Taylor's/Uberti "Smoke Wagon" 1873 SAA short-stroke 357

[Old No7]

Here's a companion piece I got to go along with my Marlin 1894 Cowboy, also in .357 Mag.

I've had a couple of Uberti SAAs before, but I always moved them along when someone at the range took a shine to them -- buying low ("used"), and selling higher has always worked out in my favor. This one, though, might just stick around a little longer. Now I know some SAA purists (and I respect your opinions) won't like the checkered grip, the 3-clicks instead of 4 (due to the firing pin safety that's built into the hammer), or the "short stroke" hammer action -- but those don't bother me any at all.

( Click any image to enlarge )
Here she is, all 5.5" of her. She was made in 2019 and has a very smooth action with tight lockup:

Taylors 1873 Smoke Wagon 01 .jpeg

Here's a view of the forcing cone after I cut it with an 11-degree Brownell's FC cutter -- as she had an abrupt step to the rifling and was leading pretty badly in that area. (You can clearly see what looks like an "E" where the cutter did its work.) I didn't get to shoot it again yet, but will so soon with the same cast bullet load.

Taylors 1873 Smoke Wagon 06 Forcing Cone.jpg

I got this inexpensive bandolier-type stamped (not carved) leather shoulder holster for it (on ebay), and while the color looks pretty good in this image (almost a Russet brown), in reality it was pretty bland looking in person:

Taylors 1873 Smoke Wagon holster before.jpeg

So I bought some Russet leather stain, and while it did darker it up more than I thought I'd wanted -- I'm liking this better now:

Taylors 1873 Smoke Wagon holster after 01.jpeg

And finally, here's a web image of the "short stroke" hammer as compared to a typical SAA:

Taylors 1873 Smoke Wagon 02 shortstroke 5.5.jpg

Overall, she's a lot of fun to shoot and knocks over the steel plates as well as any adjustable-sighted 357 I own.

Cheers to all.

Old No7

[Scott Tschirhart]

Looks like a very useful and good looking sixgun.

I hope it gives you many years of great service.

[Grizz]

Here's a companion piece I got to go along with my Marlin 1894 Cowboy, also in .357 Mag.

I've had a couple of Uberti SAAs before, but I always moved them along when someone at the range took a shine to them -- buying low ("used"), and selling higher has always worked out in my favor. This one, though, might just stick around a little longer. Now I know some SAA purists (and I respect your opinions) won't like the checkered grip, the 3-clicks instead of 4 (due to the firing pin safety that's built into the hammer), or the "short stroke" hammer action -- but those don't bother me any at all.

( Click any image to enlarge )
Here she is, all 5.5" of her. She was made in 2019 and has a very smooth action with tight lockup:

Taylors 1873 Smoke Wagon 01 .jpeg

Here's a view of the forcing cone after I cut it with an 11-degree Brownell's FC cutter -- as she had an abrupt step to the rifling and was leading pretty badly in that area. (You can clearly see what looks like an "E" where the cutter did its work.) I didn't get to shoot it again yet, but will so soon with the same cast bullet load.

Taylors 1873 Smoke Wagon 06 Forcing Cone.jpg

I got this inexpensive bandolier-type stamped (not carved) leather shoulder holster for it (on ebay), and while the color looks pretty good in this image (almost a Russet brown), in reality it was pretty bland looking in person:

Taylors 1873 Smoke Wagon holster before.jpeg

So I bought some Russet leather stain, and while it did darker it up more than I thought I'd wanted -- I'm liking this better now:

Taylors 1873 Smoke Wagon holster after 01.jpeg

And finally, here's a web image of the "short stroke" hammer as compared to a typical SAA:

Taylors 1873 Smoke Wagon 02 shortstroke 5.5.jpg

Overall, she's a lot of fun to shoot and knocks over the steel plates as well as any adjustable-sighted 357 I own.

Cheers to all.

Old No7

After the forcing cone cut do you polish out the striations? I need to do that FC maneuver to a redhawk. Thanks for posting the photos up and happy shooting!

[Bill in Oregon]

Nice sixgun, Darryl. I may need to do the forcing cone on my Uberti Model P .44 Special as it is leading more than it should. That holster came out nice.

[Old No7]

After the forcing cone cut do you polish out the striations? I need to do that FC maneuver to a redhawk. Thanks for posting the photos up and happy shooting!

Howdy Grizz:
Yes, my kit also includes a brass elongated cone that exactly matches the dimensions of the steel cutter. I used tool that with fine lapping compound on it, but did that step after I took the picture.

Good luck if you do the Redhawk!

Old No7

[Ysabel Kid]

Very nice!

I really like the darker stain on that holster. It looks a lot better. I may have to do that on a few holsters myself.

So, probably a silly question, but I imagine you have to remove the barrel first before using the FC cutter, right?

[Old No7]

Very nice! I really like the darker stain on that holster. It looks a lot better. I may have to do that on a few holsters myself.

Thanks Jay. It was done with Fiebing's Leather Die (bought on ebay).

...but I imagine you have to remove the barrel first before using the FC cutter, right?

Nope, the Brownell's tool inserts from the muzzle, with a tapered muzzle guard centering the front end, and the tapered steel cutter or brass lap screw onto the rod (which has a T handle) and self-center at the forcing cone end. It's a pretty slick rig, and I think I've done over half a dozen S&W, Rugers and BP Colts over the years too.

Old No7

[Ysabel Kid]

Very nice! I really like the darker stain on that holster. It looks a lot better. I may have to do that on a few holsters myself.

Thanks Jay. It was done with Fiebing's Leather Die (bought on ebay).

...but I imagine you have to remove the barrel first before using the FC cutter, right?

Nope, the Brownell's tool inserts from the muzzle, with a tapered muzzle guard centering the front end, and the tapered steel cutter or brass lap screw onto the rod (which has a T handle) and self-center at the forcing cone end. It's a pretty slick rig, and I think I've done over half a dozen S&W, Rugers and BP Colts over the years too.

Old No7

Oh that is very cool! Thanks Darryl!

[Walt]

Old No 7, that's a very useful kit. I've had that one from Brownells for years also. I think the kit came with 11° as well as 18° reamers and lapping cones. I added a 5° reamer and cone to mine for a super smooth forcing cone.