Show some pictures if you have them, I would love to see it.
If you are new to BP and if you're going to shoot BP loads, wash er up good with soap and hot water inside and out immediately after shooting. When I shoot BP (in my cap and ball's), I fill a cut-off 1/2 gallon milk jug with hot soapy water. I dip the field stripped gun into it down almost to the grips, and give her a good scrub inside and out. I then rinse with hot water, and spray her down well with some displacing oil like WD-40. She then goes in the oven on low temp for 15 minutes or so, until she's pretty warm to the touch. I make sure all the water comes out of the action, and then I oil her up.
The spray down with WD before drying really helps keep rust spots from forming while she's in the oven drying. When I first started BP shooting, my gun rusted in just the few minutes it was drying in the oven, using the WD stopped this from happening. BP's fun, but it's a pain afterward, and oh, and if you pass gass in the next day or so afterward, it smells just like the BP smoke.
Unfortunately, BP corrodes about everything it touches, which includes cases. Black powder residue contains oxides of nitrogen, sulphur, and potassium salts, all of which are very hygroscopic (and will turn into acids as they absorb water from the air). So get it all clean very quickly after shooting. If you value your cases, which have all become pretty pricy lately, you'll want to wash them in soap and water too after firing. They're all gonna be hick green by the time you get home. Another caveat, BP is somewhat corrosive even before it's fired (it contains potassium nitrate which is a salt), and will corrode out your loaded brass from the inside as it sits. I have always been afraid to load any BP cartridges for the same reason I won't shoot corrosive ammo in the guns I care about.
Anyway, good luck with your vintage piece. I have an old H&R top-break in .32 (needs some work), and someday I'll get her shooting again.
whatever the case dimensions it is black powder round and long obsolete,not much muzzel velocity,but good for skunks and snakes at close range.......not to close to the skunk now.......better have some tomato juice on hand LOL........
