Do a search under this section for information useful to beginners and long-time users.
Particularly useful will be my posts:
"Proper Use of a Cap and Ball Revolver" dated Jan.22 and July 6, 2003.
"Found: Original Loads for Cap and Ball Revolvers" dated Feb. 11, 2003.
"Gatofeo's Wad Lube" dated Feb. 20, 2003
"New to Cap and Ball" of Jan. 18, 2003
I think you'll find all you need in these. You'll want to print them out. The ol', grumpy desert cat gets kinda long-winded when he starts talking cap and ball revolvers. His eyes glaze over too ... and he purrs.
1. I picked an 1860 Army, made by Pietta and marketed by Traditions, that is very well made and accurate. Finish and fit on it are wonderful. Frankly, I don't see how the Italians can build and ship a revolver for the $140 or so I paid for it, but I'm not complaining.
Uberti used to be the benchmark for quality but I now understand that its quality has slipped.
If possible, I wouldn't order through the mail. I'd want to inspect it for overall quality before I put my money down. Though, most reputable mail order houses will take the revolver back and send a replacement without question.
Marsh is right. Many of the cap and ball revolvers will be found with tiny (and some with NOT so tiny) burrs inside. A set of needle files and polishing paper will remove these.
DO NOT touch the areas where the trigger engages into the hammer notches. Smoothing of these two critical surfaces between hammer and trigger) are best left to a good gunsmith.
2. I recommend a round ball. Conical bullets of all types and manufacturers have never been nearly as accurate in my cap and ball revolvers as a plain, lead ball. They are also clumsier to load, in my experience.
I like Speer balls. Hornady balls seem to have a few (3 to 5) slightly misshapen balls in each box I buy. This probably doesn't matter, but it irks me that I pay money for a perfectly round sphere and don't get it.
Yah yah yah ... I'm a grumpy, ol' desert cat ... sue me. :evil:
Both Speer and Hornady make balls of .454 and .457 inch. Avoid the .451 inch balls, they are never as accurate in my experience.
3. I never use FFG in my revolvers. Not that it's dangerous or anything (far from it) but I have an ample stock of FFFG so I have no need.
I have used up to 35 grains of FFFG in my 1860 Army but that's crowding things.
I seat the greased, felt wad firmly onto the powder. THEN I seat the lead ball. It takes quite a bit of pressure to seat the ball, even in a loading stand that holds the revolver upright, with 35 grains.
Frankly, it's not worth it. I almost always shoot 30 grains of FFFG in the `60 Army and accuracy is very good.
I would suggest 30 grains of FFG, by weight or volume. This should give you plenty of room to seat that lubricated felt wad on the powder, and a .454 or .457 inch ball.
The old timers often used FFG or its equivalent in their cap and ball revolvers, judging from the dissection of old paper cartridges and the leavings in old powder flasks. I don't think you'd be hampered in the least to use FFG instead of FFFG.
The late gun writer Elmer Keith, whose first handgun was a Colt 1851 Navy he carried at age 14 in 1912, suggested using FFG in the .36 and .44-caliber guns.
I think Elmer was wrong on this (sacrilege!) but if FFG is all you have, it will work fine.
