Range Report 07DEC2025: A Tale of two Colts

Colt 1860 with Johnston & Dow pasteboard cartridge packets.

I went to the range today and threw away some J&D and R.L. bullets at high rates of speed through my Uberti 1860 Army and Pietta 1851 Navy.  As usual, the 1851 functioned flawlessly: easy to load, no misfires, no cap jams even though it’s a god-damned-Colt (that’s becoming a single word in my lexicon), etc.  And, also as usual, the Uberti 1860 was a pain in my butt, with several repeating problems such as some bullets not seating deeply enough to allow the cylinder to turn, a weak hammer spring failing to set off caps, etc.  Both revolvers have been significantly reworked by Gary Barnes at Cartridge Conversions, with the Uberti also having had a lot of extra work to eliminate as many of the typical Uberti flaws as possible, such as the short arbor syndrome, etc.

1851 Colt Navy with cartridges and accessories.

Having said that, the 1860 can certainly shoot.  Although not as accurate as my Pietta Remington New Model Army, it consistently outshoots my 1851 Navy (even though the 1851 is a Pietta and therefore significantly more functional).  I shot about 60 rounds of each today, but the examples below are typical of the results I got.

The Army was loaded with Johnston & Dow bullets over 25 grains of Swiss 3F powder.  The Navy was loaded with Richmond Labs bullets over 17 grains of Swiss 3F powder.  Both kinds of cartridges used Crossen one-piece nitrated envelopes and were dipped in the Ordnance Department tallow and beeswax grease recipe.

All shooting was done offhand using a 6:00 hold at 15 yards.

Table Two: Colt 1851 Navy.

Table Two:  Pietta 1851 Colt Navy
String: 47.0 in.
Rounds: 12
String Test: 47.0/12 = 3.92 in./rd.

Table Three: Colt 1860 Army.

Table Three:  Uberti 1860 Colt Army
String: 22.25 in.
Rounds: 12
String Test: 22.25/12 = 1.85 in./rd. 

That difference in accuracy is extremely significant, and I don’t have an explanation for it.  It’s not a Pietta v. Uberti thing since my Pietta Remington NMA outshoots the Uberti Colt, so it’s either some specific flaw in my Navy, or the Navy’s are just generally not as accurate as the Army’s (which I do not believe), or my load is at fault (although both are shooting authentic loads), or I simply don’t shoot the Navy as well as I do the Army.  Just as a benchmark, I consider any String Test under 3.0 inches/round to be acceptable shooting.  Both shoot a little high, as one would expect, but I am pulling left slightly, and that is, I think, on me.