Tips On Repelling Pirates

[Glenfilthie]

I am a couple months away from my first flinter and was reading on another thread about filling the pans, vent picks and such. It seems there is more to this than filling it up and forgetting about it until it is time to shoot.

Whenever I watch crappy Hollywood flicks or read about the pitched gun battles of yesteryear, none of this comes out.

Can a fella just prime a flint lock pistol, close it up and stick in his sash and expect to blow a pirate to kingdom come after a few sword and fist fights first? Won't the prime powder get shaken up and possibly cause a misfire?

And how does a feller hunt with one of these things? Do you have to prime before shooting at an animal, or can you carry a flinter around all day with a panful of powder? What are the safety implications of that? Do they have a half cock position?

Sorry for the dumb questions in advance!
:shake:

 

[cowpoke1955]

There is no dumb questions :nono: . I prime my pan, close the frizzen and set the cock on half cock and go hunting. Open the frizzen from time to time to check the prime. Make sure it didn't spell out or clump up in humid weather. I have carried my rifle all day and it still fired first time at the end of the day :thumbsup: .

 

[paulvallandigham]

There is more a PROCESS to carrying and shooting flintlocks, than a set technique. YOu do have to be careful of spilling your prime, and you need to be watchful of the priming powder getting damp, or " Clumping up ", as has been described. But that is done by checking your pan every half hour or so. If its raining, or misty, or foggy, you check it more often. Sometimes, in real rainstorms, you have to leave the pan bare, and put a toothpick in the vent to protect the main charge from getting damp. Then, when game comes into view, you do remove the toothpick, prime with fresh powder, close the frizzen and fire.

What you are not considering is that in hard rains, there is a lot of NOISE in a forest from those drops hitting leaves. Deer rely on their huge Ears to hear danger, so rain causes them to move slowly and look harder, as well as smell the air more frequently, trying to sort out and learn the direction of odors. That slow movement is what gives you time to prime that flintlock, and then fire when the deer comes into range. Often, deer will just stay in their daybeds during a rainstorm. If they do get up and move, its usually because something or someone has scared them out of their beds. But, after fleeing the immediate danger, they become super cautious as they move to another bedding area- typically a thicker area of brush and forest, where they can get out of the hard rain and winds, as well as be concealed.

 

[mckutzy]

i thought all side locks of various descriptions had a half cock notch, by default... no offense meant.. am i wrong?

 

[roundball]

For hunting, I'd strongly suggest you consider a leather safety called a 'hammer stall'...buy or make one that slides snugly down over the frizzen then if you have an accidental discharge, the flint in the hammer falls forward, hits the leather, and stops (stalls)

 

[Zonie]

mckutzy
I think that all of the newly made and many of the old originals had a half cock notch but there were quite a few old guns that didn't.

Of course we all know that a half-cock notch isn't really a safety and guns set at half-cock have been known to accidentally fire.

As for killing pirates Hollywood doesn't have a clue.
That should be evident by the many movies made where the hero shoulders his trusty Kentucky and pulls the trigger.
What we see and hear is "Klash-FsssssssssssssssssssssssshhhBOOM" :rotf:

Every one of us knows exactly what they did wrong.

I think a more correct version of the pirate fight would show the hero priming his trusty pistol minutes before the battle was to begin.

Likewise, I would suggest that a flintlock should remain unprimed with the cock down while just walking to his/her hunting spot. When they get to the actual hunting area then they can prime the gun and set it at half cock with a hammer stall over the frizzen.

 

[Mike Brooks]

With a properly position vent hole it doesn't matter how you carry a gun.

 

[Robert Egler]

There is no dumb questions :nono: .

I've been teaching for 22 years, had about 4500 students. Trust me, there ARE dumb questions! :haha:

(But Glenfilthie's question is NOT a dumb question.) :thumbsup:

 

[Nor Cal Mikie]

There "is" one dumb question. Did I really do that last night?? :redface:

 

[Stumpkiller]

Won't the prime powder get shaken up and possibly cause a misfire?

Nope. You can hold a flintlock upside down and it will still go off. I fill my pan about 75% full and it really doesn't matter how the rifle has been tipped or tossed around. I would bet pistols are the same.

And how does a feller hunt with one of these things? Do you have to prime before shooting at an animal, or can you carry a flinter around all day with a panful of powder?

All day is OK. If raining I cover it up with a waxed & greased "cow's knee" leather cover. I usually only reprime once a day (lunchbreak) unless I have had the cover off in rain or snow.

If it's not raining I again only do a mid-day check. Usually it's either cradled in my arms or to my side in a one hand carry. If I was of the type who carried a flintlock slung I'd likely check it more often as you don't know what it's been slapped and snagged by.

What are the safety implications of that? Do they have a half cock position?

No additional safety requirements beyond treating the firearm with respect and as a loaded firearm at all times and only point it at what you intend to kill. Same as with ANY firearm.

Yes, most have a half-cock. Again, as safe as carrying an external hammer lever-action or pump centerfire rifle or a Colt .45 ACP in condition one (half-cock w/round in chamber).

 

[XXX]

I am a couple months away from my first flinter and was reading on another thread about filling the pans, vent picks and such. It seems there is more to this than filling it up and forgetting about it until it is time to shoot......Can a fella just prime a flint lock pistol, close it up and stick in his sash and expect to blow a pirate to kingdom come after a few sword and fist fights first? Won't the prime powder get shaken up and possibly cause a misfire?

And how does a feller hunt with one of these things? Do you have to prime before shooting at an animal, or can you carry a flinter around all day with a panful of powder? What are the safety implications of that? Do they have a half cock position?

I lost a deer once with a flintlock longrifle because I primed it at the start of my hunt and did not keep checking it. I assumed it was fine with the frizzen closed over the pan. I leaned the rifle against trees from time to time while a scanned the woods with binoculars. When the deer appeared, I let her close very close with me before attempting to take her and that is when I found out most of my prime had gone missing from the pan. :redface: I attempted to reprime in slow motion with the doe staring at me in alarm a mere 20 yards away. Needless to say she did not wait to see how it turned out. I later became aware that flintlocks should be able to be fired upside down as someone else already pointed out. I determined that this was probably a case where my cheap spanish lock on a low end rifle was more prone to this happening than a high quality lock would have been, but the lesson to regularly check the prime charge is something I only had to learn once.

 

[roundball]

I determined that this was probably a case where my cheap spanish lock on a low end rifle was more prone to this happening than a high quality lock would have been

"...There's more to it than just the quality of the lock...it's also a result of where the vent is located with respect to the edge of the frizzen, and how tight the lock fits against the breech plug/barrel wall..."

"...the lesson to regularly check the prime charge is something I only had to learn once..."

And that's really the key...make sure prime is there and that its still dry

 

[pichou]

Yes a question of lock quality. But the same thing happened in the old days. I know I have read in a few places greenhorns chasing buffalo, only to find out their priming was gone.

A lot of battle reminiscences mention re-priming and even changing flints when they knew they were going into action. Col. Henry Dodge told his men to do both at the Battle of the Pecatonica. But he forgot to do it himself, and had a klatch 2 yards from a Kickapoo Indian. Lucky for Dodge the Kickapoo also had a Klatch. Not so lucky for the Kickapoo, they were all killed on the shores of Bloody Lake.

The French had a alternative to the hammer stall. It was a thick piece of leather that covered the open pan. It was held in place by the pressure of the flint. It is called a tampon (no joke).

French! :shake:

Mel Gibson in The Patriot

 

[musketman]

Can a fella just prime a flint lock pistol, close it up and stick in his sash and expect to blow a pirate to kingdom come after a few sword and fist fights first? Won't the prime powder get shaken up and possibly cause a misfire?
:shake:

Two things that wasn't mentioned should be noted.

1. The frizzen has to close evenly against the pan, any gaps will result in an escape path for powder and a easier way for moisture to get in.

2. The lock itself has to fit snugly against the side of the barrel, if there is a gap here the priming powder can trickle down into the stock and accumulate and even detonate once the gun is fired. (usually there is no problem here, turns out the lock screw(s) wasn't tightened all the way)

 

[xxgrampa]

well filthie,

to tell the truth. back in the days when i was a swarshbuckler and still boarding ships. always used two pistols and checked the prime about once a month wheather(sp)? it needed it or not.

never had a pblm..

..ttfn..grampa..

 

[Many Klatch]

We did a test once to see how safe a flinter was with an empty pan. We had 10 guys load up their flinters but not prime the pan. Then we had them one by one aim at a target and pull the trigger. 2 out of the 10 guns went off with no powder in the pan. So, the moral of the story is that a loaded flinter really is loaded and ready to go whether the pan is full or empty.

Make sure that the pan and the frizzen fit tightly if you are going to board another ship. Fire as soon as you come over the gunnel and then throw the guns at the other guys. Don't expect the pistol to work if you have been running around on deck for 10 minutes if you haven't checked the priming. I think I'd rather have a boarding axe.

As to whether a flinter will go off if the powder isn't just right in the pan. I learned a long time ago how to shoot my flinters upside down off the top of my head. It's a circus trick, but you really get inside of another shooters head if he sees you hit a gong during a match that way. The gun goes off upside down just as fast as it does right side up.

Many Klatch

 

[pichou]

I learned a long time ago how to shoot my flinters upside down off the top of my head. It's a circus trick, but you really get inside of another shooters head if he sees you hit a gong during a match that way. The gun goes off upside down just as fast as it does right side up.

Many Klatch

I learned that trick too. Comes in handy when competin' with Aussies. Pullin' the trigger with my big toe is no prob., but I still hate cockin' the hammer with my left nostril. :bull: :rotf:

 

[roundball]

It is called a tampon (no joke).

Never heard of that one...I know of the "Tampion" which is a snug fitting wooden plug that fits into / plugs the muzzles of military muzzleloaders

 

[pichou]

That would be a tompion. They are very good at absorbing atmospheric moisture and rusting your muzzle. :nono:

I only use one when transporting the gun.

 

[roundball]

The French had a alternative to the hammer stall. It was a thick piece of leather that covered the open pan. It was held in place by the pressure of the flint. It is called a tampon

Since I'm not interested in googling up "tampon", does anybody have a link to this thing or official documentation about it...I'd like to learn more about it, see how it was intended to work, etc