I picked up a Pietta 1873 SSA repro and like it a lot. Think I'd like to add another SA cowboy-type revolver to the collection and am wavering between a Cimarron Uberti Open Top Navy in 38sp and Cimaron 1858 Remington New Army in the same caliber.

The difference seems to be open top versus top strap. Wondering if anyone has any experience with either and if there is any difference in reliability, safety, shootability, etc. between the two.

I will not be action shooting, this is strictly a plinker/range gun....but what fun it looks like. (I'd really like a Schofield, but the $900 or so price tag is too rich for what I will be using it for. The $400 - $500 is manageable but I'll be looking for a bargain.)

I've done a bit of interwebs search and cannot find anything that contrasts the two different guns, aside from what one would expect in terms of that they are different designs, etc.

Any personal experiences with either or both would be greatly appreciated.

The open top Pietta revolvers are basically reproductions of the conversion revolvers, first produced by modifying Colt Navy and Army revolvers to cartridge ammunition, then the basis for a very limited number of factory cartridge revolvers (1872-1873) which slightly preceded the introduction of the Model 1873 Single Action Army (with top strap frame).

The major limitation of the open top frame design is in the strength (or relative lack thereof) of the union of the barrel assembly to the revolver frame. This is essentially the same as the cap & ball revolvers, with the barrel secured by a wedge pinning the barrel to the base pin on which the cylinder revolves. In operation, upon firing the revolver the bullet leaves the cylinder and enters the barrel, engaging the rifling, which exerts considerable impact energy on the retaining wedge, base pin, and forward portion of the frame engaging the barrel assembly. That energy can result in twisting, cracking, or stretching of the affected parts (commonly referred to years ago as "frame stretching", although that is not the only possible effect).

I briefly owned one of the .38 Special versions by Pietta. Like its predecessor Model 1851 Navy it is a handsome piece, sleek, well balanced, and providing natural pointing ability. Fixed sights are marginal for any meaningful accuracy. The Navy-sized grip frame is very comfortable for those with smaller hands, but not easily handled by those with larger hands.

The original conversions were done in either .38 Colt Rimfire or .38 Colt (short and long, generally interchangeable). The .38 Long Colt is the cartridge design later modified to become the .38 Special by lengthening the case to accommodate larger charges of powder to achieve greater velocities.

While the steel alloys used in modern firearms are considerably better than those available during the mid-to-latter 19th Century (when this design was current), we are still dealing with a relatively weak design originally intended for the much lower pressure levels of black powder loads.

With these factors in mind, I would recommend that only ammunition loaded to very low pressure levels be used, and I would suggest lead bullets rather than jacketed to further reduce the stresses applied to the revolver by firing. Eye protection is important when using any firearm, but probably even more important with guns like this.

Best regards.

I've got a Cimmaron (Uberti) O/Top in 44Sp.
5 1/2" bbl,,with the '51 style grip.
I shoot it with reasonable Cast loads and it's become a favorite range gun of mine.
Yes the sights are small,,they are period correct. As accurate as I can still shoot which ain't too bad yet.
I like the way it handles and feels. I did replace the trigger/hand spring with one of the lightwt wire springs and it made all the difference in the action. It was quite heavy before that, now nice and smooth, perfectly timed.

The only Remingtons I've had are the C&B models. They were fun for that while that still seemed like fun. But the guns were heavy and awkward compared to the Colt IMO.

This spring I ordered a Cimarron (Uberti) 72' open top with army grip in 44 special. Beautiful! Very well oiled I went to take it apart to clean it and couldn't get the wedge out. Called Cimarron and they said "sometimes you gotta' smack them" to get the wedge out. I used a plastic base, a durlin wedge and 24 oz. ball peen to beat the wedge out. Cleaned it up and couldn't get it back in. Cimarron put me in touch with their warranty gunsmith and they said that's not right and issued a return tag. Got it back and they had ground the wedge into a half eaten pie slice to make it fit. I sold it without firing a shot.

Many thanks for the great info....it's really going to help.

Seems like the open top is a decent gun but a bit fussy in terms of taking it down and not quite as robust as the topstrap model.

As prices are about the same and both look great, I think I'm ruling out the open top....unless of course I find a screaming deal, then I might consider it.

Again, thanks for the help.

I was gonna put my .002$in but Lobo summed it up much better than I could.
I stick 100% with his opinion.

Uberti has a much better reputation, I'd go with them. I had one, and every once in a while the wedge would work loose, the cylinder would slide forward and it wouldn't fire. Not often, and a five second fix. If just a range toy, that's what I'd get . But Uberti, not Pietta