Buying Uberti Schofield. Reliable? Owner's nightmare? Or just a wallhanger?

[TCoops]

   I am not new to firearms. I can confidently operate and maintain all sorts of pistols, rifles, and weapon platforms. This year I developed a die hard obsession with revolvers. The simplicity and reliability, ruggedness and firepower won me over. I've converted over to the single action scene - these old girls are graceful and accurate. I'm looking to purchase my first single action and I've been fascinated by schofield revolvers for years. Reloading, to me, is an important factor in shooting. Almost as important as how it aims, balances, groups, and takes wear. As fellow schofield finatics perhaps you agree - its mechanics are ingenious and I'd choose one over a colt SAA anytime. Besides, seeing one break open and shed shells like a shotgun has got to be one of the most classy things i've ever seen ; )

  I'm losing sleep because I cant figure out whether this will be the revolver for me. There is a real lack of single action revolver fans in my shooting community (seems to be all IPSC autoloaders) so there's few people I can turn to for advice. Even in single action communities (which is small) schofields seem to be an even smaller group, if any. A fellow Australian user commented on how his schofield is probably the only one of its type in australia. I dont doubt him:) If I buy this, I will probably be <alone> in South Australia.

   Some questions:

* what is the reliability like? Im reading horror stories in the forum that are making me think twice about purchasing this handsome piece. Although, yes, every firearm has its quirks and teething problems. But few can snap wide open during firing, in what must be a hair raising and bloody dangerous experience. People reassure me that recently Uberti has much higher quality control. However, this will not be a wallhanger or once in a Sunday fun shooter. I'm really gonna put a lot of rounds through this thing. I'm already putting hundreds of rounds through a borrowed colt SAA repro, sometimes rapid firing in events made for auto's. Yeah, its gonna work hard.  So what is going to wear out? what will need replacing, monitoring? How many cowboy .45LC rounds do you think it will get through? Is this gonna be a faithful sidearm for years to come? Or is this firearm realistically only for occasional showings at events, casuall shooting, and a conversation piece when it sits snugly in its box on the coffee table?

*maintenance?  I can strip and assemble most arms with ease, but I hear some fellows in here absolutely baffled with the fine mechanics of the schofield - stumped on reassembling and even breaking fine parts. Most people recommend you never take it apart unless you absolutely must (or unless you are almost gunsmith grade in knowledge) because if you get stuck, support is not easy to find and parts can take months to order in. To me thats a problem. Maintaining your own piece is like getting under the hood of your car - its all part of the experience and part of being an owner.. I cant take it to a smith every time i think it needs a clean. Is this firearm purely for the very knowledgable and experienced? I feel like I should take a course in top-break maintenance as a responsible owner. Im sure a course does not exist where i live.

*Uberti/Beretta support and warantee? How did you find dealing with them? Ie, was getting replacement parts out of them like pulling teeth? Do you feel confident that you can keep your schofield running quite easily with a steady supply of parts? Or do you have gripes with the company in general and pray that you never lose that screw, lest you wait 2 months for another? Warranty worth the paper its written on?

*Documentation. Is the Uberti manual any good? Can you recommend any books that might get me up to speed on strip and assemble, maintenance, tuning, and quirks?

   Is this firearm right for me? I may sound a little demanding and harsh. Its true, I do shell out alot of wear on my guns. I fire them competetively in practical shooting, open class events, and military comps. I never abuse them, I keep safe, and I keep them spotless and within tolerance, replacing parts when needed. .I dont mind toning down and developing the finess required to be a true single action shooter - thats part of the attraction for me. Any slacker can spray a glock, and its very satisfying going head to head with them with a 19th century design

   But this gun scares the crap out of me. I dont want it to be a money sink, or be waiting months for a scew, or have it continually go out of tune around the hinge, latch or ect creating dangerous conditions for the new player. Is owning a schofield a pleasurable experience?

   I wont take offense if you think it's just too much of a gun for me, and recommend I stick a simpler firearm. Thanks, I have so many questions and very few people to talk schofield with.

Coops

[Bead Swinger]

I'm not quite the experienced shooter that you are - really a reenactor who's converted over to Cowboy Action.
I recently purchased an Uberti S&W No. 3 New Model Russian (in .44 Russian) - and have to admit that it has been a lot of fun to shoot and reload.  I can't speak for others, but compared to the C&B and OT Colts and Remington's that I'm used to cleaning, the No.3 NMR is really quite nice to shoot, disassemble and clean. This is the first new pistol I've ever owned - and it seems like a real keeper. Now the trick is to find the right load for it. I'd definitely recommend it.

I've been working on loads for the 44 Russian, and trying out BP and BP substitutes in it - definitely a howl.  I was seriously concerned that it would freeze up on me in the first cylinder or two - but it managed 50 rounds with no problem. Originally I was loading for the 700 fps range, but was not getting the accuracy I was hoping for. I was able to get better groups once I was over 800 fps - not sure why; 'still have a lot of learning.

'Hope you can find some good advice for your decision.

[Sheriff A.E. Moses]

I own Schofields and enjoy shooting them, but as I read your post my mind immediately wants to send you toward a Ruger. There is not a firearm made that can withstand the abuse of a Ruger. I understand that you do not abuse your guns, but it sounds to me like you use them heavily and in a situation where repair can be a serious situation. If you require a firearm that will always be there for you, get a an old model Vaquero and take good care of it. My final word is a Schofield is a hoot to shoot, but a Ruger will still be around for your grandchildren if you take as good a care of your guns as you state, but I doubt a Schofield will go the distance for you. My opinion only and your mileage may vary!~

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[Big Jim Dandy]

Don't know about the Schofield. However I bought my first Russian thru Navy Arms in 2000 & my Uberti Russian was a birthday present 2 years ago. Quality is first rate on both of them, althought the Navy Arms finish & fit is slightly superior to the later Uberti. I've never had any funtioning problems, or taking them down for cleaning & maintenance. I'm not a fast shooter, just damn accurate , so I don't put a lot of wear on them. Besides you can't hammer fire them, by holding the trigger back, as they ain't built that way.

That all being said I was really happy to put my Colts in the safe & switch to the Russians. They're beautifull guns, with their Ivory/polymer grips & the Slim Jim holtster rig I had made for them. They always generate lot's of comments & interest at all the shoots I go to.

By the way my powder load for them is taken from the Cartridges of the World Volume 10:

240 gr. Keith style SWC Lead Bullet - .429 dia.
3.0 gr. Bullseye (Maximum 3.6 gr.)
Starline .44 Russian Cases
Winchester L.P. Primers

This load is extremely accurate out of my revolvers & will shoot 1 ragged group at 15 yards,
albeit 4" high! But then, thats no problem, as CAS Steel targets are supposed to be REALLY BIG.

[Virginia Gentleman]

I have a Navy Arms Uberti made Schofield had one small part break on mine and it was the bolt spring which was easily replaced in 20 minutes.  No other problems were encountered after firing 600 rounds of .45 Colt handloads and Remington Green Box standard loaded .45 Colt so far.  I agree, it is a handsome gun and looks nicer than the SAA Colt pattern.  A heck of a lot easier to reload even if you can't fan it.  My wife really likes shooting it and went through 200 rounds of my 250 grain LRNFP handloads.  It is easy to clean and the only disassembly I had to perform was when I had a little lead build up inside the cylinder arbor that cleaned up just fine by taking the cylinder out, removing the extractor/ejector, cleaning and reassembling. All other cleanings were with the gun assembled and seemed more than effective.  My mild, but not Cowboy Squib loads are 5.0 grains of Hodgdon Clays (NOT Universal Clays) a Remington, Starline or Winchester yellow brass case, Remington primer and a 250 grain LRNFP bullet crimped in the crimping groove.  Cases extract with ease and the recoil is very manageable.  I use my home brew gun cleaner, Ed's Red with no leading after cleaning.

[Grapeshot]

I've been shooting the Schofield for over 10 years.  I'm on my second one.  The first was one of the original batch that hit the US back in 1995.

That being said, parts are fairly easy to come by through www.vtiparts.com.

The 1st Schofield (Uberti) I had was a little stiff.  When I finally decided to get it smoothed up, Navy Arms informed me that I had cracks in the frame, cylinder and barrel. ()  I had never fired any hot rounds through it and had shot only reccomended CAS reloads in both .45 Colt and .45 S&W Schofield brass using 230 to 250 grain bullets.

My 2nd Schofield is a lot easier to operate and I have no problems shooting a CAS Match with it using 230 grain bullets out of .45 Starline Schofield brass.

Things that I won't hesitate doing with a Colt SAA Clone I'd hesitate with the Schofield.  Rapid firing is not the S&W's forte'.  You have to release the trigger after you shoot to recock the S&W.  With a Colt you can hold the trigger back and thumb the hammer back and allow it to slip fire.  You can't do that with the Schofield.

Maintenance is quite straightforward.  As long as you go slow and look at the parts and how they interact with one another as you remove them from the receiver.  Being an old Military Weapon Maintenance type, I strongly sugest that if you take it apart, lay out the parts from left to right in the order you remove them and replace them in the opposite order.

Not sure what your plans are concerning the use of your Schofield, but it is not a race gun.  If it were a DA Frontier model, you might be able to do the IPSIC match with it in the same mannor you'd use a Webly & Scott .455.

In my mind, I'd stick with either the Colt Clone or a Ruger.

[Virginia Gentleman]

I have never heard of a modern Schofield failing structurally in such as fashion.  I wonder if your gun had some type of metalurgical or manufacturing defect as they are proofed in Italy prior to export.

[Jubal Starbuck]

  I owned a Uberti made Schofield ten years ago and I had trouble with the star extractor jumping past the cartridge rims, not just .45 Colt, but also .45 Schofield brass.  This left my empties under the star,causing much grumbling and grousing on my part.  It didn't do anything for speeding up my relolading either.  The other problem I had with this gun was that I couldn't get thru five rounds of black powder loads without the darn thing freezing up to the point where the cylinder wouldn't turn at all.  Needless to say, this gun got traded off on a Colt clone, which functions flawlessly on a predominantly black powder cartridge diet.
I liked the gun itself  pretty well otherwise, fit and finish, etc..

Regards,

Jubal Starbuck
Former Schofield owner

[Marshal Deadwood]

Had a Schofield and hated it.

MD

[Virginia Gentleman]

My experience so far has been very good using smokeless powder (the replicas were never intended to be shot with BP) with a few glitches that have been dealt with.  So far I have not had any problems with extraction and mine are 5 inch .45 Colt chamberd Uberti  Schofields, one from Navy Arms and the other from Taylor's & Co.   

[Bishop Creek]

  I owned a Uberti made Schofield ten years ago and I had trouble with the star extractor jumping past the cartridge rims, not just .45 Colt, but also .45 Schofield brass.  This left my empties under the star,causing much grumbling and grousing on my part.  It didn't do anything for speeding up my relolading either.  The other problem I had with this gun was that I couldn't get thru five rounds of black powder loads without the darn thing freezing up to the point where the cylinder wouldn't turn at all.  Needless to say, this gun got traded off on a Colt clone, which functions flawlessly on a predominantly black powder cartridge diet.
I liked the gun itself  pretty well otherwise, fit and finish, etc..

Regards,

Jubal Starbuck
Former Schofield owner

I too am a black powder shooter. Had exactly the same problems with my Schofield. Very nice piece, low serial numbered Navy Arms 22XX. I even put nice custom fake ivory grips on it. But I sold it five years ago and went back to Colt's and Remingtons.

[Virginia Gentleman]

By design trying to make a Schofield replica shoot black powder cartridges is akin to try to put an oversized square peg in a round hole.....it wasn't meant to work.  Other than the few BP shooters and one or two that they just didn't work for, the majority seem to like them so far.  Right now I am in the "like" camp.

[COLT_45_SAA]

Have Uberti Schofield Top Break (World Class Engraved Edition-Stoger Import).
Yes I shoot it ..... Gun not designed to shoot BP. I've shot various factory
cowboy loads as well as some Blazer 200's with no problems other than some
leading.....One of my fav's for being fun to shoot! At the range, I use a speedloader
for fun (n frame #25-5) that fits perfect.....I know it's not legal in CAS but still
a hoot! 

[Virginia Gentleman]

Is that nickel or stainless steel?

[COLT_45_SAA]

Is that nickel or stainless steel?

nickel........

[Virginia Gentleman]

My only real problem with my Navy Arms Schofield was the cylinder arbor needed to be polished and other than that it now functions flawlessly.  I seem to remember the early production Uberti made guns were fitted too tightly and the tolerances were loosened up a bit on later production guns.  My Navy Arms gun seemed EXTREMELY tight when I got it and now that a gunsmith has worked on it and has a newer hammer, it works like a champ.  I have yet to encounter an ejection problem, I guess I am either very good in handling this gun or just very lucky.

[The Swede]

By design trying to make a Schofield replica shoot black powder cartridges is akin to try to put an oversized square peg in a round hole.....it wasn't meant to work.  Other than the few BP shooters and one or two that they just didn't work for, the majority seem to like them so far.  Right now I am in the "like" camp.

I shoot BP, and so far no issues at all. It does bind up at all. It is new... So time will tell. But, I do like it a lot!

Swede