I am a new guy here. I posted recently asking advice about a rear Soule sight for my Pedersoli Sharps and got great help and advice, thanks. By the way I went with a MVA Mid Range Soule with a Magnum Hadley style eye cup. 
At any rate I am having a tough time with information overload. Ever since I was a teenager I have wanted a Sharps rifle, but when I started shooting I got into mostly handgun for personal defense type stuff with a little AK interest. A few years back I picked up an H&R Buffalo Classic on a whim and enjoyed. I worked up a few smokeless loads and on a good day could get 1" groups at 100 yards (OK on a really good day). It was fun. A warm summer day with a good cigar and a cup of coffee and I could leisurely shoot for an hour or two and only go through 20 - 30 rds. Simple and fun. 
A few weeks back I am at my local shop and spy a Pedersoli Sharps Long Range in .45-70 that is on consignment and I remember my teenage buffalo hunter fantasies and buy it. I figure I'll just replace the H&R with the real deal. Ahh, harking back to a simpler time. No worries about new gadgets or fancy optics just load up some rounds and hit the range. THEN, I started to do a little research, like this forum and a few others and a couple of books and some downloads and now my head is about to explode. Man, I thought that all the AR and 1911 fanatics were wrapped too tightly, but you long range BP guys have cornered the market. Oh my God, bullet alloys,casting, lubing, drop tubes, wads, BP versus substitutes versus Duplex loads, primers (I found 10 page dissertations on primer selection), Vernier sights, Soule sights, blow tubes, spirit levels, cross sticks, and on and on. I am now convinced that working up a good BP load is harder and more convoluted then getting a doctorate from Yale.  Did Billy Dixon do it this way? "Hey Billy, hurry up they're attacking again!" "Wait a minute dude, I have to pour the exact amount of powder down my 24" drop tube and then tap the case exactly 12 times first!" 

Please note that my post is intended in good humor so please do not take offense. This looks to be a great hobby and I just need to step back and give my anal compulsive side a rest. However, it really is true that I am overwhelmed at the moment. How did other guys get started? Where the heck do I begin and what the heck have I gotten into????

Take a couple aspirin, step back and relax.  I know, the beginning is hard but things will get better.  It sounds like the bait worked and you took the hook.  Now it's just a matter of how deep it's set.  In the lip or gut hooked.  Yes, it's true, most of us are pretty anal so you will do just fine.  There are some good reads out there but it sounds like you found them.  Here's what I think a beginning shooter should start getting together.  Keep in mind that I'm talking about big bores where most of the shooters here are trying to punch one hole at 200yds with 32's and under.  Here's the list.
    Drop tube 24-30"-  You can make your own for about $5. If your in an area with a hobby shop, buy a piece of brass tubing.
    Powder measure- Look for an old Lyman 55 at a show. $35-$40
    Powder scale- You probably already have and if you have the time, you won't need the measure.
    Brass- Winchester, Remington or Starline all available.  Winchester holds the most powder and we're talking black here not smokeless.
    Primers- Don't worry about kind; it's not an issue right now. Stick with a standard large rifle.
    Wads- buy .030 fiber now and don't worry about other types til next year.
    Compression die- yup, you're going to need one.
    Powder- buy what's available to you; either Swiss 1 1/2 or Goex 2F.  Get at least 5#,s of the same.  If it has to be shipped, hazmat fees can mount up.
    Lube- make your own.  Get a couple of pounds of clean or refined beeswax, a pound of lard, a pt. of canola oil, jojoba oil or avacado oil.  If you can find some annydrous lanolin, all the better. Also get a nonstick pie or cake pan.
    Bullets or boolits- If you don't think you're ready to cast, buy them.  I'll give you a couple of sources on my next post as I don't want to go looking for them and lose this one. Pick a Creedmoor or Postell style to get started.
Just to show you how deep the hook can be set, I'm headed to Phoenix on Monday to shoot in a long range match.  I have been looking at snow for 4 months and I haven't popped a cap since mid Sept.  Bob
    

Bob,

if the Goose takes your advice, he'll be in good shape to get started properly. There's alot of things to try to grasp right off the get go, so going slow and keep good records on what works and what don't is always needed.

And good luck Bob in the SW. Take some sun-screen  . See ya at the Restwel in June,

Jim

I try to never take reloading so seriously that it interferes with having fun shooting! I am perfectly happy with shooting groups that most competitive shooters would laugh at. 
When reloading gets to a point where I worry more about techniques and case prep, then it's time for me to step back and just go send a few downrange and relax.
Safety yes, repetition yes, but losing sleep, or having to spend more time writing notes, and gathering data, than I do shooting, No!

The_Goose wrote on Mar 10^th, 2009 at 8:55am:


Welcome to th e fun of single shots.

Everyone is in this game for similar reasons and while we all have the same goal we take different paths to get there.  I think.

My goal is to enjoy myself and learn a little bit at the same time.  I use a drop tube when I am trying to make tiny groups but have gotten away without using one for hunting ammo.  I cast my own boolits and have acquired more bullet molds than firearms.  (That is another hobby/story.)   

The big thing is try to figure out what you want from the sport.  The cup of coffee and a shot every two or three minutes is my idea of a great time.  Trying to make one of my big bore rifles into a 1/4 minute shooter is not for me, so I do not fuss over my ammo, sights or rifle like some do.   

I make my own boolits, lube, card wads (I make mine fron cereal boxes) and try to have fun each time I shoot.  When it quits being fun, I'll find a new hobby!   

I doubt Dixon used a drop tube, he didn't even use his own rifle for that shot at Adobe Wells!

Welcome and enjoy the sport.  If you need any help, just ask.

Thanks to everyone for your helpful responses. A friend turned me on to a local shop that caters to black powder shooting in general. The owner was very helpful. I purposely went in the middle of a Tuesday afternoon and I was the only customer in the store. I think the owner would have spent the whole afternoon with me if I wanted. I picked up some Swiss black powder, some wads, bullet lube and a powder measure. It was interesting, he could have gotten me to spend a lot more money, but he gave me god practical info instead. He also let me handle some truly beautiful rifles.

Goose,

I understand your confusion.  You have received some excellent advice.   In the interest of keeping it simple, and with due respect to Ol' Win, I'd recommend staying away from home brewed lube, at least for now  Just get some SPG and go for it.  It's easy to become a "lubaholic" in this game.  Ask me how I know!

You are waaay ahead of the game by choosing a .45-70.  Far too often new shooters get the BP version of magnumitis, and ask about a .45-110, or even .45-120 or .50-140 for their first BPCR.  Talk about a recipe for frustration!

If you follow what OW and the others said about FFg powder, standard primer, .030 veggie wad, and a proven bullet like the Postell, you will very likely get excellent results right from the start.

Plenty of time to become a long range loonie later, but a surprising number of experienced shooters end up eventually gravitating back to the basics.

Make smoke and have fun!

Paul