So a dear friend was given an 1873 in .32 caliber today, manufactured in 1885. She may not be shootable without lining, cleaning will tell. Very straight and unaltered, looks like it’s never been refinished or overcleaned. But, there’s a lot of pitting on the exterior of the barrel and mag tube near the muzzle- scares me, but we haven’t cleaned the bore yet.

If we have to get it lined, we will. My advice to my friend, which I think he will take, is to leave the gun alone other than that and a thorough cleaning that leaves the patina intact . Anyhow, we definitely want to shoot her- so now I need to get a mold, brass, and dies. I am strictly using Swiss powder, and only interested in replicating the original late 1880s loading. Any pointers on loads, and especially a mold? Does Accurate already have a design for an original style bullet? I know the late John Kort had played with the .32WCF in addition to the .44WCF, but I don’t know anything beyond that. The Accurate 31-110C looks very much like John’s .44 design, and the 31-110L looks like maybe a good two-groove design. I’d prefer to get as close to the original bullet as I possibly can. Thanks in advance!

The only time I was jealous of my wife’s previous boyfriend was that he took her to the theatrical release of The Wind and The Lion.

Since APP, unlike nitro powders (ug) is made using stable materials that do not degrade then as long as it is kept dry it should last as long as standard
Gunpowder. Carefully break up the lumps and bang away.
Some I have that is eight or so years old loads and shoots just fine and cleans up a lot easier.
Hold Center
Bunk

 I posted in one of Mako's threads on BP shotshells about some old commercial shotshells made with Pinnacle (APP) in paper hulls.  I bought them from a retiring shooter, and they must have been 15 years old.  Anyway, the boomed just fine but the paper had degraded so it split badly and the heads tore from the hull upon extraction.  So I think it would be okay in properly loaded metallic cartridges.  Major, I did the same as you with some of this stuff - I dissected 4 rounds so I could reload a few of the paper hulls with BP (they disintegrated just like with the Pinnacle, so the paper was already degraded) - and the powder in those shells was like a rock which I chipped out with an ice pick.  Anyways, I took those 4 shells worth of powder and chunks and set it off inside a sheet of newspaper on the back porch.  It whooshed and smoked just fine!   

Until you said wood grips, I was going to suggest http://www.gripmaker.com/ and https://gungrip.com  for faux ivory grips.  The latter is N C Ordnance, and they say theirs is for a Beretta Stampede Bisley which I've never even heard of but probably made by Uberti.