I hope this helps.. I really dont think it is fragile. Also parts are easy to get and its a simple gun to work on once you understand all the mechanisms and how they work. I plan on doing a video on disassembly and reassembly while explaining each part and how it works.
I avoided them for 19 years out of internet and gun magazine lore of extreme frailty. Then I finally got one. I should have done it decade's ago. I find them to have this odd time capsule sort of charm. Nobody who bought one new is still alive. Black powder only and factory ammo is unobtainable. A quintessential cowboy era look down to the prancing horse grips, but a near complete absence from movies. A quirky action to avoid now ancient patents. Good holsters are a custom affair. It's older than dirt and yet it never gets old to look at, hold and occasionally shoot. I feel so lucky to have one. I definitely suggest them to those who have the itch.
@kevinforget549 there are quite a few places. Just type in colt 1877 parts on Google. You can find original parts to newly manufactured parts. A few good ones are jack first inc, Dixie gun works. lodgewood manufacturing. There are many more out there.
I would have prob. picked the middle option. Good to hear that they are not nearly as bad as people make them out to be. I have not had any problems out of mine thought I have not shot it much.
absolutely fascinating .... you make me realize (with embarrassment) how little I know about the mechanics of guns, I just shoot 'em and clean 'em. great video and as I say, down right fascinating
Thanks steve. Soon i plan on making videos that really break down the parts of guns like this. but how each part works and how they are designed. Plus explain and demystify things like timing and how eazy to fix. No worries you shouldn't be embarrassed we all had to learn at some time. Cheers brother hope all is well
@@snappers_antique_firearms thanks for that Snapper, had a great day of sunshine here today, the first for too darn long, Spring has been mighty slow coming ... onya cobber - I look forward to those vids
@@CodyandSteveDownUnder yeah it would i think thats part of the reason why i hate liveing in las vegas. Its summer or winter and it changes very fast. But its sunny skys 99% of the time with almost no clouds
Thank you. I am a engineer and about a year ago. i started testing things that i have heard. And also what most people believed about the colt single action army. i found there are a lot of things taken as truth to be wrong. This really opened my eyes and made me want to test other myths.
I have a nearly new .41 Thunderer. It came with a box of original BP ammo, three rounds missing. I believe those were the only rounds fired from the gun before I got it. Against the seller's advice I did shoot about 20 shots of reproduction BP ammo. No problems, but it grouped about six inches left and high of the sights at 50 feet. Good enough for gunfighting but I have found 19th century British Webleys to be much better quality.
Wow, it sounds like you scored with that revolver. I would have shot it as well. A few rounds will never hurt it. If you care to get it closer to point of aim. You can get a gun smith to rotate the barrel. it will shoot closer to the point of aim left and right. All colts from the 1800 shoot high. If you look up the way people used to aim, it's different than today. Instead of shooting center mass. They would shoot at belt Buckle Height. Because of the rainbow trajectory, it would allow the shooter to hit a target at a longer range without changing the point of aim. I also have a shooting video if you care to see it. Congrats again on your thunderer.
You have got to get yourself one. I recommend finding one that's in good shape but is out of time or is not working. Much cheaper that way. i can help get it running for you if need be.
Thanks!! doing my best to test rumors we all have heard in the past. The design of these revolvers are much better then people give them credit for. These men knew what they were doing. There are better designs than others. But this was the golden age of design
I’m curious about restoration of one of these things. I recently inherited one that was neglected, the handle is broken and it’s dirty and has some surface rust. Im not a big gun guy but I love old machines and I’m good with mechanical devices. Anyone who could point me in the right direction would be appreciated. My plan is to restore it, probably take it to a pro for inspection, track down some ammunition, shoot it once “if a professional says it’s safe”, clean it and build it a shadow box. Im bummed that the broken handle is missing the bottom chunk but I have a nice cool of burl in my shop.
Well first off it's best to stop any rust or corrosion right away. I have a video on the right way of doing this. th-cam.com/video/SQOUfVe1INs/w-d-xo.htmlsi=DxZmYPk7muVLyOTX. Also my email is thewildsnapper@gmail.com email me and I am happy to help point you in the right direction.
Lol its ok. There was a time i had no idea how to work on revolvers. We all had to learn at some point. Also congrats on that 22. it turned out to be a very nice gun
@@snappers_antique_firearms thanks, I have a friend who is a gunsmith who built me a custom Palma bolt rifle after I picked the 6.5 284 cartridge out which at the time was a wildcat caliber,, he is a accomplished long distance rifleman who has many achievements and medals for competition, I really enjoy your pistols and seeing what your doing, keep up the good work, looking forward to seeing your next project 😎👍🇺🇸
@@skunkworksrifle3443 thanks!! Sounds like a good friend to know. Long distance shooting is not a eazy thing. Looking forward to seeing your videos as well.
@@snappers_antique_firearms idk yet they guys are looking though im anxious to know though , ive never worked on revolver but ill watch vids on the 1877 on how to break it apart 🤓 if they made it in 1877 with out electricity it shouldnt be complicated 🤓
@@Bucky1836 if you know it's serial number. you can type into Google colt serial number lookup. Go to the colt website and type in that serial number. it will tell you what year the gun was made. Something cool about colts and you might know this. You can buy a Factory letter from Colt. It shows all the information about the gun. even where it was shipped and what dates.... So the 1877 is widely considered one of the hardest revolvers to work on. that's just because it has a lot of parts all timed together. how it workes and how it's timed is very different to other double action revolvers. Best way to learn it is by understanding what each part does. It will look hard at first, but its really not. I would highly recommend buying a new trigger spring And a new bolt / sear spring. The bolt spring is the weakest part on the gun. If you need any help just hit me up.
I Love how you don't have any problems about firing old guns, which is why I hate some gun collectors, guns were made to be fired not to be displayed on a wall, if that's what you looking for then just buy a fake one.
I agree!! have always believed if i own it and i never shoot it...is it really mine. it don't hurt it in any way as long as you use the proper ammunition for these old guns. they were designed around black powder. Instead of modern smokeless powder. I shoot every gun i own. even ones over 200+ years. Thanks for stopping by
Excellent! I've looked at one or two myself, thinking I wanted them but fearful of "fragility".
I hope this helps.. I really dont think it is fragile. Also parts are easy to get and its a simple gun to work on once you understand all the mechanisms and how they work. I plan on doing a video on disassembly and reassembly while explaining each part and how it works.
I avoided them for 19 years out of internet and gun magazine lore of extreme frailty. Then I finally got one. I should have done it decade's ago.
I find them to have this odd time capsule sort of charm. Nobody who bought one new is still alive. Black powder only and factory ammo is unobtainable. A quintessential cowboy era look down to the prancing horse grips, but a near complete absence from movies. A quirky action to avoid now ancient patents. Good holsters are a custom affair. It's older than dirt and yet it never gets old to look at, hold and occasionally shoot. I feel so lucky to have one. I definitely suggest them to those who have the itch.
@@snappers_antique_firearms where do you get parts for these?
@kevinforget549 there are quite a few places. Just type in colt 1877 parts on Google. You can find original parts to newly manufactured parts. A few good ones are jack first inc, Dixie gun works. lodgewood manufacturing. There are many more out there.
I would have prob. picked the middle option. Good to hear that they are not nearly as bad as people make them out to be. I have not had any problems out of mine thought I have not shot it much.
absolutely fascinating .... you make me realize (with embarrassment) how little I know about the mechanics of guns, I just shoot 'em and clean 'em. great video and as I say, down right fascinating
Thanks steve. Soon i plan on making videos that really break down the parts of guns like this. but how each part works and how they are designed. Plus explain and demystify things like timing and how eazy to fix. No worries you shouldn't be embarrassed we all had to learn at some time. Cheers brother hope all is well
@@snappers_antique_firearms thanks for that Snapper, had a great day of sunshine here today, the first for too darn long, Spring has been mighty slow coming ... onya cobber - I look forward to those vids
@@CodyandSteveDownUnder well before you know it its going to be summer. I am glade winter is coming for us. Its has been a very hot summer.
@@snappers_antique_firearms yes, darn it, life would be pretty boring without seasons :)
@@CodyandSteveDownUnder yeah it would i think thats part of the reason why i hate liveing in las vegas. Its summer or winter and it changes very fast. But its sunny skys 99% of the time with almost no clouds
First!!!! Oh boy! Myth busting with snapper
We need to make a play list of myth busting
Lol
@@snappers_antique_firearms I will give you a real challenge.... colt made capping tools used during the Civil war....
Good video; dispelling the myths by testing the original Colt.
Thank you. I am a engineer and about a year ago. i started testing things that i have heard. And also what most people believed about the colt single action army. i found there are a lot of things taken as truth to be wrong. This really opened my eyes and made me want to test other myths.
I have an old Colt Thunderer. Never fired it. Works well.
You definitely have to shoot it at least 1 time. They are very fun to shoot. I have video of this one shooting on the channel if your interested.
I have a nearly new .41 Thunderer. It came with a box of original BP ammo, three rounds missing. I believe those were the only rounds fired from the gun before I got it. Against the seller's advice I did shoot about 20 shots of reproduction BP ammo. No problems, but it grouped about six inches left and high of the sights at 50 feet. Good enough for gunfighting but I have found 19th century British Webleys to be much better quality.
Wow, it sounds like you scored with that revolver. I would have shot it as well. A few rounds will never hurt it. If you care to get it closer to point of aim. You can get a gun smith to rotate the barrel. it will shoot closer to the point of aim left and right. All colts from the 1800 shoot high. If you look up the way people used to aim, it's different than today. Instead of shooting center mass. They would shoot at belt Buckle Height. Because of the rainbow trajectory, it would allow the shooter to hit a target at a longer range without changing the point of aim. I also have a shooting video if you care to see it. Congrats again on your thunderer.
Such a great firearm.
You have got to get yourself one. I recommend finding one that's in good shape but is out of time or is not working.
Much cheaper that way. i can help get it running for you if need be.
@@snappers_antique_firearms Thanks! I will look for one of those, then.
Did you add sound effects while you were dry firing? "BANG, BANG, BANG, BANG, BANG, BANG, ZIINNNNNG" (that last round was a ricochet)
😏 YEAH
Great video! Thanks for sharing.
Thanks!! doing my best to test rumors we all have heard in the past. The design of these revolvers are much better then people give them credit for. These men knew what they were doing. There are better designs than others. But this was the golden age of design
Thanks
Well that jut gave me a little more insight. Thanks for sharing.👍
Just remember the real weak link in this gun is that trigger Spring and it's very easy to remove and replace
👍👍
I’m curious about restoration of one of these things. I recently inherited one that was neglected, the handle is broken and it’s dirty and has some surface rust. Im not a big gun guy but I love old machines and I’m good with mechanical devices. Anyone who could point me in the right direction would be appreciated. My plan is to restore it, probably take it to a pro for inspection, track down some ammunition, shoot it once “if a professional says it’s safe”, clean it and build it a shadow box. Im bummed that the broken handle is missing the bottom chunk but I have a nice cool of burl in my shop.
Well first off it's best to stop any rust or corrosion right away. I have a video on the right way of doing this. th-cam.com/video/SQOUfVe1INs/w-d-xo.htmlsi=DxZmYPk7muVLyOTX. Also my email is thewildsnapper@gmail.com email me and I am happy to help point you in the right direction.
@@snappers_antique_firearms thank you so much!
@gorehammer1 no problem. You might not hear from me right away I have been very busy. But glade to help.
Where did you get snap caps from? .41 LC ?
I have never seen a set in 41 colt. I use 41 brass and put rubber in the primer pocket. Works great!!
Shows how much I know about gunsmithing 🤣
Lol its ok. There was a time i had no idea how to work on revolvers. We all had to learn at some point. Also congrats on that 22. it turned out to be a very nice gun
@@snappers_antique_firearms thanks, I have a friend who is a gunsmith who built me a custom Palma bolt rifle after I picked the 6.5 284 cartridge out which at the time was a wildcat caliber,, he is a accomplished long distance rifleman who has many achievements and medals for competition, I really enjoy your pistols and seeing what your doing, keep up the good work, looking forward to seeing your next project 😎👍🇺🇸
@@skunkworksrifle3443 thanks!! Sounds like a good friend to know. Long distance shooting is not a eazy thing. Looking forward to seeing your videos as well.
Nice job
Thanks!!
👍💪🇺🇸
I got a Thunderer on layway now 🤩 41 colt
Thats great to hear. What year is yours. And its not that hard of a gun to work on. You will love it
@@snappers_antique_firearms idk yet they guys are looking though im anxious to know though , ive never worked on revolver but ill watch vids on the 1877 on how to break it apart 🤓 if they made it in 1877 with out electricity it shouldnt be complicated 🤓
@@Bucky1836 if you know it's serial number. you can type into Google colt serial number lookup. Go to the colt website and type in that serial number. it will tell you what year the gun was made. Something cool about colts and you might know this. You can buy a Factory letter from Colt. It shows all the information about the gun. even where it was shipped and what dates.... So the 1877 is widely considered one of the hardest revolvers to work on. that's just because it has a lot of parts all timed together. how it workes and how it's timed is very different to other double action revolvers. Best way to learn it is by understanding what each part does. It will look hard at first, but its really not. I would highly recommend buying a new trigger spring And a new bolt / sear spring. The bolt spring is the weakest part on the gun. If you need any help just hit me up.
@@snappers_antique_firearms its an 1890 😄
@@Bucky1836 congrats. You should buy the Factory certificate. mine is a 1891. If you have any problems hit me up. they are easy to work on.
I Love how you don't have any problems about firing old guns, which is why I hate some gun collectors, guns were made to be fired not to be displayed on a wall, if that's what you looking for then just buy a fake one.
I agree!! have always believed if i own it and i never shoot it...is it really mine. it don't hurt it in any way as long as you use the proper ammunition for these old guns. they were designed around black powder. Instead of modern smokeless powder. I shoot every gun i own. even ones over 200+ years. Thanks for stopping by