A couple of points about black powder revolvers.

 

1.  The antique guns can have differing sizes of bore requiring slightly larger (or smaller) sized bullets than some of the over-the-counter cast bullets you can buy.  If you intend to shoot an antique, check your cylinder and barrel for ball-to-barrel-to-cylinder fit.  This is also true, to a lesser extent, with modern replicas.  Remember that many Civil War-era shooters cast their own bullets (from economic necessity or because of locatation) and it is very easy to find a bullet mould to fit your particular caliber to cast whatever odd-size your cylinder or bore might be.

 

2.  What load of black powder should you use?  The rule of thumb is you use 1/2 (half) the size of your bore as a charge and then round-off to the next higher increment of 5 grains (because powder measures are marked in 5 grain increments).  Example:  You have a Colt M1860 .44 caliber revolver.  So, half of 44 is 22 and rounding-up it's 25 grains of black powder (or equivlent in Pyrodex).  This same formula applies to ALL black powder pistol, single-shot or revolvers.

 

3.  Loading the cylinder is not difficult, but here are a couple of tips.  (1) Use a stand for your revolver (make it yourself or buy one from Dixie Gun Works) and that way you won't need a third or fourth hand to assist loading the pistol.  (2) A bullet mould has what's called a "sprue hole".  This is where you pour in the molten lead.  When the lead cools you open the jaws of the mould and the ball or bullet falls out.  In the process of opening, the lead column that is attached to the projectile is cutoff.  This leaves a distinctive flat spot on the ball or base of the bullet.  When loading balls into a black powder revolver, align the sprue mark (or flat spot) so it's directly beneath the ball rammer.  That way, the ball is not deformed by ramming it into the cylinder.  (3) When the ball is rammed, there should be a small ring of lead shaved off the ball.  This ring indicates a good, tight ball-to-cylinder fit.  (On antique guns, this is fit varies from excellent to awful.  That's why you put a sealant like Crisco shortening to seal the ball -- to avoid a chain-fire of other cylinders caused by this sloppy fit.)

 

4.  The last operation for a cap and ball revolver is capping.  This can be done by hand or with the use of a capping tool that holds the caps (usually about 100).  The capping tool makes the caps easy to carry (sort of like the magazine on a self-loading pistol).  Capping is done while the hammer is set to half-cock to allow free rotation of the cylinder for loading and capping.  Once capping is done, lower the hammer so it rests BETWEEN the capped nipples.  NEVER, NEVER, NEVER rest the hammer on a capped nipple unless you're looking for an accidental discharge!

 

5.  Sights on cap-and-ball revolvers are rudimentary.  There is a front sight and the rear sight is a notch cut into the front of the hammer that becomes visible at full cock.  Windage adjustments are made by eye and elevation by either filing the sight notch in the hammer or removing metal from the front sight. 

 

James Butler ("Wild Bill") Hickock was a master with the Colt Model 1851 .36 caliber revolver.  He carried two pistols in a sash about his waist and was lightning quick with both of them.  Hickock was also an extraordinary shot: he shot and killed gambler James "Dog" Kennedy in a September 21, 1869, gunfight with his Navy Colt at 50 to 75 yards (distances vary).  (Kennedy missed Hickock completely -- his bullet hit 30 yards behind Hickock -- and Hickock fired two shots -- one hit Kennedy above the right knee and the other in his heart.)  To achieve this degree of marksmanship, Hickock fired his guns every day, cleaned them, and reloaded them with fresh powder, balls, and caps. 

 

Hickock's eyesight began to fail him in later years, but he was still feared (and rightly so) for his abilities.  That's why his murderer, Jack McCall, shot him from behind as he played poker in Nuttal's No. 10 Saloon in Deadwood, Dakota Territory, on August 2, 1876 -- he knew he'd die if he faced Hickock man-to-man.  McCall got away with his shooting of Hickock initially, but his bragging about it led to his re-arrest, re-trial for murder, and hanging on March 1, 1877, at Yankton, Dakota Territory.  McCall may have been the man who shot Hickock, but he was also the first murderer hanged in the Dakota Territory -- a dubious achievement at best.