The imposing looking but anemic .36 C&B

For all the history, belching fire and smoke, the classic navy .36 cal. is a little wimpy. Ballistically its only advantage is a pure lead projectile. They seem to hold together well and astonish a little with penetration, for what they are. The 80 gr. round ball nominally is running around 850 fps. That’s between .32 and .380 ACP territory. Not exactly reassuring getting charged point blank by an enraged Indian with a war club! Aim true! The Army .44 cal had a bit of an advantage using a .451 ball weighing 130 grs. So maybe .38 Special level, yeah, I’ll take that one.

A technique is to deepen the chambers (the powder limiting element) exposing the nipple threads a little. This might garner 15% capacity increase, coupled with modern propellant like 777, perhaps 1000 fps is possible. Not hardly worth the effort. Going to a conical bullet (sounds great) only reduces capacity and potential velocity. Shunked.

So I guess it’s just best to enjoy the history for what it is and kill that marauding paper. Leave the injuns for someone else!