What do i need for a CVA black powder side-by-side to get started shooting it?

its a percussion cap side-by-side .12 gage. i know i need to use pyrodex, which i already have. but what kind of ammunition can i use in it? Lead shot? is there a kit that i can buy? i already have a powder horn and measure. any info about shooting muzzleloaders is appreaciated, since i never shot one before...What do i need for a CVA black powder side-by-side to get started shooting it?
I didn't know CVA made a SxS but that's besides the point.


Is it a shotgun or rifle?


You can fire shot or balls/bullets from either as it won't hurt anything. it may not be designed for it though.





If you just bought the powder horn, I'd return it unless it's more for display. It's very hard to use and the funnel attachment on the powder bottle is perfect.





Also with a double barrel, you have to come up with a way of telling which barrel is which. Are you going to load one barrel fully and put a piece of tape over it and go onto the next one? Are you going to put powder down both barrels, then put the balls?


My point being that you don't want to accidently load the same barrel twice. What do i need for a CVA black powder side-by-side to get started shooting it?
Actually, you can use either pyrodex or black powder. (I prefer black powder even though it is a bit harder to clean up after shooting.)





You need a 'wad' over the powder to ';seal'; the barrel and a 'wad' over the shot to hold it in the barrel. (just like the internal parts of a shotgun shell.) You also need a ramrod, which should have come with the weapon.





Unfortunately, lead shot is no longer legal in many areas for hunting. In some cases, I THINK they may have made an exception for muzzleloaders, but I am not sure as I don't own a BP shotgun and use a shotgun seldom. (Don't care much for birds, even chicken!) The manual should tell you IF your weapon can handle steel shot.





READ the instruction manual. IT will tell you how to load, what amount of power to use, what type of shot, etc.





Powder ';horns'; are mostly for display, unless you take part in activities that require them. (I use a lever operated cannister with a measuring spout for MY muzzleloaders.)





When shooting, DON'T expect the immediate firing and recoil of a 'modern' weapon. (My flintlock is called Fizz-boom and my caplock is called Ka-boom, because that is what they do!)





Hunt safely, and have a good time.





Follow ALL safety procedures. One of the MOST important to remember is NEVER put ANY part of your body over the end of the barrel when loading.





A good source for materials such as wads, shot, etc. is Midway. I think they will still send you a free catalog and I know they have a website. (I have not had to buy anything recently as I tend to buy in bulk amounts since I also fire modern weapons, reload, and cast many of my own bullets and/or ball.)





Feel free to contact me directly if you think I can be of any further help.






There are many things which you will need to shoot your muzzle loading shotgun. IN addition to the powder and caps, you will need over shot cards, over powder wads and whatever shot you will be using. The shot can be bought in many gun stores that sell reloading supplies. Wherever you bought your shotgun should have the over shot cards and over powder wads. You will also need some cleaning patches and some black powder solvent of some kind. I am rather tight wiht my money and have found that automobile windshiled washer fluid does an excellent job of cleaning any muzzleloader. Just remove the barrels, remove the nipples and submerge the breach of the barrels into a coffee can containing about a pint of windshield washer fluid. Place a tight fitting patch on your cleaning rod and pump it up and down in the bores forcing the washer fluid into and out of the niple holes. When you have the barrels clean, rinse them wiht hot water and let them drain. Spray WD-40 into the barrels to remove any residual water, then run a series of dry patches throught the bores to get them completely dry and then run a slightly oiled patch throung to oil the insides of the bores and you are done with the barrels. Be sure to wipe off any burned powder from the stock and hammers. Lightly oil the outside metal parts, reassemble the gun and you are ready to store it.





The loading procedure consists of first placing a cap on each nipple and pointing the muzzle at a blade of grass. Fire the cap and watch to see if the blade of grass moves. If it does, it means that the nipples are clear and the gun is ready to load. Place the hammers into the half cock notch. Measure your powder change and pour it into each barrel. Press an over powder wad into the muzzle (it will be tight fitting and difficult to start) use your ramer and seat it on the powder charge. Measure a volume of shot equal to the volume of powder that you use (just use yourpowder measure to measure out your shot) our it into each barrel and seat an over shot card on top of the shot. You are ready to place a cap on the nipples and shoot.





Look into getting into a black powder club in your area. There is a lot of folks ready to help you with all of your questions. They also have a lot of fun shooting black powder guns.