Hello all,
First, let me introduce myself. My name is TheHappyGunner and I'm from central Pennsylvania. I am 21 years old, a student at Penn State and just got my first 1873 rifle on Friday!
I have browsed these forums and others for three years researching all the information I could find on Uberti's 1873 rifles. I made myself aware of all of the possible shortcomings that some have out of the box, but I'm here to tell you that my rifle features none of the problems I had read about... but one completely new one.
First off, I ordered my rifle in September through Taylor's & Company. My rifle is chambered for .44 WCF and features a 24.25" half-octagonal barrel and a straight-grip stock. Overall, I would say my rifle is very good out of the box. The case coloring is appealing, the action is smooth and not too stiff, and the trigger breaks at about seven pounds with 0 creep! Everything is tight, the screws come out with ease and are not soft, and the sights are aligned perfectly! However...
There's something funny happening with my trigger. It has free forward movement. Cocked or de-cocked, the trigger can be pushed forward about half an inch without resistance . This isn't really a "problem" as it doesn't affect the function of the rifle at all, but it doesn't seem to me like it should be a common occurance. As previously stated, contact with the sear is good without any creep when pulling the trigger, but there's quite a bit of forward motion.
Is this normal? On all of the threads I have read in the past few years, I haven't seen anyone mention anything like this. I know there are some real experts on these rifles in this community so I thought I'd bring it before you guys, first.
For your viewing pleasure, here are some shots of my new rifle! I have never owned a Uberti or even a lever action before, and I figured I'd start out with one of the best!
Have a great evening,
TheHappyGunner