paper patch mould questions

[buckskin billy]

if all goes right i'll be ordering my 44 -2 1/4 from c. sharps this coming week.
i'm saleing some land and while i have the money i want to get everything i'll need to load for this expensive caliber.
i'll be making a order to buffalo arms for moulds, dies, brass, top punches, ect.
i want to shoot paper patch bullets as well. this is uncharted territory for me.
i have been reading a bunch of info on this, and my little ole brain is in melt down over all the info i'm reading.
so whats up with adjustable moulds. new ground for me. what is adjustable on it. i would assume the length which would also change the weight.
from my research i have found that shiloh and c.sharps barrels for the 44's are .446 groove diameter and .438 bore diameter. rate of twist for shilohs barrels are 1 in 19 and in the c.sharps badger barrels its 1 in 18.
so my question i guess would be. is that set in stone? is that enough info for me to go by when getting a paper patch mould. or would i do better if i rat hole some money for the paper patch mould until i get the rifle in my grubby paws.
my dealing have only been in casting groove bullets so my next question may be a little silly for some you you hivernants. is there a special sizer for paper patch bullets. i see there are tapered bullets and straight bullets. i don't know which one i will use as of now. i'm a hunter and not a target shooter and most of my shooting will be inside 100 yards.

[jameshunt]

Paper patching is akin to alchemy according to some, yet it was the predominate style of bullet used by the commercial hunters who in many instances were doing this sitting around a fire in the dark of night. So absolute critical measurement must not have been necessary if your purpose was to hit a buffalo at under 600 yards (and most were taken probably in the 300 yard or less range).

The Shiloh board is a WEALTH of outstanding information. Before asking an uninformed question, because those guy's can be a little brutal, do a search for paper patch. It will provide you with a lot of reading and really good information.

From what I can tell, one of the better placed to get your paper patch mold is from:

kal.castpics.net/default.htm

Paper patch are top pour molds, cupped base. You can increase the length and thereby weight. Most comment that this guy's "Gibbs" bullet is the closest to what the Sharps company sold. He is a very pleasant guy to talk with via email, and will tell you to first slug your barrel, he will then custom make the mold for you. So, you will have to wait until your rifle arrives.

You may wish to do as I did, that is buy some swaged PP bullets and paper from Dave Gullo to fool around with first before dumping a ton of money into a custom mold.

By the way if you are ordering a rifle that must be made, you may wish to order it thru Bill Goodman. That greatly reduces the wait time, I think I got my Shiloh that I custom ordered in 6 months almost to the day. I was very happy with his service.

[buckskin billy]

thanks for your suggestions james. i will buy some swagged paper patch bullets from buffalo arms as you suggested. i think those will be better to learn with.
i have looked at that web site before seen a link to it on the shiloh board. that was when i really got cornfuzed. when i seen all them differnt choices. now that i know the gibbs bullet is closer to the original sharps bullet that helps me narrow down my choices.
i'll rat hole some money until after i get the gun and slug it as suggested.

i contacted shiloh about 2 weeks ago about getting a gun from them, they responeded rather quickly and was real nice to deal with , but told me about a 20 month wait on a gun from them.
i contacted c. sharps and they told me a 8 week wait from the time of payment. my ffl guy is able to get the gun i want through c. sharps a little bit cheaper so that was the decieding factor for me.
i'll have a hard enough time waiting 8 weeks but i would be a wreck if i waited almost 2 years. i was not blessed with much patience