I am getting ready to add to my new Black powder collection with a Chiappa 1853 3 ring Enfield rifled musket .What i need to know is where can I buy the same type and shape of Minie ball that was used in the civil war and also do i need to buy a bigger cap for the nipple . i was watching a video on you tube and the fellow was none too happy with a new type he got from a certain store, plus the caps looked so much bigger than the ones I use on my revolvers .I would also like to shoot regular balls are they classed as 58 cal balls ??
My recommendation is DO NOT BUY.
Todd Watts, a reknown "defarber" of these rifles, was trying to get Armisport (Chiappa) to correctly contour the stock to be more historically accurate. They did a horrible job. I don't know how many are still in the shipping pipeline. I would not buy one sight unseen or even in person unless you know what you are looking for.
Get a Pedersoli. The price is about the same, and they have re-tooled the line after they bought out Euroarms.
Prior to Pedersoli, all of the repros were based on the Parker Hale reproduction, which was based on Enfield Type IV tooling from the Royal Armories. Type IV Enfields never saw service in the Civil War.
When Pedersoli retooled, they made their replica look like a Type III BSAT (Birmingham Small Arms Trade) Enfield:
Correct Palmer instead of Badley-style barrel bands.
Correctly shaped sling hardware.
Square-eared lock washers.
Correct markings on lock and hammer.
"Proof marks" on the barrel.
BSAT cartouche on stock.
Also the weight is closer to original. Previous reproductions were about a pound heavy.
I'd go with the Pedersoli.
Now, as for shooting muskets.
They use Musket caps, not pistol percussion caps. Two companies make them: CCI and Dynamite Nobel (RWS). The RWS caps are superior. I will not use the CCI caps in competition. They work acceptibly with an Enfield with a direct-drill fire channel, but in arms like Springfields with a right-angle fire channel I get misfires with CCI.
The above picture is what they look like. Don't know what brand the link is so don't go buy the link to the picture.
For optimal accuracy, you will want to size the bullets (Minie balls or "Expanding Balls") to your musket. My Pedersoli P58 takes a .578 bullet. Other ".58" caliber" rifles I have take .576 bullets. I use a Lyman Lubrsizier with sizing dies to get the correct size and lubricate the bullet at the same time.
Period-style Minie balls work, but so do modern hybrid bullets like the RCBS-Hodgdon bullet, which is what I use in competition. It uses about 100 grains less lead and requires less powder to make it go. being a semi-wadcutter it also makes clean holes in targets.
If you are interested in competition shooting of these kinds of guns, check out the North-South Skirmish Association
http://www.n-ssa.org.
Steve