Newbie Revolver Shooter- Protocol Questions

Can anyone tell me the proper etiquette for revolver shooting? In terms of sequence of charging, wadding, balling, capping, etc. Do you charge all chambers, then wad all chambers, then seat the ball on all chambers, etc., or do you charge, wad, ball, cap each chamber in turn?

Do most fellows remove the cylinder and use a loading press, or load with the loading lever?

Any suggestions for putting, and keeping, the caps on the nipples? I squeeze each cap into an oval shape before putting it on the nipple, to make it fit tighter and prevent it from falling off. But it gets a bit tedious, and my blunt thumbs tend to drop the caps and require a couple of tries to get them on. I'm getting better with practice, but does anyone have a better way?

-Glenn
73rd NYVI

[pastore]

I have shot the revolver match since it started. For individual matches you may load and fire a single chamber or load all six chambers and then fire. For team competitions you would load all chambers and after all competitors are loaded the command to cap is given. You can load the cylinder in the revolver, or remove it for loading with a press, however you must cap with the cylinder in the revolver. the sequence is as follows:
load powder in chamber ( one or all six )
load wad or filler
load and ram ball
apply grease over ball
return cylinder to revolver if loading with a press
cap (during team competition wait for command to cap)
the revolver must be cleared off the line with the cylinder in the revolver
As far as pinching caps goes, unless you are lucky enough to have a combination of nipple and cap that gives a tight fit without having to do this, there is really no way around it. You can however use a small needle nose plier to gently crimp the caps before putting them on. That saves the thumbs a little.

I hope this helps.

Thanks Fletcher! This succinctly answers all of my questions.
-Glenn

[Dominic Infante, 8359V]

Having to pinch caps to get them to stay on suggests you need a smaller size cap. If you are using a #11 size, try a #10. I switched to a #10 size for both my Rogers and Spencer and my 1860 Army Colt and that solved the problem. The #10 fit tightly and never fly off while another chamber is discharging. Such a problem could be a major reason for chain firing. A nipple without a cap, because it was pinched on and then flew off, represents an unobstructed channel to powder; a spark or flame from an adjacent chamber can enter and cause chain firing. So, having a correct fitting cap is really a safety issue.

[Ken Hansgen, 11094]

I shot revolver for a long time before I learned this: the #10 or #11 on a revolver cap refers to millimeters diameter. Size 1075 means 10.75 mm.

[Eddie Bruner, 12222]

#11 cap 11mm???? Would that not be like 3/8 inch?

[Ken Hansgen, 11094]

Egad, Eddie, you're right! 0.43307 in. to be precise. All I can say is that's how it was explained to me and I just accepted it. My bad.