After a great conversation with Dave951, I now know I really need to measure the diameter of the bore of my Parker Hale Model 1861. Note, I do not have the proper machinist tools to gage this, and need a lower tech method. I can’t find any decent videos on YouTube on how to do this, and can’t find a past discussion or sticky here. I do recall reading someplace that you can drop a heavy piece of brass rod into the barrel, then carefully hammer a soft oversized round ball into a lubricated bore. Then, using gravity, hold the rifle upside down and shake up and down until the brass rod ejects the slug. Has anyone actually done this and had success? Could you do the same thing with some cerrosafe poured into the last few inches of the bore? As always, I appreciate any help and suggestions. Jkrem