Back in 1970, when I bought my first ML rifle, it was a .45 caplock, an Italian rifle that was nice...with a couple of problems. Then, as I recall, your choices were very limited and everyone was shooting cap guns As I recall, flint guns weren't even available. Nor were flints, for that matter.
Before that time, the over-the-log competition at .the GA mountain Fair in Hiawassi, GA, was strictly caplock guns. This was in 1956 or so which got me interested as a kid in BP shooting.
In the position of need, I traded my caplock half/stock for a 1958 Ford pickup and didn't regret it. Since then, I've bought a couple of cap guns and two FL rifles. I can't say the FL rifles perform better but they perform well enough and add an element to shooting which I find attractive.
And they're more popular in the semi-custom market than I anticipated. So when did this occur? When did the shift from caplock to FL occur?
I firmly believe a caplock is superior to a FL rifle in that they win a lot of competitions, but still I have three CL rifles over my 2 FL rifles. Expediency isn't always the answer. But my question remains; when did a LOT of the shooting community switch to FL rifles?
Before that time, the over-the-log competition at .the GA mountain Fair in Hiawassi, GA, was strictly caplock guns. This was in 1956 or so which got me interested as a kid in BP shooting.
In the position of need, I traded my caplock half/stock for a 1958 Ford pickup and didn't regret it. Since then, I've bought a couple of cap guns and two FL rifles. I can't say the FL rifles perform better but they perform well enough and add an element to shooting which I find attractive.
And they're more popular in the semi-custom market than I anticipated. So when did this occur? When did the shift from caplock to FL occur?
I firmly believe a caplock is superior to a FL rifle in that they win a lot of competitions, but still I have three CL rifles over my 2 FL rifles. Expediency isn't always the answer. But my question remains; when did a LOT of the shooting community switch to FL rifles?