36-cal Colt Cartridge Works Cap & Ball Conicals, 128 grains pure lead. This is a very pleasant shooting conical bullet that I have had great success with out of my little Colt 1862 Pocket Police revolver. The original design, which is beautifully captured by the Eras Gone mold, is an excellent shooter and loads easily (especially in cap and ball revolvers with the "conical cut out" in the frame).
44 caliber cap & ball revolver loaded with a 140-grain round ball over 30-grains of 3Fg Goex black powder only generates 242 ft/lbs of energy. In comparison, a 124-grain, 9mm round produces 304 ft/lbs of power.
Based on that, when we are looking at cap & ball revolvers, we should ensure that they hit with at least the power of a .380. If we look at a .380 round that pushes a 90-grain bullet at 1,000 feet per second, we'll see that it develops 200 foot/pounds of energy. So, if we are going to depend on a cap and ball revolver to save our lives, it needs to hit with at least 200 ft/lbs of energy. And that is the power floor set by both sets of researchers for a reliable self-defense round.
The fact is, loaded with an 80-grain round ball and 22 grains of 3Fg Goex black powder, the .36 caliber Navy only generates 166 ft/lbs of power. To get close to the .380 power floor, you need to load it with a 150-grain conical bullet over 18 grains of black powder, and even that load only hits with 198 ft/lbs. But, as Marshall and Sanow discovered, bullet performance is at least as important as power. Cap and ball conical bullets tend to drill right through a body. That over-penetration means the bullet leaves most of its energy in the wall behind your assailant instead of in his body. For that reason, I recommend you only use .44 caliber revolvers for self-defense.
