So Imacfrog, have you figured out what engraving is? Engraved metal has grooves cut into it. It may be in the form of some fancy shapes and designs or it might be speaking of something as simple as the grooves that are cut when a bullet is shoved into a rifled barrel.
As for loading one of these REAL bullets, yes, you have to pound the bullet into the barrel.
Because the difference in sizes aren't large and the bullet is made from lead which is easily engraved, it doesn't take a big hammer but there is no way your going to get the bullet loaded by just pushing it into the barrel with your thumb.
A small wooden mallet or a "short starter" like you would use to start a patched ball into the bore will usually do the job if you give it a good, strong whack with your hand. REAL bullets can be difficult to load in a barrel that has been shot if the powder fouling isn't first wiped off of the bore surfaces though. That can lead to a stuck bullet somewhere about half way down to the powder charge and the need to whack your ramrod with some real stout blows to get the bullet seated.
In a badly fouled bore, a patched roundball can have similar problems, especially if the patch was lubed with some sort of grease which doesn't soften the fouling. The badly fouled bores I'm talking about are the ones that have had 3 or more shots fired thru them with real black powder without wiping the bore with a damp patch.
Speaking of wiping the bore, in my opinion, the patch should be wet but not dripping wet. Then, using a jag, push the wet patch down the bore until it stops on the breech plug. Let it sit there for at least 5 seconds and then slowly pull the jag and patch completely out of the bore.
Do not be tempted to pump the jag and patch up and down the bore. That can cause some of the powder fouling to fall down into the breech where it can do great mischief. After the now filthy damp patch is out of the bore, run one clean patch down to the breech and back out once and your ready to reload.
As I said, if you are using a lubricated/wetted patch and ball, you should be able to get at least 3 shots out of a gun that is shooting real black powder without needing to wipe the bore. If you are shooting a percussion gun with one of the synthetic black powders like Pyrodex or 777, wiping the bore is almost never needed because the fouling build up usually doesn't amount to much.
