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New and looking for advise with a 1858 Remington.

5K views 34 replies 10 participants last post by  Hawg 
#1 ·
Hi there, I'm new to the world of BP. I'm starting out with a 58 Remington, I've always loved the look and feel of those old civil war guns. This one is a replica of course but I am excited to finally be owning my first BP firearm. So I guess the questions that I have starting out are what kind of tools and equipment will I need? How do I keep it clean? What are the minimum and maximum grain loads? and what other tips and tricks you guys might have for me. I have been reading several threads on various subjects on this form I'm having a hard time finding exactly what I'm looking for pertaining to this specific gun, maybe it's much more cookie-cutter that I'm thinking but I'm definitely hands on type of guy I don't want to make a mistake that could get me or anyone else hurt. Anyways appreciate whatever comments and discussions you might have for me and thank you and advance.
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#2 ·
Personally with that brass frame I wouldn't go over 18 grains altho some do go 20. Hot soapy water for cleaning. I use bore mops instead of patches. Its not necessary to do a complete tear down every time you clean but most do. No petroleum based lube in the bore or chambers. In the action its fine. A decent set of gunsmith screwdrivers is a must have. Either use lubed wads under the balls or something like Crisco over the balls but Crisco is a runny mess in the summer and it gets blown all over the gun if you use too much.
 
#3 ·
In addition to the things Hawg has suggested I'd add a powder measure. You measure black powder volumetrically rather than by weight so don't use your scales, use a volumetric measure.

As time goes on you might want to pick up a capping tool, they make capping your pistol a lot easier and a small powder flask, it will make loading and measuring your charges easier than trying to pour from the can you can also get spouts for your flask that will throw the charge you want to use.
 
#20 ·
In addition to the things Hawg has suggested I'd add a powder measure. You measure black powder volumetrically rather than by weight so don't use your scales, use a volumetric measure.

As time goes on you might want to pick up a capping tool, they make capping your pistol a lot easier and a small powder flask, it will make loading and measuring your charges easier than trying to pour from the can you can also get spouts for your flask that will throw the charge you want to use.
I have a 58 Remington .36 and I'm yet to find a capper that works Grizz. I have two straight cappers and one of those round cappers and all of them are too big to get in to cap the nipple. I gave up last weekend and just used tweezers. I became very adept!
 
#4 ·
Welcome to the fourm, BPfenmec.

Black powder is fun to shoot.

You will want a nipple wrench for taking the nipples off the cylinder to clean them. If you get a capping tool make sure it will fit into the slot where the nipple is. "Snail" shaped ones are too big, but the straight ones are OK. Personally I stick with fingers for capping. I sometimes need to pinch the caps a little to make them stay on the nipple.

Have a paperclip handy to poke down the nipple hole. It sometimes gets plugged.

I'll second the powder flask with the right spout for your gun.

Lubed wads are all I've ever used. There are recipies for making your own lubed wads. I've seen the mess bore butter or Crisco make, so stay away from that.

When you put the ball in on top of the powder and the wad, look for a fine "ring" that gets shaved off the ball when you ram it into the cylinder chamber. That means it has a good tight fit, and won't move with the recoil.

Don't wait around to clean the gun when you get home. Black powder residue is corrosive and rust will quickly set in. I disassemble it, put it into a dishpan of hot soapy water, and use a Scotch-Brite pad to rub over the outside surfaces. I use a brass brush for the barrel and chambers, followed by a swab. I rinse everything off and put it onto a cookie tray and into the oven at lowest heat for about 10-15 minutes--long enough to dry it off. Then I wipe everything down with cooking oil while it's still warm. The oil soaks into warm mettle better. A .410 swab does nicely for the barrel and cylinder chambers. Reassemble, and you're ready for the next time around.

You have a choice of .451, .454, and .457 balls. Check to see what your gun maker recommends.
Same with caps. Some like #10, some like #11 caps.

I may think of some other stuff later, but that's enough to get started with, I think.

Enjoy.
 
#6 ·
Most I've seen are marked on the barrel. Are there any markings on the gun at all? Under the loading lever?
 
#7 ·
Some are marked on the barrel and depending on what country it was manufactured in it will have proof marks on both the barrel and on the frame. Yours looks like it was a kit gun rather than bought as a finished pistol, it's owner might have filed them all off, re enactors are kind of prone to 'de farbing' their guns.
 
#10 ·
The top two Italian manufacturers that jump to mind are Pietta and Uberti.
 
#11 ·
Ditto on a powder measure, andi reccomed a small one that goes up to 30, not the rifle one that goes to 100.

Many times you can get a 44 starter kit that comes with wads, grease plugs, balls, a capper, and a cheap, but workable powder flask in the 25-35$ range.

Thick your cyl mouth, if it looks like it has a chamfer to it, it may not shave that lead ring like the others mention, one of mine, a kit gun as well, has chamferd chamber mouths.

I use 451 and 454 balls, my brass pietta likes the 451, the steel framed ones I use the 454.


For target practice, I've been shooting about 15 gr fff on the brass gun.

Do get a nipple pick or that paper clip to clear the nips

I'll post a pic of my last putting. I use a generic tool box to carry supplies
 
#13 ·
As to the cleaning process. Remove the grips and set aside. Remove cylinder and take all but the grips in the shower with you. Lather, rinse and repeat. Dry well when finished.
 
#23 ·
I haven't heard from him for a while, but duelist 1854 has some good posts on BP shooting. Check his video here:

He describes using a dremmel tool to open up the nipple openings so you can use a capper tool. He has posted a lot of good stuff on youtube and on this forum.
 
#26 ·
Me either. But it's an option.

I cap by hand too. My capper lies unused in my range box.
 
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#27 ·
If you're shooting from a bench it's pretty easy to just use your fingers, you can lay the pistol on the bench and use both hands to open up the tin and then lay the tin on the bench, if you're out in the field and need to reload it's kind of hard to open a tin of caps and cap it up with one hand. That's why revolver flasks can be operated with one hand and why cappers were invented, so you can hold the pistol in your left hand and charge and cap it with your right hand.

Remington revolvers need a capper designed to fit them or you need to clearance the cylinder for a Colt design capper, if all you do is bench shooting, fingers work.

If you use it for hunting you might want a capper that works with it in your possibles bag. ;)
 
#29 ·
I suppose the other option is to get a spare cylinder or two. That's what happened during the Civil War--shoot one cylinder and switch it out for a fresh one. It's a lot faster than reloading in the field.
 
#30 ·
There's no evidence to support that. No first hand reports, no photo evidence and no archaeological evidence. Officers and cavalry were the only ones carrying revolvers and quite frankly I can't imagine anybody swapping cylinders while riding a horse that's walking much less one at a full gallop. No guns were shipped from the factories with extra cylinders except for some cased sets and Paterson's. Cylinders were fitted to individual guns and finding one that would work would be luck. There are however numerous reports and photo evidence of from four to six revolvers being carried, mostly by Confederate cavalry and guerrillas.
 
#34 ·
It is a 1975 Pietta or Uberti. The brass frame limits you a bit. I have converted my 1858 to 45 LC because I got lazy in my old age. That isn't something you want to do with a brass frame revolver. My suggestions are to buy a good quality gunsmith screwdriver set. The gun can be completely disassembled and cleaned easily and you learn all about it real fast. Some parts are not real hard and will wear so they need replaced time to time. There were changes made also over the years. Some of the parts are thicker now and the new parts may not fit an old gun without some fitting. Now the fun stuff. Before I switched to 45 LC I made my own paper cartridges. There is info on the net but basically you got to the tobacco outlet and buy the very thin rice paper cigarette rolling papers. You can light on and look at the ash left. I don't remember the brand I used but it burnt to almost nothing left. You roll a paper around a 3/8 wood dowel rod and seal the end with super glue like a coin wrapper. Fill the tube with your powder charge. Cut the tube off, fold that end in and super glue your bullet to the end of the tube. If you get the long papers you can get two rounds per paper. I used conical bullets cast with a Lee mold that had a reduced base for easy starting. You can put these in a MTM case guard and load without the need for grease and it is quicker and cleaner. Made shooting more fun. I completely disassembled and cleaned after every shoot.
 
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