The gun hes looking at is .58 cal. Its rifled but looks like 3 band shallow rifling. Hes gonna make an offer on it next week.
What minie balls to buy? I've only ever shot patched roundball out of our traditional muzzleloaders. I've read 60gr 2f powder is good. Do you slather the minie balls with lube(we have bore butter and mink oil)? Tips on lubing??? Does anything go between the powder and the bullet(I dont think so, right)? How did they do it during the civil war, with paper cartridges? Did the paper itself ever go down the barrel?
Ok here we go again- For best accuracy out of a musket and minies.
1) Pure lead only minies sized to .001 under bore size. Most "Zouaves" (1863 Remington Contracts) have bores in the 580 range, doesn't matter what's stamped, measure and verify. If you don't cast, go here for quality minies-
http://www.lodgewood.com/Bullets_c_7.html
Be sure you know your bore size for best results!
2) Powder charge 40-45g 3f, ignore the "service charge" you want to get shooting accurately, minies don't respond well to large charges. NOTHING between charge and minie. Some like to fill the base with lube, but I've dug more than a few out of the backstop with base full of lube. If the lube and powder charge are in balance, no need to fill the base and ruin bullet consistency.
3) Use beeswax/xyz lube. XYZ=lard, crisco, tallow, etc. Avoid "bore butter" and anything petroleum based. I dip lube my minies base only to the top of the rings.
During the War, they bit off the top of the cartridge, poured the powder, rammed the minie home, no paper, it's an extra step. HOWEVER, with Enfields and the Pritchett bullets, the cartridge formed a paper patching and as such the bullet wasn't unwrapped, but rammed as is down the bore. That only works with Prichett style bullets.
If you're serious about working up this rifle, check out the North South Skirmish Association (I'm a member). We compete with Civil War era guns, including artillery (yes, I'm on a rifled howitzer crew). We spent lots of time experimenting with these guns getting them to shoot to their potential. There's lots of misinformation out there from folklore to reenactorisms that will lead to frustration. If you're in the eastern US, then look us up, there are lots of members willing to help out a noobie.