Most of the SAA commemoratives don't do much for me but I have always liked the Peacemaker Centennials in both versions, especially the cavalry model. However, they usually sell for more than I'm willing to pay but this one turned up on Gunbroker the other night. Problem was the pictures in the posting weren't visible. I contacted the seller the next morning and he sent me a link to the photos and after going over them I hit the "buy it now" button. The gun came complete with the walnut case but no Colt paperwork.
The gun is unfired (at least at the moment ) and is very nice. The main issue is the grips are not fit well. The would actually shift around on the frame a bit when handling the gun, plus just not very good shaping for a Colt. I've since fixed the shifting. The action was a little rough but smoothed up nicely with some careful stoning and replacing the overly heavy mainspring. Overall, I'm pleased, especially considering that I got it for considerably less than they usually go for. They also had the .44-40 Frontier Six Shooter Centennial so I called a friend of mine who loves that caliber and he bought that one.
That's funny. When I was about 13 or 12, I remember suave was the new , cheep stuff on the market. Was kind of runny , not like preal or what ever it was. I just use soap now that I'm bald
I also have a pair of the .44WCF which I used for CAS more then 10 years. No idea how many rounds are through them but I love to shoot full house BP loads with them
Chaffee, the grips would slip even with the TG and BS screws fully tightened. That was the first thing I checked. The spacer between the grip panels was slightly undersized and not making proper contact with the inside of the grip frame. A small amount of epoxy bedding in the right places cured that. The stocks also show less than the usual Colt standard of fitting, plus a sizeable flat spot left on the right panel along with a noticeable "trough" on the same panel where too much wood was removed. They don't show up in the photos but are evident in hand.
Mike, I'm familiar with the articles you've written on the Centennial models. In fact, they were what made me aware of them. I was still mostly into muzzleloading when they were issued (still am) but "evolved" into black powder cartridge rifles in the 1980s, mostly Sharps and rollers, etc. shooting BPCRS. In fact, I spent a pleasant evening talking with you sitting outside our respective hotel rooms in Raton one year at Nationals. Got into cowboy action shooting in the early 90s which naturally led to a love of single actions. Always liked Cavalry Colts but originals are out of reach. But the Centennial model fits the bill just fine.
A trick i use for loose 1pc grips is to cut strips of paper the width of the channel and fold them over in the channel and re-assemble till I get the fit I want.
Get some Brownell's micro-bed & mix a small amount & apply it to the rear face & bottom of the center piece,cover the whole inside & sides of the bckstrp anywhere it may touch the micro-bed w/a good releasing compound,paste wax works fine,screw the bckstrp back on tight & let dry over night,take it off in the morning & tap the bckstrp off w/ a mallet to release it from the grips & you'll have a real nice professional fit,if u don't put enough releasing compound on it you'll NEVER get it apart.
Hi Jim. That is exactly what I did except I used a two part epoxy as I didn't have any micro-bed on hand. I have a well used can of Minwax paste wax that resides permanently in my shop just to be used as a release agent. I bedded the rear face and bottom of the center piece as you described, except I did not cover the serial number written on it. The stocks are solid now.
I don't know other than random variation. The TG on the .45 in the link is going plum. Maybe that had something to do with it. Colt made the same number of each version but the .45 seems to show up more often on the auctions. There are three on GB right now, two .45s and one .44-40, all listed in the $2800-3000 range. The store in Louisiana where I got my .45 also had the .44-40 for sale at the same price. A friend of mine bought it when I told him about it. The last one I saw on GB that actually sold was a .45 with the walnut case. Winning bid was over $2800.
No reason I have 4 and sometimes the 45 go for more than 44-40. The bad thing on this auction was that guns were a matched set S/N if sold as a set would have brought more money, unless the 45 had some bad handling marks. The 45 should have gone for min $3000.00, if NIB.
The matched sets seem to be more variable in asking price than individual guns. There are four separate guns ( two .44s and two .45s) currently listed on GB ranging from $2800 to $3500. There are also four matched cased sets. They range from $4200 to $6000.
Interesting that the serial # on this one in "1973PC". With only around 2002 of these .44-40s made, eventually someone on this forum will post their's and someone else will have one consecutive to to it. The one sold for so cheap in this ad is 5X higher than mine. The closest I've seen yet.
DallasCowboy, I have FSS 1962PC and 687PC, and alas also no .45. Looked for one for years and every time I thiught I had one either got outbid or at the LGS someone else got there first. Even had a friend who bought one for me, only to decide he liked it too. Ah well, such is life.
Today finaly my Peacemaker Centennial .45 arrived. The gun is absolutely new but has one-piece ivory grips. When I found this gun with a small dealer I started looking for the correct case and found one on ebay. I also could pick it up at the customs today. Now I have both Peacemaker Centennial models in a case. The only thing missing is the plaque for the .45 Centennial. If somebody has a plaque or a wooden grip and is willing to part please let me know it. This one comes out of a matched pair and has S/N MPC450.
I've seen a couple of those on GB lately but both auctions got up over $2k before they ended and that is simply more than I want to pay... even though I'd like a black powder frame gun at some point.
I payed around 1300.00 USD here in Germany for the gun plus the case from the US including postage and customs around 280.00 USD. I think that it is a good price.
Good? That's bloody fantastic considering the ivory grips! Go, get a lottery ticket, quick!
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