First black powder gun 1860 Colt Replica

J

jcsturgeon

New member
I've wanted a cap and ball gun for a while now, and I guess watching Gettysburg and Gods and Generals finally put me over the edge.

Here she is:

1860Colt006.jpg


Can't wait to give it a try next weekend!
 
1860Colt006.jpg


So I used is this weekend, I lubed it up, it works fine unloaded. Action is sharp, it seems very smooth and tight. Loading it is easier than I thought, but...

Putting the caps on the back was MUCH tougher than I thought. I had to fight them on! Some of them were even duds and I had to hit them again to get them to fire. Is that just the brand I used? (CCI)

Also, sometimes it will get stuck and not rotate freely? Is this normal? What could I do to fix it?
 
Mine took #11 caps. Yours aren't being fully seated if it takes two strikes to set them off. CCI's are the best. Colt's are notorious for cap jams. The best way to alleviate the problem is to get in the habit of raising the muzzle slightly and tilting it slightly to the right. That way cap fragments tend to fall to the side instead of into the action.
 
The guy at Sportsman's warehouse told me there were only two kinds of caps. Ones for pistols and one for long guns. Oops, guess it pays to double check their work. I think I should have got 11's instead of 10's.
 
Caps are different sizes among the the different brands. Mykeal has a chart showing the dimensions of each one. Most revolvers do take #10. My Pietta 1860 is the only one I ever had that took #11. All I can get locally is Remington #10 and CCI #11. Maybe a different brand of #10 would work for you. I personally don't like Remington, I get too many with missing priming compound.
 
Sportsman's Warehouse needs to do a better job training their employees.

Yes, I have such a chart:
CapSizes.jpg


Be aware that others report similar but still significantly different results. The relative size comparison is still valid, however. What that means is that you don't get three digit precision for 4 cents.

And nipple sizes vary considerably also, even within brands and models. Bottom line: it's a crap shoot.
 
Cap Problems

You may need to try the Rem #10s I know a lot of people that say they're crappy but I ordered a 1000 from Cabela's and everyone of my revolvers use them. One Colt .36 Navy has given me a problem with them. The Rem #10s are to big for the nipples on it, go figure. I'll try the CCI# 10s on that one. If you can find a tin of one hundred and give them a try you may save yourself some money. Most revolvers use #10s of some kine. #11s will probably be to big.
 
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