Cimarron U.S.V. Artillery .45 Colt Case Hardened Revolver

I got this Pietta...

I got this Pietta Artillery Model at the same time as I got the Uberti 7th Cav. What I didn't know then, and what I do know now, is what Cimarron's product numbers mean. PP for Pietta, CA for Uberti. That out of the way, let me say that the difference is night and day. The Uberti is a very nice, well finished, beautifully executed Colt clone. The Pietta... Not so much.\\r\ \\r\ The good: The action is lighter and faster than the Uberti. This must be a brand thing because other Pietta guns I've owned are the same. The hammer spring and trigger pull are what I work the Uberti's over to achieve. The matte finish on the grips with a burned in cartuche is nicer than the Uberti high gloss in my opinion. It's accurate. \\r\ \\r\ The bad: Fit and finish are horrible. The front sight blade wasn't blued. There are some larger than preferable gaps between the grip and the back strap. Not as many period federal inspection markings like the Uberti, while the action was lighter that the Uberti, it was very rough and gritty out of the box. It required quite a bit of stoning, deburring, and polishing to get it smooth. The ejector housing was the same. Rough and gritty. I stoned and polished that as well. The Pietta version doesn't come with a period correct cylinder pin retaining screw, only the thumb screw. Uberti comes with both. \\r\ \\r\ Overall thoughts? I wish I had gotten the Uberti Artillery instead of this one (actually I ended up getting the Uberti later). With some work, this is a now a decent revolver, but the Uberti was great right out of the box. If you do get one of these, be prepared to do some work to it, and if you want the correct cylinder pin screw, you can call Cimarron and they'll send you one.