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I see it as a great way for those of us who like to put a rifle together but have lesser skills or tools and still have a nice muzzleloader. I still leaves room for those builders who scratch make those wonderful works of art that I would never be able to afford.
 
Hi Folks,
Jim Kibler recently posted a note on another forum that his new round-faced English lock is available for sale on his web site. These locks will replace the Chambers English locks used on his colonial rifle kits but he is also selling them independently. Most of the components are CNC machined and incredibly precisely fitted. He is charging $225, which is a bargain considering the lock is probably the best lock of its kind on the market today. He will eventually have a late flint English lock available and possibly a 1770s flat-faced English lock. The late flint lock would be the replacement for his southern mountain rifle and the 1770s lock could be for an English fowler kit he may be contemplating. I believe Jim is using cast flint cocks and frizzens, which are then machined post casting. A disadvantage to that is he may not be able to easily make left handed locks. In contrast, Chris Laubach is CNC machining his locks entirely and stated that he should be able to mirror image the programming easily to produce left handed versions. He will soon have a large early Germanic lock for sale and is working on a late flint English lock as well. I also gave him an original 1770s flat-faced English lock that he may copy. On another topic, based on a post by Allen Martin on another forum, R. E. Davis Company was sold to Log Cabin Sport Shop. It is unclear what that will mean for their line of products. Change is coming and at least some of it will be very good.

dave
I DO NOT OBJECT TO INNOVATIONS TO THE TRADITIONAL PARTS AND GEW GAWS OF RIFLE QUIPMENT. WHAT I REMEMBER WAS QUITE A SQWAUKK OVER THE COIL SPRING LOCK THAT T/C USED INSTEAD OF THE LEAF SPRING OF YORE.
THE LEAVES HAVE A TENDENCY TO CRACK AND BREAK AT AWKWARD MOMENTS. THE COIL SPRING NEVER DOES. THE LEAF SPRING WAS EASIER TO REMOVE FOR MAINTENANCE. THE COIL SPRING WAS AN EXTREME CHALLENGE TO ME TO REMOVE TILL I INVENTED A TOOL..
NOT BEING THE AUTHENTIC OR NOT AUTHENTIC MENTAL CONFUSION I FELT THE CRITICISM DIDN'T MAKE SENSE.
MR KIBLER HAS DEVELOPED A ROUND FACE LOCK WHICH NAME SEEMS TO INDICATE THE OUTSIDE APPEARANCE HAS BEEN CHANGED. IF THAT'S THE CSE I SORTA OBJECT. I SAY SORTA BECAUSE THE T/C LOCKSHAVE CHANGED THE APPEARNCE OF THE MAIN PLATE OF THEIR LOCKS AND I LIKE WHAT TEY CAME UP WITH.

WE (ME can't be too picky or we'll complain that H Ford left that beautiful design of his original 4 wheel buggy that ws steered with a rod similar to that on a boat's rudder..
I like the designs of most flintlocks. They say, Here I am, dammit for everyone to see how I'm built and how I work. No underwear, no overcoat but at the same time hiding the main spring and all that behind the scenes activating equipment.
The percussion locks about as mysterious as a mousetrap.
Dutch
 
I've briefly owned 3 percussion TC's and never seen the "innards" of any of them; they functioned perfectly, so no reason for me to mess with them before I gave them to my sons, with instructions on how to maintain the locks.
 
I hope there'll come a day when such quality locks are available for builders of French and English trade guns.
Danny Caywood builds his own locks. I have one on a trade gun and it throws a great shower of sparks.He also makes both English and French trade guns.His business is Caywood Builders and they are on the internet.
 
Hi,
TC locks with their coil springs are not in the same league as Jim's locks or Chambers locks for that matter or original locks from the period. A coil spring becomes harder as it is compressed. A "V" or leaf spring hooked to a tumbler by a stirrup or toe has mechanical advantage and actually gets easier as you pull it to full cock, which allows a lighter trigger pull. You cannot tune a TC lock because you cannot balance the springs and further, they aren't worth the bother. Caywood uses castings just like Chambers, L&R, Davis, and Zorne, which all have the same problems Jim discusses in his video. Dutch, Jim did not invent the round-faced lock. It has been around since the 1650s. Jim is just reproducing a high quality English lock from the 18th century and making it better than any other modern manufacturer.

dave
 
Danny Caywood builds his own locks. I have one on a trade gun and it throws a great shower of sparks.He also makes both English and French trade guns.His business is Caywood Builders and they are on the internet.
Yeah, I know quite a bit about Caywood. I've owned and have been shooting one of his Wilson Chief's Guns for about 20 years. Great gun, lock is pretty good.
 
Too bad no replacement drop-in locks for say the TC "Hawken"/"Renegade", Lyman GPR, CVA/Traditions sidelock rifles and pistols ...

Not that I could afford one if there were.

The coil spring used in the TC lock (and others that have come out since) are not HC/PC by any means. No argument there.

Then again, so what?
They work. (flawlessly, in my experiance)
You can't tell they have a coil spring without removing the lock from the arm.

The average person watching a living history event won't know or care if a lock with more modern technology on the inside is being used.

As for being "harder to cock", I must admit, I've not noticed any differance in the effort required to cock my early/mid manufacture TC Hawken, (with original coil spring percussion lock) and the (percussion) lock with a flat spring used on my new Traditions "Trapper" pistol.

If the coil spring does require more effort to cock, it is negligible, and to me, undetectable.
 
As for being "harder to cock", I must admit, I've not noticed any differance in the effort required to cock my early/mid manufacture TC Hawken, (with original coil spring percussion lock) and the (percussion) lock with a flat spring used on my new Traditions "Trapper" pistol.

If the coil spring does require more effort to cock, it is negligible, and to me, undetectable.

I don't doubt it, but you are not comparing to a super-tuned lock. One of the points Dave makes is that you cannot tune a coil spring lock like you can a v-spring.

As I stated elsewhere in this thread, I have only owned one (soon to be two since Dave is finishing a Haines build for me) professionally tuned flint lock. For those of you who remember Roundball, all of his locks were sent to a guy (I cannot remember the name) who worked his Chambers locks over to hyper-tune them. The flintlock I bought from Roundball so far surpassed any other lock I've owned that I don't think one can imagine what a top-quality tuned lock really feels or shoots like. That lock cocked smooth as butter...I can't even describe the feel or even the sound (or lack thereof) of it. And FAST! Oh man...unbelievable.

Now...all my other flint locks are quite reliable and I don't have issues with any of them. But until I experienced one that had been tuned by a real master, I never knew what a top quality lock could be.
 
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