Looking at 45 Colt replica

RicinYakima

High Steppes of Eastern Washington
LGS has a Davidson Cimarron SSA replica. Brass grips and nice blue, never shot much. Are these any good? Don't believe what shills I read on the 'net.
 

Ian

Notorious member
I have various Uberti replicas imported by Taylor's, Stoeger, and Cimmaron which are actually quite good, at least as good as any Colt specimens I've seen. Cimmaron Arm's office is located in the house my wife's grandparents lived in for about 30 years and occasionally she bemoans that fact since they obliterated her childhood memories there.

I don't know what a "davidson" or "SSA" is so can't comment on that. What I can say is if it's made by Uberti, handle it first if possible and inspect the bore, but mostly you can be assured it is of good manufacturing quality and spare parts are widely available though probably will never be needed. I say handle first and inspect the bore because these guns must pass the national proof house in Italy before being exported and they are left dirty for months/years afterward and poorly handled in the proof house so the bores can be rusted, parts like barrel wedges adjusted with the nearest rock or prybar, and sundry other defects from rough handling and abuse. Cimmaron re-processes the imports and has a gunsmith on staff who remedies any of these mechanical and cosmetic defects....but still I see neglected bores in their Texas Jack's retail store. Taylor's are also re-fitted and are of good quality. Stoeger is straight from the proof house, cheaper, and a pig in a poke that most likely has gone without a final once-over by the US importer prior to sale.

My favorite is a Taylor's 1873 clone with a blued steel 1860 Army grip frame, something they put together special and I waited two years for after ordering. It fits my hand and also accepts the .45 ACP cylinder from a Taylor's convertible, truly the perfect SAA in my book. The 1872 Open Top .45 Colt is really nice as well. All my clones are upgraded with Wolf base pin spring kits and wire trigger/bolt springs and the springs tweaked to eliminate bolt peening of the cylinder locking notches and drag marks in the bluing (same thing you might want to do to a Colt if it is to be a shot much). A complete strip and clean is required to get the manufacturing fod and crust out, ensure all the screws are properly torqued, and to lubricate to prevent rust. After that you're good to go. I've shot the bejeebers out of a couple of these and have never worn out any parts or broken anything. HTH.
 
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462

California's Central Coast Amid The Insanity
If made by Uberti, using my Uberti-made Winchester 1866 clone as an example, I can attest to their overall quality of construction, and fit and finish.
 

CZ93X62

Official forum enigma
Dittoes to Ian and 462 on Uberti overall quality. I have had 2 Uberti Cattleman repro Colt S/As, both 4-3/4" barrels, one each in 44/40 WCF and 45 Colt. I deeply regret selling the 45 Colt variant when I got the Ruger Bishawk in 45 Colt. It took three years of palavering around to get the Ruger to shoot as well and capably as the Uberti shot right out of the box. I would buy another Uberti Cattleman without hesitation, given Ian's caveat about avoiding purchases "sight unseen".
 

Ian

Notorious member
I have a New Vaquero that I'd love to love but for thread choke which has defied several lapping attempts and chambers that are nearly the next caliber up and one chamber that has a poi several inches out from the rest. Never had any troubles like that from the Ubertis.
 

RicinYakima

High Steppes of Eastern Washington
"Davidson" is a marketing company that specializes in selling "unique" collector items. This one has brass grip frame. "SAA" stands for single action army, Colt's designation from the 1800's.
 

CZ93X62

Official forum enigma
That BisHawk 45 Colt had OEM throats that ran between .448" and .449". Easily fixed, even in the days before Doug Guy. It still gave me a case of the a-- that I had to finish building the gun. I guess Rugers come in kit form--they should indicate in their ads "Some assembly required".
 

RicinYakima

High Steppes of Eastern Washington
I have had three NM Blackhawks, 45 colt or 45 colt/45acp over the last 25 years. I have the Brownell's throat reaming tool because all of them had to be worked on. Then there was the issues of thread choke and they weigh ten tons. Looking for a gun to carry in the parka pocket to shoot the 452424 at 250 grains and 750 f/s. Cougars are going to be an issue this winter, and they are talking about reintroducing the grizzlies up the ridge line from me.
 
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Bret4207

At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
Glad to hear I'm not the only one that notice Rugers SA's (with the exception of the Bearcat and to include DA's after the Speed Six series) are rather...portly. Strength is one thing, several extra ounces of steel to lug around is another.
 

Ian

Notorious member
Ric, you wrote "SSA" and I wasn't sure if it was a typo or not. I can't vouch for Davidson's as an importer, no experience with them, but if it came through the Cimarron warehouse and is so marked, it's likely top notch.
 
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oscarflytyer

Well-Known Member
Have a pair of Ubertis. One is a Taylor and the trigger is amazing for a SA! One in 45 Colt and one in 44-40. Been very happy with them both.
 

462

California's Central Coast Amid The Insanity
I mentally questioned Ian's written question about SSA's meaning, because my eyes read SAA.
 

RicinYakima

High Steppes of Eastern Washington
My error! Late at night for me when I wrote it, but knew I would have opinions this morning. Thanks to all.
 

CZ93X62

Official forum enigma
If made by Uberti, using my Uberti-made Winchester 1866 clone as an example, I can attest to their overall quality of construction, and fit and finish.

One of the local toy emporia that Buckshot and I habitually infest (Redlands Loan & Pawn) is a stocking dealer for Uberti firearms. THOSE 1873 REPROS DRAW ME LIKE A MOTH TO FLAME. So nicely made and finished.

Ruger vs. Uberti.......they are very different arms, the BH and the CM. You can do crazy stuff with Ruger strength, like running #454490 to 1350 FPS--but you wonder if a holster or a shoulder strap is the better carry mode afield. The CM is MUCH more portable, but I don't run them hard--either #454190 or #454424 at 850-875 FPS (from 4-3/4" barrel, 9.0 x Unique or 10.0 x Herco) is about as much as I was comfy with. 260 grains of 45 caliber persuasion running at almost 3 football fields per second is still a right useful and powerful sidearm round, and so easy to carry.
 

Brad

Benevolent Overlord and site owner
Staff member
I don’t mind a 4 5/8” BH in 45 Colt in a belt
holster. A smaller caliber could get heavier but those large 45 cal holes in steel sure remove weight fast.

The idea of a 250 gr ish bullet at 750-850 FPS makes sense to me.
 

Ian

Notorious member
The idea of a 250 gr ish bullet at 750-850 FPS makes sense to me.

Agreed. At the end of of any long day of debating, that's probably the most effective "get off me" loads in existence in .44 or .45 caliber.
 

Brad

Benevolent Overlord and site owner
Staff member
Best of all a 44 special or 45 Colt does just that at very sane pressures.
The old BP 45 Colt loads were the magnum of the era. And are still pretty damned effective today
 
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oscarflytyer

Well-Known Member
Fired my 45 Colt Loads (454490 @ 810-860 fps/4 3/4" bbl) outdoors while we were all shooting as a family. Seemed fairly tame to me, but man, did my family give me the stink eye! They hated the noise of them. Old school magnums indeed!
 

Brad

Benevolent Overlord and site owner
Staff member
I used to shoot some heavy loads of H110 with a 265 WFN. Recoil was horrendous even though accuracy was good.
I no longer shoot those loads because the recoil is more than I care to deal with.