Umm, I have two 1851 Navys in .44 set up by the best in the business to be a reliable and smooth as possible…and no way I would consider one for EDC unless I had no other choices.

 

yes. too blocky and big for anything except a belt holster. i didn't know the navy came in .44. i thought it was just .36 or .38

 

They’re reproductions from Pietta.

 

Sure if you just want a cool, rabbits foot, why not. 99% of us will never need a gun for SD.

 

Yeah. No.

 

probably wouldn't carry it to town but messing around the ranch yes. better than a sharp stick. lol.

 

Please…… I oc a brace of matchlocks

 

I'll pass.

 

Depends- are you a prohibited person who cannot possess a firearm- if so the black powder is GTG.

 

Depends on the state...make sure you know your local laws and ordinances.

 

Not its not a good idea. Have you ever shot a black powder revolver in your life? Either cap and ball, or conversion?

Our dept just arrested a guy for carrying a black powder pistol. It isn't illegal to own, but carry and transport are still violations. In this case it had balls and caps (primers) but now powder!!! Fortunately he was so dumb that he didn't know how to load it, even though a cap can push a ball out.

It's not 1836, get a modern centerfire pistol.

 

Not a good idea for a couple of related reasons. Percussion caps are really just a slip fit and will slip off from time to time. Spent percussion caps will sometimes fall into the frame, jamming the hammer. Re-loads take time. Of course, you could get a cartridge conversion and solve those problems, but then you're no longer shooting a black powder revolver. I have a small collection of black powder revolvers and rifles. I can tell you that reliability for personal defense is a concern.

 

Agree. Smokeless cartridge revolvers caught on 125 years ago for a reason.
IMO, the number 1 criteria for an EDC piece, is reliability.

 

There are lots of cartridge conversions that load black powder, in fact all the original conversions were black. Cowboy action shooters (SASS) use tons of them. Using smokeless powder in a conversion is very risky as the chamber pressures are much higher, even with slow powders.

 

You wouldn't be the first! And you'd be in good company.

 

Captain Jack Sparrow gives 2 thumbs up however i'm not battling pirates in Tortuga either.

 

Yes. You need two though. When the bad guy breaks in, challenge him to a duel.

 

 

No, Capt. Jack, and real pirates of that era, used single shot flintlock pistols.

 

Blondie mostly used 1860 Remington Army's. Colt Walkers were far too heavy.

 

Range toy- yes.

Everyday carry- no.

 

A 44 caliber loaded with conicalls rather than roundballs would be effective defensive tool even as a single action but for EDC the 1851 navy has a seven and a half inch barrel.

Even a sheriff's model has a 5 and a half inch or one with the barrel cut back as short as possible by eliminating the rammer would have just under a 4 inch barrel and would be not impossible but still not as easy as other choices to conceal even with a custom Kydes IWB holster

But if you're going to carry a gun that size why not carry a 16 shot Glock 19 with some Plus+p 124 grain gold dots or HST's???

 

We're over a century removed from the 19th Century and I'm not a convicted felon, so... no, I've never really entertained the thought.

 

I'm not a felon, so I don't need to.

 

I own a Pietta Remington in .36, and a Ruger Old Army .45. Haven’t shot either in decades. Used to muzzleloader hunt, and kept them in the tent with me for protection (could not have a modern firearm during black powder season). I felt very well protected. Granted, it’s not a Glock 17 with 9BPLE, but it beats a sharp stick. The Old Army can be loaded very stout. Same if not more power as a .45 Colt or .45 ACP. No way would I choose to use either as an everyday carry. Too many things can go wrong, and you have 5 shots (if you leave the hammer on an empty chamber as I do). Still, a hoot to shoot. Maybe I’ll get mine back out again once it cools off around here.

 

All good answers and great advice. I live more or less in a desert area where I am more likely to see coyotes, javalina, or rattlers than crack-heads. Lol. Somebody suggested to get a Glock. Well sir in all honesty I' m not keen on that type of hardware. I like Winchester rifles and LC Smith 'coach guns' and such thank you very much.

 

If not a Glock, how about a 1911? Pike Bishop, Dutch Engstrom, Lyle Gorch, and Angel of The Wild Bunch all carried those!

And I'm one of the ones who recommended a more compact Glock 19 (or better yet, a Glock 23 in 40 caliber but is the the same size as the G19)

And I'm an old-timer who originally only carried revolvers and then switched to a 1911A1 and then switched to a lightweight Colt Commander for concealed carry but then switched to a Glock 23 because it was still chambered for a caliber that began with the number 4 but held more rounds than the Colt and was a little more compact.

All of my 1911's use 8 round Wilson mags because they are so damned reliable and that's what I like about Glocks. A lightweight Commander with an 8 round Wilson magazine is an EXCELLENT carry gun and is better for concealed carry than the gun wild Bill Hickok used to carry.

 

If you had to , it would work. At least get a Ruger Old Army or something.

There's tons of YouTube videos with Felons making tactical rigs for 1858 Remingtons. And probably 10 arguments on the Muzzleloading Forum ongoing about carrying black powder revolvers

And occasionally on a FB post about a police bust you'll see a Brasser Navy in a "seized weapons " pile because apparently Mexican gangs use them for hits, because they're untraceable

I own a ton of Italian repros but they're for playing around at the range

One time I loaded up my Colt branded Uberti 36 Pocket Navy and stuck it in an IWB holster for a 4" K Frame just to be weird, and used it as my "to and from work gun" but that was more just to do it once.

Otherwise no I'm good. I can carry modern guns to protect myself with

If you wanna carry a thumb Buster at least make it something like a little 4 5/8" 357 Vaquero that can actually stop something

 

I see no reason not too, reminds me of this….

Own a musket for home defense, since that's what the founding fathers intended. Four ruffians break into my house. "What the devil?" As I grab my powdered wig and Kentucky rifle. Blow a golf ball sized hole through the first man, he's dead on the spot. Draw my pistol on the second man, miss him entirely because it's smoothbore and nails the neighbors dog. I have to resort to the cannon mounted at the top of the stairs loaded with grape shot, "Tally ho lads" the grape shot shreds two men in the blast, the sound and extra shrapnel set off car alarms. Fix bayonet and charge the last terrified rapscallion. He Bleeds out waiting on the police to arrive since triangular bayonet wounds are impossible to stitch up. Just as the founding fathers intended.

 

Where is your Cutlass?

 

Was the other topic you were thinking about posting "Swimming the English Channel but can't swim. Good or bad idea?"

 

iice
You're exaggerating just a LITTLE bit. But while it's true that there at much better choices for everyday carry, for home defense I once had a 20 inch barreled J Manton & sons 10 gauge coach gun with outside hammers that was chambered for 2 7/8ths inch 10 gauge and I had to make my own shells for it by prying open 3 1/2 inch magnums and dumping out the shot and powder and reloading it volume-to-volume shot to powder using 2F Black Powder or sometimes Hodgdon's Triple 7 BP substitute.

I could either load a a Buck and Ball Load using a 69 caliber ball with 00 buck in a 10 gauge shot cup with a wad over the powder charge, or I could put two 69 caliber balls on the shot cup and at about 10 feet both balls would print on a target only 3 or 4 inches apart.

That gun was unequaled for the task of repelling boarders from the home. I also think a LeMat Black Powder Revolver replica with a 20 Gauge center barrel and a 9 shot 44 caliber cylinder would be nothing to sneeze at, so to speak, for home defense.