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percussion rifle?

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IMHO is not that it is easier to shoot necessarily other than learning to load the flashpan correctly for instant ignition. When you can get a flinter to fire as quickly as a cap gun then you got it made. I been trying for 1 1/2 yrs. and ain't got it down yet!
 
I built a flintlock awhile back and I love it. I was just thinking of maybe building a percusion.
 
I have not even picked my T/C hawken percussion UP since I got my flinter built! About 9 years ago...I reckon its gettin' a little dusty!
 
I don't know this for fact, but have read that (flintlocks) lock time is quicker than (percussion) cap lock. I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong. :grin:
 
Hacksaw said:
I don't know this for fact, but have read that (flintlocks) lock time is quicker than (percussion) cap lock. I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong. :grin:

I've heard and read that too. The reasoning is sound. A better statement would probably be that flintlocks CAN be faster than a percussion. I think most locks need some fiddling with to be as fast as a percussion "out of the box". Either way, the difference is minimal.
 
i enjoy my 54 and 58 mountain rifle sidelocks. Also love my kentucky flinter but do to funds, the flinter just sits in the corner of the wall with no powder to make her go boom.
 
The main difference is that with a flintlock you've got to remember to close the frizzen...
 
matress said:
How much easier is it to shoot a percussion than a flintlock?

Both style of guns are basically the same except for the ignition system, flintlocks are a tad more fussy and require greater attention.

I am going to go out on a limb here, but I think it may be a bit harder to shoot a percussion gun than a flintlock, at least it is for me.

I say that because those little caps are hard to hold on to with shaking hands. Sure there are cappers that will help get the job done easier, I also switched to musket caps and that helped big time.

The percussion cap sits closer to the top of the barrel too (except for under hammers and mule ear locks), that means the blast is closer to your eye whereas the flintlocks blast is directed to the side.
 
Flintlocks in excellent condition are not faster than caplocks in excellent condition. They are slower.

By the time the flint has started to bite into the frizzen to make its first spark, the fulminate in the caplocks cap is firing.
By the time the powder in the pan is starting to ignite the caplocks cap flash is reaching and igniting the main powder charge.
By the time the flintlocks flash reaches the main powder charge and starts to ignite it, the percussion guns ball has left the barrel.

Now, when all is said and done, if both styles of guns are working as they should the actual time difference between the two will be so small that the human mind cannot recognize the difference.
Enough said.

As for "which one is easier?" the caplock is.
Loading the main powder charge and ramming the ball is almost identical, the one difference being that the caplocks hammer should be at half cock.

Placing a cap on the nipple is much simpler than pouring the right amount of powder into the flintlocks pan and making sure it doesn't block the vent hole.
Also, there is no need to close the frizzen, or to "pick the vent" which is a recommended procedure to get a flintlock to fire as quickly as it can. There is no need to adjust the flint or to re-knap the flint.
The shooter only has to have a supply of percussion caps of the right size.

That said, a flintlock which has a vent located directly in the side of the barrel doesn't have much of anything between the main powder charge and the flash of the pan so there is not much to prevent the main powder charge from firing.

If the percussion gun has a simple side drum on the barrel there is just a short hole between the nipple and the main charge.
This short hole can become saturated with oil which will "kill" the gunpowder that gets into it and make the gun "hang fire" with a noticable delay.
The current crop of percussion guns that use a powder chamber (some call them a Patent breech) has a much longer path for the flame of the cap to travel and if this longer path is oil soaked or plugged with fouling it can prevent ignition or cause hang fires.

There are a few flintlocks on the market that also have this same type of powder chamber breech and they are even more prone to problems than the percussion guns are.

The Military style of percussion which has the nipple screwed directly into the top of the barrel and the underhammer which also screws its nipple directly into the barrel are the fastest of all.

Assuming the percussion guns bore and powder chamber (if present) is clean and free of oil or fouling they are the most reliable type of muzzleloader made.
 
Muzzle blasts just had an article about "lock times" with high speed cameras and electronic timers for measurements. Their results showed percusion faster than flints.
 
I find shooting a percussion easier and quicker than a flintlock. Just load, put on a cap and fire. It's also less of a challenge and a bit less rewarding. I love flintlocks, but I still shoot my percussion guns more. A flintlock isn't particularly complicated, so a percussion gun really doesn't have any benefits over it.
 
There are several items to be adressed for quick lock time in flint guns.
#1 is use a finer powder. I use 3F in all loads and 4f in the pan. It needs to start a lower temp.
#2 The flashhole liner is best if it is counterbored. That is to let the powder get close to the pan. If you don't have a liner, drill & tap for one. There are several good liners that will place the powder within a few hundredths of an inch from the pan.
#3 Position of powder in the pan. The pan should be LESS than 1/2 full and the powder should be piled AWAY from the flash hole on the outer end of the pan. The burst will send a flame into the hole faster than powder burns along the pan.
#4 Flint should be sharp and of proper length. It has to scrape plenty of sparks right down to the end of the frizzen. Most of the sparks are right at the flint edge so you want it to throw the flint edge down to the pan.
If you can do that the flash will happen much faster than you can believe.
Keeping the flintlock up requires a bit of attention to some details but I have seen more frustrated shooters with percussion rifles that misfire time after time.
DOC
 
One thing not mentioned is the fact that a cap gun will shoot the (fake powders) Where a flinter needs real BP. So depending on availability a capper would be a good choice. That being said, I've been shooting a flinter for about a year now and my cap locks are beginning to collect dust, although they do spoil you a bit, last time I shot my T/C hawken style It took me a few trips to the range to get used to shooting the flinter again. :grin: It never hurts to have one of each, :wink:
 
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