Gun advice for a cap and ball revolver beginner?

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Weedy

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Lately some of the postings here on THR have made me very curious about cap and ball revolvers. I have absolutely no blackpowder experience. What would be a good revolver for someone new like me? I see them in Cabela's, etc, but I have no idea who makes a quality gun or what designs are "best."
And once I find a good revolver, I have to learn how to load it!
One thing at a time though.
If it helps, I have shot quite a few revolvers, both single and double action, up to .454 Casull, and I think I would sway toward a larger bore. My hands are maybe slightly larger than average. If any other info would help you give better advice please let me know!
Thanks guys.
 
I bought my first cap & ball revolver in 1967. It was a reproduction of a Colt's 1851 Navy. I think it was a good choice then and would be a good choice now.

I later traded it in on an 1860 Colt's Army then bought a 2nd Model Dragoon to go with it.
 
There are those who do not like the brass framed 51 confederate navy for a number of reasons one being you have to shoot reduced loads (which is not necessarily a bad thing) and its not period correct ( whatever) its a great beginer gun thats fairly inexpensive. http://www.cabelas.com/product/Shoo...=SBC;MMcat104792580;cat104701680;cat104503680
my next choice would be the steel framed Navy, more expensive but more durable. The Navy in my opinion is one of the best feeling handgun of the inexpensive BP pistols available. Here is the steel frame http://www.cabelas.com/product/Shoo...=SBC;MMcat104792580;cat104701680;cat104503680
they are all great, I love them all.... just my opinion.
 
I like my rogers & spencer.it seams the grips fit better in diffrent hands sizes. ater that I like my 58 remmy. mine is a pita I know I spelt it wrong! most of repros are smaller than an original in size.
 
i reckon an 1858 New Army. Or if you want something big, get a Walker. Ive got one and it big, heavy and accurate. Also shakes the crap out of everything on full loads haha

They all work along the same principles, so just find one you like the look of. Piettas and Ubertis are both good guns.

while the pistols themselves a fairly cheap, the rest of your cash will be spent on all the other crap. balls, powder, caps, grease, lube, nipple wrench, flasks, capper, etc etc...

Good fun tho!
 
I thank the Piettas from carbellas are great for Large Hands I Ordered a 1858 Buffalo Steel fro abotm them Cant wait to shoot it. The brass frames are good first time shooters.
 
I agree with Freddy. My first black powder revolver was in 1974, a Remington New Model Army and my latest is an 1847 Colt Walker. Thay are a hoot to shoot and I love the smell. Remember though that most other guys at the range will stand at least 5 paces upwind....Nothin' personal mind you.
 
First gun: I would go with either a steel frame 1851 Navy or a 1858 Remington. Cant go wrong with either. Pietta makes agood lowish priced gun. Enjoy.
 
I tell you I just got into it myself and I love revolvers but have always hated how small the grips seem on the Single Action Army. To my delight that is not the case on my 1860 Army. This thing fits my large hands great. I too prefer the larger bore but I think the 1861 Navy is the same gun just different caliber. Anyone can correct me if I'm wrong because as I said I'm new too. I too bought one of the loading stands as mentioned above. I'm taking mine out this weekend for the first time. I can't wait.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000PW45GS/ref=oh_o00_s00_i00_details
 
First thing. Read all the threads under the Blackpowder essentials stickey. Then go to The Firing Line and read the So you want a cap and ball revolver stickey http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=207028. Then, find someone close to were you live that shoots C&B revolvers in CAS competition, (you can check locations of the CAS club nearest you on www.SASSNET.com) and mentor with them. That way you will be able to try multiple sizes, types and calibers of C&B.

Failing that, your best bet for a beginning C&B revolver would be one of the Remington clones. Which one really doesnt matter, cause once you get started, you'll want one or two of each anyhow.
 
Don't buy anything until you follow Fingers McGee's advice to visit a CAS/SASS club and shoot a variety of them.

The Ruger Old Army, no longer manufactured but available if you look around, is the strongest, most reliable cap and ball revolver out of the box. It is not an exact reproduction of a historic gun, so it does not appeal to those who insist their guns meet that criteria. But the hand springs and trigger/bolt springs in an ROA won't break like they do in the historic copies. No 1851, 1858, 1860 or 1861 copy will be as good out of the box as the Ruger. The copies will shoot and make smoke and give you lots of fun, if spring breakage and heavy hammer springs and trigger pulls don't upset you. The copies can be tweaked into very accurate and reliable guns, but don't expect them to be that way out of the box.

For the record I presently have 6 Ruger Old Armies and 4 Uberti 1851 Navies. I have done a lot of work on the 1851s, very little on the Rugers.

Go to some cowboy shoots, heft and shoot as many different kinds as you can, then make your decision.
 
i second and/or third the remarks about getting yoru hands on a variety of models before you decide. i personally have never held any of the remingtons and have pretty much only experienced the pietta 1860 army (sherrifs model), 1847 "walker" (possibly uberti but i'm not 100% certain) and a 3rd model "dragoon" (and maybe a couple more that i have just forgotten about). your choice of a blackpowder revolver (from what i have gathered in postings here) can be affected by your wants and/or needs. if you are wanting purely accuracy and target shooting you might choose model X over model Y (depending on who you are asking this could be just about any model) or if you just want to make a big badda boom, and just do it for the sake of shooting you might decide on something else. i have notice some folks mention they make some BP choices based on "how it feels in the hand". i lean towards this as i am not the greatest shot in the world and am not into the sport/competion side of things. i guess it really comes down to personal preference and that old expression "to each, his own". hence why you will probably keep hearing folks say to handle a variety before you decide :)
 
Not everybody has the availability to go fondle different CB guns easily, I was one of them. If you can go play touchy feely at a CAS shoot or some such then that's a great way to go.

If not, brushhippie is spot on. The Confederate Navy or as I like to call it, the Fake Navy is a great starter gun. Light loads don't eat a lot of powder so it's half the price to shoot that a Dragoon or Walker would be. And.....if you decide BP ain't for you, you're not into it very much money.

Be VERY afraid though, the likelyhood of you deciding that BP isn't your thing is very low!!! More than likely you've just opened a can of powder that you'll never get tired of.
 
B/p is addictive, I had a kit gun I built in the 60's and loved it, killed a few rabbits, put it away when I joined the USAF and it was gone 20yrs later when I returned. I have recently got back into b/p and it's rapidly overtaking my modern gun afliction. I'm running out of safe space and spending a lot more time at the range, but as Martha says"that's a good thing"
 
First, which gun is very much a matter of what you want ot do with it. All the makers manufacture a revolver that is safe. But getting a gun that shoots well is a different matter.

My own advice is to get a Remington. They are more accurate, and quite durable. If you can swing it, get the Pietta Shooter's Model. They are much higher quality than the entry-level guns. There are better guns, but you'll pay a premium for them.

As to shooting, I recommend securing a supply of .454 round balls, some Cream of Wheat, and Goex or Swiss 3Fg powder. And some lube...Crisco will do for a start. Try 15-20 grains as a starting load, with enough Cream of Wheat filler to leave about 3/8 inch in the chamber. Put ball on top, ram home. Put a dab of lube on top. Cap, shoot, enjoy.
 
Thanks a lot guys you've been very informative so far, as usual. From my web-surfing I'm kind of liking the 1858 - I like the top strap, I'm only basing this on looks though.
 
I shot my first Cap & Ball revolver a couple of months ago, a Pietta 1858 New Army, and got hooked. Since then, I have acquired three of them, two "Sheriff's" models with 5-1/2" barrels from Cabela's, and one standard model with an 8" barrel that I bought from another member on this board.

Due to the weather here, I wasn't able to get out to shoot them until last weekend. Our local range has a monthly "Black Powder" day. It was great to take them out to the range where there was lots of knowledgeable folks around to help out. One of the guys had loading stand and that really made loading the cylinders a breeze.

The New Army's shot great and I really like the ease of removing the cylinders for reloading.

Here are some pics of my New Army's:

1858-11.jpg

1858-9.jpg
 
Like some of the others have suggested,you might enjoy a Pietta 1858 Remington. That was my first black powder gun... You won't have to start out dealing with Colt barrel wedges, and Remington-pattern guns seem to shoot better out of the box, idk why.

Guaranteed - you'll be hooked no matter what gun you choose!
 
I bought my first cap & ball revolver in 1967. It was a reproduction of a Colt's 1851 Navy.
Click to expand...

Mine, too, but in 1974. I'd advise that a newb go with a '58 remmy first, though, before going to the Colts. The '58s generally shoot closer to POA, are tougher guns, and are generally more accurate than open tops in my experience. JMHO. I think the epitome of cap and ball is the Ruger Old Army. I got my first in 1980 and have owned one ever since. The repros are easier to buy in to and offer a BUNCH for the money, especially when you find 'em on sale at Cabelas. They're so easy to buy and own, there's really no excuse NOT to get into it. Once you're addicted, you're going to want a variety of different reproductions, though. It can get expensive...especially thanks to Cabelas. :D Do like my wife does, don't think about how much you spent, but how much you "saved". :D
 
I got started in 1964 with a 61 Colt navy and have been at it ever since.
I've never owned a Remington reproduction but I do have a Ruger Old Army and it is a great gun the rest of my revolvers are Colts.
I've been on this forum a lot of years and find that the Remington repro. owners are most satisfied and can give a lot of reasons why.
As for the brass vs. steel I'd go with the steel frame they really don't cost that much more. If you get bit by the bug it won't be your last gun and if you don't get bit it will be easier to sell.
 
Weedy, You will probably find out that the folks on this muzzleloading forum spend little or no time shooting at each other and we promote our sport by helping newcomers learn and enjoy. Maybe it's the slower pace of muzzleloading that makes us so laid back.
Hope you get bit by the bug.
 
Weedy, you've gotten a bunch of opinions already. Likely enough to greatly confuse you. The only thing I'll ad for now is to spend some time on You Tube with searches for "black powder revolver", "1858 remington", "1851 Colt", "1860 Colt", "ruger old army" and definetly "cap ball reloading". You'll see a bunch of the options being used. And more importantly you'll see a bunch being loaded with and without stands or cylinder loaders. From an hour or so of watching the videos you should begin to get some idea.

If you're not all about how fast you can throw rounds downrange then you'll very likely enjoy the C&B black powder experience. And as I found out a couple of weeks back even the older Italian clones can be surprisingly accurate and consistent shooters.

As to which gun you go with the only thing I'd suggest is avoid the brass frame options. While nice in their own way there is some stories of them shooting loose from lots of use. Easier to just stick with the steel framed options. But brass grip frames are fine and add a nice touch of style to any fine looking C&B wheel gun.

Caliber? If you like the recoil of a nice solid .38Spl I'd stick with the .44 size offerings. BP burns with a softer punch so the .44 round ball comes out with about the same punch as a stout .38Spl but in a softer "push" sort of manner rather than the sharp crack that smokeless has. The .36 round ball guns I've shot are a little less expensive but have the kick of a .38 target wadcutter round or maybe a touch less.
 
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