Those Uberti Pocket Police and Navy come with longer barrels like 6" maybe 6.5".
I saw an 1871-2 Uberti Open Top Navy model in 38 Special with birds head grip and about a four inch barrel once. Tell the truth it seemed small like I could put that in my pocket and have room fer two. I wear Carharts and Dickies work pants with the tool pockets and all.
The 38 special Navy Open Tops and converted to cartridge 1851's have smaller cylinders than the 44/45's.
I don't know if you have to go with a percussion and have an aversion to cartridge that shoots smokeless and all or lot but......you'd get what you want exactly with a 38 special model.
You've got the figures and all down to understand what you want and how to do it but.....The heavier loads fer those percussions shorten the longevity of them. I know that as a fact. I damaged a couple of Navy Colts with 28gr. 777.
They shot real well and seemed to me to have plenty of velosity. I remember shooting across my pond at a mud bank and shot one hole then put the other five of a cylinder in the same hole like a 2 inch group or less. It's at least 40 yards across the pond. The balls seemed to get there before the hammer fell they were that fast. Anyway my test was foolish and Ilearned that the 777 powder is too hot fer cap&ballers but.......
I tested Alliant Black MZ some and it was fast and wasn't hurting my gun with normal 22gr. loads in a 36cal.
Anywhoooo....what's on paper doesn't always equate to real world results. Just gives an idea of what one might expect.
I saw a huge man shot with a .380 and he was walking and talking and had a hole in his upper chest near the shoulder. The bullet went straight to being under his hide on his scapula. The bullet was there like a sorta big bump inder the hide there. He wasn't up fer fightin much at that point. Kept saying,"man that hurts", over and over.
Normal load fer a Navy 36cal is 22gr. powder FFFg. That is most likely what Wild Bill Hickock used to kill more than one antaganist. These are my "numbers".ha ha ha May not be one shot kills but I imagine they were one shot stops or maybe two or three shot stops.
Like the Civil War vets that actually shot people with the Navy Colt seem to relate to Elmer Kieth when he was a youngin. The Navy took the fight outta those soldiers in the heat of battle when adrenilin was high and all.
Those kinda nnumbers,so to speak,tell a story. People used the Navy Colts to good avail back in the day.
That tells me the 36 cal. 1862 Pocket Police could be loaded up and still be in the "standard load" area and sting someone pretty good up close. The fire and smoke would put the scare into someone even if you missed.
You like the Pocket 1862 Police then get it...shoot it at stuff...and you'll see it'll be just about as good as a Navy since it can take a load equal to the Navy load with what powder squeezes in. If you want to push the envelope just stay in the safe realm.
Here's a number for ya....I shot a squirrel in the head with my wifes 1862 Uberti. Probably with 18gr.FFFg and the ball.
I didn't keep the shot closer to the front of the head to stay away from the shrapnel of bone messin up the edibles. I aimed fer the eye.
There wasn't much head left at all and some of the front legs/shoulders parts were torn to hell.
Ifin a man was shot with a Pocket Police at close range in the head,or chest near the heart with a normal load of black and the ball(even with a thin lube pill in the chamber under the ball) he would be hurtin. Might still shoot back some but....maybe not ifin he was hit a coupla times in the head and the chest.
I say...get yer Pocket Police and shoot the danged thing at stuff . Try some smallish sand stone rocks and see how they would bust up into pieces. Shoot a big rock from 30 paces and see the ball hits and makes like a grey paint splotch where to mushroomed into oblivion. (Always wear eye protection of course)
Those kinda things give some "numbers" that tell a true story.
The trick would turn into makin the Cap&baller reliable using "cap guards" and all so it fired every time you dropped the hammer. Makin sure the caps fire went to the powder every time. Makin sure the thing would keep workin when the powder fouling built.
Whether or not you want the reliability and fouling control the lube pill provides or you want to practice shootin and use a ram rod after every five shots to keep accurate or not is a thing to thunk on. The ineffective lube groove in a short bullet would be about as useful as no groove at all. Ifin you just want the five shot gun to shoot five times when needed skip the lube groove in the bullet and shoot with a lil smear over the front of the chambers to avoid chain fire.
Take a cheapy ,but good, Lee ball mould and make the bullet I described that is no longer than a ball with one side a flat and the other a round nose and load the round nose first in the chambers. All you do is center up on the center of the top of the moulds hole and use a drill the right size and enlarge the top of the hole to create the flat end of the newly created bullet. "The backwards flat ended round nose". ha ha ha ha It'll work. Best way to start shootin conicals from the cap&baller that shoot well with the type rifling twist the gun has and all that. Just load the round end in the chamber first.
You'll get a bullet that doesn't weigh too much fer the gun. Just don't enlarge the one end past the center of the "ball hole" in the mould. Wtch hpw long the tapered end of the drill is. May need to start with the drill as is and then grind the end off some to finish.
Use the Lube pill so the gun keeps functioning and shooting accurate. Lube pills are "good"fer cap&ballers.
You might want to have the chambers reamed so the chambers size then balls/bullets the right diameter fer the barrels grooves but.....the 1862 Pocket should have chambers the right size already. Ask why they don't do that with all the cap&ballers and I'll tell ya I don't know but....the Pocket Police probably has the chambers the right size right outta the box.
Just don't try loading too hot fer the gun or it won't last real long. Practice with normal loads and keep the "hot loads" to a minimum.
My wife loves her 1862 Pocket Police and.....it's a really accurate gun. She likes 18gr.FFFg Goex or Swiss and the ball. Pretty lil wife with a pretty lil gun.