A little about myself as this is my first post. I am 75 yrs old and have handled guns all of my life but never black powder so am really a newbie in the sport. I hope you will bare with me for a couple of questions.
I just received my 1858 New Model Army and in reading the instructions I noticed it called for a .454 ball. When I ordered the gun I also ordered 200 of the .451 ball . Is there a problem using the smaller ball?
I also noticed on the ball there is a protrusion, probably caused in making the ball , I assume when you load the ball you have this either facing the powder charge or down the barrel. Does it make any difference ?
I plan on using Triple Se7en FFFg power. What would be a proper load for just target practice ?
The instructions say that you should fire a cap in each cylinder before loading to make sure they are clear of any oil. Do you have to do this each time when you go out to shoot ? Seems like a waste of a good cap .
Thanks ahead of time
Mac
P.S. Cannot wait until I get out to the range next week.
I just received my 1858 New Model Army and in reading the instructions I noticed it called for a .454 ball. When I ordered the gun I also ordered 200 of the .451 ball . Is there a problem using the smaller ball?
I also noticed on the ball there is a protrusion, probably caused in making the ball , I assume when you load the ball you have this either facing the powder charge or down the barrel. Does it make any difference ?
I plan on using Triple Se7en FFFg power. What would be a proper load for just target practice ?
The instructions say that you should fire a cap in each cylinder before loading to make sure they are clear of any oil. Do you have to do this each time when you go out to shoot ? Seems like a waste of a good cap .
Thanks ahead of time
Mac
P.S. Cannot wait until I get out to the range next week.