.

carguychris · January 15, 2013, 12:06 AM

Quote:

Try cleaning the heck out of it with a good lead solvent. Sometimes leading can make it seem as though the rifling is gone, when it's only filled up.

+1, particularly if the rifling uses unusually shallow and/or round-edged grooves. Gunmakers have used a variety of rifling types over the years, and some look quite unusual. Also, keep in mind that .380ACP and .32ACP are low-velocity cartridges, so a shooter would conceivably have to fire a very large number of rounds before any noticeable barrel erosion would occur.

Can you post a picture?

Does the inside of the barrel display any unusual signs of damage?

joe-lumber · January 15, 2013, 09:25 AM

After cleaning it with copper brush and Hoppes I can better see the rifling now. But there are many little black pits near the start of the rifling where the bullet is seated. I suspect that maybe the previous owner did not ever clean the barrel since it is so hard to take off the barrel in these Rem. 51's. it is really of not a big matter since I have another better barrel put into this pistol. Now I have this older barrel as a spare.
But will the pitting have a problem with the accuracy? I will try to post a picture later today.

joe-lumber · January 15, 2013, 09:37 AM

Barrel 1.JPG

Barrel 2.JPG I don't know if you can really tell from this photo?

Strafer Gott · January 15, 2013, 11:19 AM

The proof is of course in the pudding. Range testing will tell you all you need to know. From the pictures, I know I've had worse.

PetahW · January 15, 2013, 12:33 PM

In my experience pitting is more of an issue with esthetics & cleaning than it ever is with accuracy.

Don't worry - be happy, the P51's a classic.

.

joe-lumber · January 16, 2013, 02:35 PM

Here is a better picture of the rifling which seems better than I expected.
Rifling.JPG

Colt46 · January 16, 2013, 04:08 PM

Been on my wish list for a long time.

RickB · January 16, 2013, 04:30 PM

That doesn't look bad, at all. I have an '03 Springfield that is frosty from chamber to muzzle, and it still shoots 3" groups at 100 yards.

joe-lumber · February 9, 2013, 11:15 PM

I discovered two things on my Remington 51 in the last week.
First if you pull the slide back and hold it, release the grip safety the slide stays open. This makes it easier to clean the barrel after shooting the pistol.
Second the bullets were not loading into the chamber of the barrel on the first round. Well a gunsmith told me to hit the magazine on the palm of my hand and this angles the shells upward a small bit and it goes right into the chamber properly. This is using newly manufactured magazines which had been giving me problems and now they are working great. The gunsmith told me the pistol is good but pesky in loading the chamber. I had been very disappointed before I was told this method. The old magazine was somewhat worn and allowed the shells to be angled a little upward and always going in okay. Now the new magazines are okay also.
J

January 14, 2013, 02:49 PM	#1
joe-lumber Member Join Date: January 11, 2013 Posts: 34	Remington 51 I purchased a used Remington 51 but the barrel was with almost no rifling. It is possible to have it re-rifled? I purchased another barrel and had a gunsmith change it out so I am happy but wondering if there is someway to recondition the older barrel? Sorry if it a crazy question but I don't know what to do with the older barrel that came with the pistol? Last edited by joe-lumber; January 14, 2013 at 03:07 PM.

January 14, 2013, 09:47 PM	#4
joe-lumber Member Join Date: January 11, 2013 Posts: 34	Barrel Thanks for the info, I will try that.

January 15, 2013, 09:37 AM	#7
joe-lumber Member Join Date: January 11, 2013 Posts: 34	rifling Barrel 1.JPG Barrel 2.JPG I don't know if you can really tell from this photo?

January 16, 2013, 02:35 PM	#10
joe-lumber Member Join Date: January 11, 2013 Posts: 34	Remington 51 barrel Here is a better picture of the rifling which seems better than I expected. Rifling.JPG

January 16, 2013, 04:08 PM	#11
Colt46 Senior Member Join Date: November 25, 2002 Location: Campbell Ca Posts: 214	They are really cool guns Been on my wish list for a long time.

January 14, 2013, 04:02 PM	#2
Strafer Gott Senior Member Join Date: May 12, 2011 Location: New Mexico Posts: 878	Try cleaning the heck out of it with a good lead solvent. Sometimes leading can make it seem as though the rifling is gone, when it's only filled up.

January 14, 2013, 06:01 PM	#3
Sharpsdressed Man Senior Member Join Date: June 21, 2009 Posts: 853	Not just lead, get some Sweets 7.62. It is a super strong copper cleaner. Just keep cleaning til the patch doesn't come out green anymore.

January 15, 2013, 09:25 AM	#6
joe-lumber Member Join Date: January 11, 2013 Posts: 34	After cleaning it with copper brush and Hoppes I can better see the rifling now. But there are many little black pits near the start of the rifling where the bullet is seated. I suspect that maybe the previous owner did not ever clean the barrel since it is so hard to take off the barrel in these Rem. 51's. it is really of not a big matter since I have another better barrel put into this pistol. Now I have this older barrel as a spare. But will the pitting have a problem with the accuracy? I will try to post a picture later today.

January 15, 2013, 11:19 AM	#8
Strafer Gott Senior Member Join Date: May 12, 2011 Location: New Mexico Posts: 878	The proof is of course in the pudding. Range testing will tell you all you need to know. From the pictures, I know I've had worse.

January 15, 2013, 12:33 PM	#9
PetahW Senior Member Join Date: September 19, 2008 Posts: 3,268	In my experience pitting is more of an issue with esthetics & cleaning than it ever is with accuracy. Don't worry - be happy, the P51's a classic. .

January 16, 2013, 04:30 PM	#12
RickB Senior Member Join Date: March 1, 2000 Posts: 4,764	That doesn't look bad, at all. I have an '03 Springfield that is frosty from chamber to muzzle, and it still shoots 3" groups at 100 yards.

February 9, 2013, 11:15 PM	#13
joe-lumber Member Join Date: January 11, 2013 Posts: 34	Remington 51 I discovered two things on my Remington 51 in the last week. First if you pull the slide back and hold it, release the grip safety the slide stays open. This makes it easier to clean the barrel after shooting the pistol. Second the bullets were not loading into the chamber of the barrel on the first round. Well a gunsmith told me to hit the magazine on the palm of my hand and this angles the shells upward a small bit and it goes right into the chamber properly. This is using newly manufactured magazines which had been giving me problems and now they are working great. The gunsmith told me the pistol is good but pesky in loading the chamber. I had been very disappointed before I was told this method. The old magazine was somewhat worn and allowed the shells to be angled a little upward and always going in okay. Now the new magazines are okay also. J