How did the powder box work? Glass vials? My father was a watchmaker and used similar cases/boxes to hold small parts for watches. Each hole in the box held a small glass vial and its small cork stopper. But none of the vials I saw would have the capacity for a single charge of BP for Niedner's rifle.
Here is a partial answer to the question about breech-seating a Hoch bullet with a push-style seater. I have a 28-30 with a Stevens 44 action. I use a 140 grain Hoch bullet cast 1:30 or 1:25 for almost everything. I seat it with a plugged case with almost no effort. Just close the lever. You can feel the bullet engage the rifling, but the effort required is not great.
