Pietta Starr DA .44 C&B

[PJ Hardtack]

The current issue of "Guns of the Old West" has a shooting impression of the Pietta Starr DA .44. When I 'google' for comments on the gun, I get dated comments from this site. Anyone got a more current update and/or impression?
I'm aware of the complexity and idiosyncrasies of the type, and frankly, that's what appeals to me. I like odd-ball guns as opposed to the standard Colt, Remington clones.  I also have a 'square back' repro 'Texas Paterson' I've yet to fire - but I will.

This will be a 'fun' gun at the club level, not something I'd take to a major match. What can go wrong with a revolver WILL go wrong with a C&B gun! Even happens in the movies with 'Mattie's' Colt Dragoon in "True Grit".

On one site I read that the Starr took an odd size ball. Another said .454. What's the reality?
Do owners prefer to shoot in DA or trigger cock and use the little trigger gizmo in the back of the trigger guard?
If you trigger cock, does the gun fire normally if the 'trigger gizmo' is in the raised position?

Apparently Pietta's instruction book leaves something to be desired.

[sharps1863]

 Hardtack
 To answer your question about thumb cocking the trigger, not with this gun. You cannot thumb cock the revolver. The way this revolver works is the trigger pull rotates the cylinder cocks the hammer and if you notice at the back of the trigger housing you see what looks like a button. Well when the trigger reaches full travel it depresses this button which releases the hammer and fires the gun. Without pulling the trigger the cylinder will not rotate, just pulling the hammer back will do nothing. This is the original design and thats why the Federal horse soldiers complained so much about it during the war of Northern aggression to-wards the South. It would jam up the revolver, the same as it will do to the repro. So Starr came out with the single action version for Government sells. To me a better gun.  Also you are looking at a 10 to 12 pound trigger pull to work the cocking mechanism. I hope this was helpfully.

[PJ Hardtack]

I did a double take when I saw your handle - I'm "Sharps '63" on the Canadian GunNutz website! Why? Because I own three Shiloh '63s. They are among my favourite Shiloh rifles.
OK- so once the Starr is DA cocked, it requires a further pull on the trigger to fire. Do I have that right? What about just tripping the little trigger behind the large cocking trigger?
The heavy DA pull won't bother me as I'd be a two-fisted shooter with this puppy.

[Advertising]

[boilerplatejackson]

I own and shoot a Pietta Star DA sometimes in CAS. It will shoot either .452 or .454 round balls or conicals. Never have
any cap jams and have replaced the factory nipples with Tresco ones. I limit my powder charge to 20 grains of BP. It is not
a revolver to shoot duelist with but it can be done. Of the two revolvers I would not want one without the other. Some day
I will own a single action Starr as well. I have no regrets with buying my Starr DA.

[PJ Hardtack]

Boilerplatejackson

Thanks for the input! I will eventually get a Starr DA C&B, but that just got set back a while ...... I really do enjoy odd ball guns.

Just bought a Taylor's Remy 'conversion' in 44-40 to go with my trio of Remy .44 C&Bs, Henry and '66, both in 44-40. I'm going to enjoy foolin' folks with the c'atridge gun when they'll be expectin' a 2nd C&B. Wish I had the cash on hand to buy a pair.

I understand that the Taylor conversion does not allow cases to be seen from the side. No problem - the RO gets shown that there are no rds in the gun before "Load 1, skip 1 ..." or I run a rod down the barrel to prove an empty chamber under the hammer.

[Dead I]

I own and shoot a Pietta Star DA sometimes in CAS. It will shoot either .452 or .454 round balls or conicals. Never have
any cap jams and have replaced the factory nipples with Tresco ones. I limit my powder charge to 20 grains of BP. It is not
a revolver to shoot duelist with but it can be done. Of the two revolvers I would not want one without the other. Some day
I will own a single action Starr as well. I have no regrets with buying my Starr DA.

Just for fun:  Here's a Starr .44 DA; original

[PJ Hardtack]

Dead I

Very nice! A great original piece. Do you ever shoot it?

Me getting a repro Starr just got set back further ......  when I told my wife that I ordered a
Taylor's '63 44-40 conversion, she said "Whadya mean ONE? Why didn't ya get a pair?" So I obeyed orders and bought another.

No wonder I married that gal!

[hawkeye2]

      "No wonder I married that gal!"

      Does she have a sister? 

[Harley Starr]

Dead I

Very nice! A great original piece. Do you ever shoot it?

Me getting a repro Starr just got set back further ......  when I told my wife that I ordered a
Taylor's '63 44-40 conversion, she said "Whadya mean ONE? Why didn't ya get a pair?" So I obeyed orders and bought another.

No wonder I married that gal!

[petrinal]

The current issue of "Guns of the Old West" has a shooting impression of the Pietta Starr DA .44. When I 'google' for comments on the gun, I get dated comments from this site. Anyone got a more current update and/or impression?
I'm aware of the complexity and idiosyncrasies of the type, and frankly, that's what appeals to me. I like odd-ball guns as opposed to the standard Colt, Remington clones.  I also have a 'square back' repro 'Texas Paterson' I've yet to fire - but I will.

This will be a 'fun' gun at the club level, not something I'd take to a major match. What can go wrong with a revolver WILL go wrong with a C&B gun! Even happens in the movies with 'Mattie's' Colt Dragoon in "True Grit".

On one site I read that the Starr took an odd size ball. Another said .454. What's the reality?
Do owners prefer to shoot in DA or trigger cock and use the little trigger gizmo in the back of the trigger guard?
If you trigger cock, does the gun fire normally if the 'trigger gizmo' is in the raised position?

Apparently Pietta's instruction book leaves something to be desired.

in general i agree with you, it is not a serious gun for shooting.

i think that as a design, it has no comparison with a REMINGTON.

a Remington is smaller, more equilibrate, comfortable and the sights are very low on the hand, in short, they couldnt desing it better.

the STARR (i used the SA MODEL) is the opposite: bulkier, more uncomfortable to grip,  with sights very high on hand....so my shooting impressions with this gun, the STARR, is very clear...i dont like it...the gun is poorly designed for shooting, serious shooting and also for carrying and as a combat weapon. For fun is ok...any gun is OK for fun.

i think that collecting or having a different "civil war gun", other than a COLT or Remington, is the best reason for buying it.

they are more expensive and they are not worth the extra cost, in my opinion. Pietta models are very nicely made and finished, but the black blueing is far away from the heat blue of originals.

the real thing is that PIETTA is not selling this gun well, not only for being more expensive, but mainly because shooters find more drawbacks than advantages in this design.


all the best

[Skeeter Lewis]

This is an interesting video from Bottom Dealin' Mike....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lU5CuFdgRoA&list=UUOrzQir9WP9UpH8qtWx_ppw&index=51&feature=plcp

[petrinal]

i had to fix one of these PIETTAs (the single action STARR) recently...the cylinder was not rotating as the crane or star in the back of the cylinder was too soft and the hand was "eating it".

in general, rotating the cylinder is harder than in a colt or remington because of the design of the star or crane, too close to the axis.

the sights are very high on the shooting hand, which is a detriment to serious accuracy at 25 meters, as it increases the shooter´s mistakes  on the target  (testing a gun at 12 yards and  shooting at plates will tell us nothing about serious accuracy) and the grip is not as good as a colt NAVY. The hammer is too slow and has more angle when cocked than other designs.  The handling of the  gun is also inferior to a COLT, and much inferior to a Remington.

It is too big, and the cylinder is not as positive locked as a colt or remington. I know of another more revolver with troubles, and Pietta seems to have problems with quality control on these guns, as, from the manufacturing point of view, it is quite challenging....and odd design, with complicated machining,  and very  questionable distribution of parts...like hammer axis, trigger, hand, etc...

too expensive, these Pietta..

i just know the Single action model, by the way, i never handled the Double action Starr.

all the best