If you're going to try Minie bullets, you should stick to using only real black powder FFg. Pyrodex needs to be compressed under reasonably good force to ignite consistently, and "Triple-7" maybe a little more potent than I want to use. Too heavy a charge of ANY propellant can sometimes cause distortion of the Minie bullets "skirt" which can really mess up any chance of accuracy.
There used to be a Lyman mould that cast a Minie of almost 600gr weight that was quite blunt and had a very thick "skirt" (hollow base). It was intended for use in guns (and shooters) that could tolerate heaviers powder charges and the bullets wouldnt' distort--due to the heavier base. This style Minie would be very difficult to find for purchase. But you see there are a lot of options available to those who do their own casting.
If you don't cast (or don't want to start), I'm sure there are plenty of people who would buy the bullet mould you have. That would give you some extra money for powder, bullets, and percussion caps.
Round balls may work better than any conical you try, so don't dismiss them until you can shoot about 5 or 6 different bullet styles and weights and see which works best. There is a 315gr Minie (mould still made by Lyman) that usually shoots rather well in these guns, but they might not be able to be located for purchase easily. Most people just cast them. They conserve lead supplies and are much easier on the gun and shooter, and "may" shoot better than any other bullet in a particular gun.
I've never seen a real need to go over 70gr FFg in one of these type of military ".58" cal rifles. There is a lot of "whompus" when using a 500gr Minie and 70gr of FFg. Properly applied, there are no huge beasties that you should have to fear. Again, shooting much more than 70gr can ruin the base of the bullet and destroy your accuracy.
Zoli manufactured Zouaves are supposedly some of the best made models. There is a model of the (~33" barrel) military version that has a shorter 26" barrel and the bayonet lug is gone, BUT it STILL has the brass bands around the barrel & stock. I can't see a whole lot of advantage to just taking 7" off of the barrel, but it may handle a little easier in heavy cover hunting. (who would really use a 2-ft long bayonet while hunting either...?) It's basically the same gun though.
There is also another model that doesn't look much like a Zouave at all, but more of a heavy hunting rifle. It has the same lock and a short heavy barrel, but with hunting style sights instead of the military folding leaf sights and I can't remember if it has a patchbox or not(?). This is the gun that Val Forgett of Navy Arms fame used to hunt the "Big-Five" in Africa.
PLEASE DO NOT use this data for loading your gun--but he used almost 200gr of FFFg powder and a 600gr+ conical bullets. I think that is a brutal load on "both ends" and there is NO NEED for anyone of us to even think about trying it. That particular gun/model may have been made of a higher grade of barrel steel, and had a recoil lug added to the barrel underside, and was "proofed" and tested for use with higher powder charges.
You mentioned about the possibility of this being the work of a "Frankenstein" (or also referred to by military gun collector purists as "Bubba's work". It is possible, but as WV Scrounger had remarked, we need to see some pictures (if you can) to tell you more precisely about what you have there.
NOTE: Navy Arms is supposedly making the Buffalo Hunter models again. I heard that these sell for over $600, so I know I won't ever be getting one. I'm too used to finding CVA Bobcats and Panthers at yard sales and flea markets selling for $60 or so... The Buff Hunter would be a very nice gun though. I seriously doubt that you have one of these currently made models, as I don't think Zoli has made these kind of guns since the '70's.
Good Find--whichever it is... post the pictures when you can, OK?
Shoot Safely!
WV_Hillbilly
