I was inspired by another poster to make a Remington Snubbie pistol. Got a good deal on the 1858 and with discount coupons my Pietta 7.5 inch 1858 Remington cost me all of $150, so why not cut it up and make a belly gun?
Here is Redsport91s original excellent series on making his snub.
http://1858remington.com/discuss/index.php?topic=6082.0I don't have extensive power tools. I have an ancient Sears Craftsman drill press and a Dremel Tool. I also have a combination disk and one inch belt sander from Harbor Freight that cost under $50. I also have a drill press vice and a small part adjustable bench vice from Harbor Freight. My standard bench vice is a four inch also from H.F. I am doing all the work myself except for cutting the barrel and cutting a dovetail in the barrel for the front sight from Track Of The Wolf. I have a machinist friend who is performing those two tasks but I needed to get the proper front sight dovetail cutter from Brownells for him. About all I needed for the rest of it were some standard tools. Screw drivers, sand paper and files including small needle files etc.
first job was to disassemble and strip off bluing with white vinegar. It took about ten minutes to clean off the old finish. Removing the barrel was a bear. I put it in the vice with a couple aluminum angle pieces to protect the finish but with all the pressure involved. Brass or copper sheet would have worked better. I heated the thread area with a propane torch, and unscrewed the barrel with a three foot piece of 2x4 with that had the end cut for the cylinder opening. Be sure to grip the barrel in the vice as close to the frame as possible. The barrel turns about 45 degrees from snug to it's proper location and undoing it required a lot of pressure. I thought I'd damage the gun but I didn't. When you can hear a 2x4 starting to crack in places, you wonder.
So far I opened up the nipple openings on the cylinder. I Shortened the loading lever and drilled the pocket for the spring. I drilled four holes in the cylinder pin to hold lube. I relocated the grip locating pin and drilled now locating holes in the wood grips using the new hole as a drilling guide and temporarily keeping the old pin in place. I rounded the frame on the disk and belt sander, then the grips to match. Final shaping with a sanding block and 400 grit with the gun in the vice. I stripped the grips and refinished in Plinkingtons Pre64 spirit stain and their Red/Brown stock finishing oil.
Next immediate jobs are to open the sight notch and slim down the main spring a tad. I also need to make a functioning spring to hold the loading lever stub in place. When the barrel gets back, I'll reinstall it on the gun, finish it in antique blue or browning and properly adjust the front sight. I got a set of slixshot nips for it.