I am inching closer to completing the lesson plan and materials for the classroom portion of my Cap & Ball revolver class. I envision this is half educational, half historical and 100% entertaining. I’ve had two test students through an earlier draft of the class and they found it informative, educational and downright fun.
It will cover Samuel Colt from his first 1837 Paterson to his last 1862 Pocket Police. It will also cover the Army relationship that Colt cultivated and those who asked for new designs. While we wont shoot ALL of them, I will have a reproduction example of models produced that can be touched and interacted with as well as shot during our range session.
We will also cover major Colt competitors and a few minor ones as well. We will look at examples of Remington, Starr, Whitney and Lemat Revolvers and discuss the unique qualities and background of each.
As we progress, we will dive into Black Powder and percussion caps learning the supplies needed for shooting cap & ball. Then we discuss loading methods such as hand loading, cylinder swapping and paper cartridges. We’ll discuss myths and lore regarding common malfunctions and discuss how to avoid them in our shooting. We will close this section with a discussion of cleaning and maintenance.
Just before Range time- or after if the group so chooses, we will cover the Black Powder Reproduction Revolver Industry. Who makes these historic pistols, where they can be bought and what to look for when making a first purchase.
And the FINALLY… after a safety briefing… We will pick a example or two from my collection for each student and head to the firing line. In this portion of the course you’ll get hands on experience loading these pistols and hitting targets. These are not like your grandfather’s old 38! Sights are constructed for different engagement distances than modern Revolvers. Each is different and we will cover those differences. We will load by hand, load cylinders off gun and use paper cartridges.
As a wrap up, we can discuss how to learn more, organizations you can join and others events that students may want to look into.
In total, I expect this to be a full day 7-8 hour class with 4 students. Students should bring a lunch and a few drinks for the day. Students will also need eye and ear protection for the range portion. Target, balls/bullets, black powder, tools and reproduction Revolvers will be provided although Students may bring their own cap & ball if they so choose.