Uberti Revolvers?

[ModernKnight]

I've been looking into getting a revolver for the past few weeks when I found myself standing in the Gander Mountain near Scotland PA, and amongst the S&W and Rugers I expected the find they had a large variety of Uberti revolvers. They look awesome, but I've never heard of them and that's reason enough for me not to buy the gun. I did some research on them (apparently they're owned by Beretta?), but couldn't find a whole lot of reviews on reliability, quality, or overall customer satisfaction. Anyone here on the boards own one? Have experience with one? Know something about them that would influence a purchasing decision?

[Karl/PA]

Ubertis are excellent quality black powder revolvers.

[knight0334]

Ubertis are excellent quality black powder revolvers.

And smokeless.

[cruzans]

I picked up an Uberti 45lc earlier in the year because I wanted to add a six shooter to the collection. I haven't had any issues with mine so far ! Fun to shoot, and great way to add this type of gun to the collection for a fraction of the cost of a Colt or others.
Go for it.

[PA Rifleman]

...Uberti revolvers. They look awesome, but I've never heard of them and that's reason enough for me not to buy the gun....

Interesting. Never heard of Uberti? See http://www.uberti.com/

You don't mention whether you're mulling black powder or cartridge. My experience regarding Uberti is black powder.

First, it looks like we're down to two active percussion revolver makers (Pietta & Uberti). I could go on & on about the departed (ASM, San Marco, Palmetto, Euroarms, RigArmi/RigArms) but that would only be relevant if you're buying used.

Second, before buying I recommend a little homework on the different models and options. Colts are widely regarded as the most aesthetically pleasing and the most prolific, but Remington-Beals designs are the easiest to disassemble and clean. All other factors equal, Remington-Beals designs are more accurate due to the frame design. Colt replicas have several different loading lever designs, so the loading effort varies somewhat. If you aren't concerned about historical accuracy, stainless steel might be something to consider since it will take the pressure off to clean it as quickly as possible after firing. Which leads us to logistics: may I assume you're familiar with black powder loading & firing procedures, cleaning residue, have sources for black powder/percussion caps/bullets, etc?

Uberti is widely considered the better brand, although I've many reports that Pietta has made a lot of progress closing the gap. This isn't an indictment against Pietta, for most people this won't make a difference. At one point or another, each gun maker popped out a few duds, so make certain you can get a return if you receive a lemon.

I also have an Uberti 1862 pocket Police, I'm reluctant to shoot it since it's so finely finished. If you'd like, I'll post a photo of it.

I prefer Uberti for several reasons: The mechanics are well executed (well finished, proper mechanical clearances, reasonable historical accuracy and good performance). My earliest memory of Uberti revolvers is 1976 (I bought an Uberti 1860 Army), so they've been cranking them out for at least 35 years.

Here's an Uberti stainless 1858 Beals-Remington:


Another resource I recommend is the Muzzle Loading Forum, there are countless threads mulling these points (details).

Link:
http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/index.php

Sidebar: it's been my observation that black powder guns generally don't command high prices when sold used. As with anything collectible, there are a few exceptions, but not many.

[Berks_Iraq_Vet]

Good quality .45LC revolvers. Fun to shoot and have held up very well.

[ModernKnight]

I appreciate all the feedback; it's been very helpful! I'm looking at cartridge revolvers, and I did spend a fair bit of time on the uberti website looking over what they had to offer in both cartridge and black powder. You guys have filled in all the gaps that I couldn't using google, and it looks like I'm gonna go poking around local gunshops seeing which ones they have in stock.

[Snert]

Hop on your pony, and ride over to the SASS web site. This is the web site for Single Action Shooting Society, or the COWBOY action shooting forum. There is ALOT if info there on SA revolvers.

I have been on the fence on trying the cowboy shooting, figured it was another form of 3 gun. You need 2 revolvers, a rifle and shotty. But then figured the kids want to try it too, so theres a big investment on firearms. Thus this has been put on the back burner till other things are completed.

Snert..

[cdi]

They are in the same quality class as Taurus and Rossi. They are not even close to Colt in quality.

[WVBob]

Get a Ruger Blackhawk. Much better gun and US made.