Remington conversion cylinder

olmontanaboy · September 19, 2010, 08:05 PM

I like cap and ball revolvers mainly for what they are, but I have been thinking lately of trying one of these in my Remington Navy just for the hell of it. Does anyone here have any first hand experience with these cylinders? How hard are they to fit to the revolver? which brand is the best? I've read the .38 special should be used with hollow base bullets for best results. I've got a good ammount of 38 special hollow base wadcutter ammo I'd like to use up.
Any thoughts?

GNLaFrance · September 20, 2010, 10:42 AM

Most of the time, a cartridge conversion cylinder will work fine without any major work. It may just need to be "fit in" by working the action a few dozen times.

The two major brands are Howell (formerly R&D) and Kirst. As far as I can tell, Howell/R&D doesn't make a conversion cylinder for the .36 cal. Navy Remington. If that's the case, then your only choice is a Kirst cylinder.

Your .38 Special HBWCs will work just fine. The reason to use hollow based bullets is that the .36 Navy bore is actually .375 inch, .018 inch bigger than a .38 cal. bore, which is actually .357 inch. The hollow base forms a "skirt" that expands and grabs the rifling.

olmontanaboy · September 20, 2010, 03:13 PM

Thanks for the info, I'll check out the Kirst unit.

jolasa · October 6, 2010, 05:09 PM

Talked to Kirst Konverter folks.

My contact at Kirst was Jay ([email protected]) on October 4, 2010.

After shipping my 1858 Pietta Remington to Kirst, Jay quoted as follows:

1. $80.00 to cut a loading channel in the frame (you may not want this - you can just remove the cylinder, remove spent cartridges, load more, put cylinder back in). But sure is easier to just load cartridges thru a loading channel in the frame, without having to remove the cylinder.

2. $20 for return postage.

3. $265.00 for the appropriate Kirst conversion cylinder for .45 LC.

4. They will make sure you can still use the original cylinder for cap and ball, as well as the conversion cylinder for .45 LC cartridges. So you can go back and forth.

5. They will adjust and fix any timing issues that come up (rareley needed), all for the same price.

Total $365.00. Sounds like a deal to me.

Jon

September 19, 2010, 08:05 PM	#1
olmontanaboy Senior Member Join Date: March 2, 2009 Location: Northeast for now Posts: 266	Remington conversion cylinder I like cap and ball revolvers mainly for what they are, but I have been thinking lately of trying one of these in my Remington Navy just for the hell of it. Does anyone here have any first hand experience with these cylinders? How hard are they to fit to the revolver? which brand is the best? I've read the .38 special should be used with hollow base bullets for best results. I've got a good ammount of 38 special hollow base wadcutter ammo I'd like to use up. Any thoughts? __________________ Olmontanaboy No good deed goes unpunished. A loaded gun, a faithful dog,,, consider yourself lucky.

September 20, 2010, 10:42 AM	#2
GNLaFrance Member Join Date: June 29, 2008 Location: Near Baltimore, the Soviet Socialist Democratic People's Republic of Maryland Posts: 81	Most of the time, a cartridge conversion cylinder will work fine without any major work. It may just need to be "fit in" by working the action a few dozen times. The two major brands are Howell (formerly R&D) and Kirst. As far as I can tell, Howell/R&D doesn't make a conversion cylinder for the .36 cal. Navy Remington. If that's the case, then your only choice is a Kirst cylinder. Your .38 Special HBWCs will work just fine. The reason to use hollow based bullets is that the .36 Navy bore is actually .375 inch, .018 inch bigger than a .38 cal. bore, which is actually .357 inch. The hollow base forms a "skirt" that expands and grabs the rifling. __________________ Guy N. LaFrance Collector of Curios & Relics, Maryland Designated Collector Maryland Shall Issue, GOA, NRA, SAF, JPFO Grand Army of the Frontier, National Congress of Old West Shootists

September 20, 2010, 03:13 PM	#3
olmontanaboy Senior Member Join Date: March 2, 2009 Location: Northeast for now Posts: 266	Thanks for the info, I'll check out the Kirst unit. __________________ Olmontanaboy No good deed goes unpunished. A loaded gun, a faithful dog,,, consider yourself lucky.

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October 6, 2010, 05:09 PM	#4
jolasa Member Join Date: September 29, 2010 Location: Bay Area, California Posts: 60	Talked to Kirst Konverter folks. My contact at Kirst was Jay ([email protected]) on October 4, 2010. After shipping my 1858 Pietta Remington to Kirst, Jay quoted as follows: 1. $80.00 to cut a loading channel in the frame (you may not want this - you can just remove the cylinder, remove spent cartridges, load more, put cylinder back in). But sure is easier to just load cartridges thru a loading channel in the frame, without having to remove the cylinder. 2. $20 for return postage. 3. $265.00 for the appropriate Kirst conversion cylinder for .45 LC. 4. They will make sure you can still use the original cylinder for cap and ball, as well as the conversion cylinder for .45 LC cartridges. So you can go back and forth. 5. They will adjust and fix any timing issues that come up (rareley needed), all for the same price. Total $365.00. Sounds like a deal to me. Jon