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!