Recommend a beginner flinter?

I have been shooting a .50 TC Hawken and a .54 TC Grey Hawk, both percussion guns. I have been having enough fun shooting these things that I will be putting together a .32 rifle kit for small game. It occurred to me that it might be fun to fool around with a flinter. It would be nice to have one that would be a plausible gun for hunting in addition to target shooting, and I would be mostly interested in shooting round ball. So that means something in .54 or .58, 1 in 48 or slower twist, plausible for a beginner, and not inordinately expensive. Am I looking for another TC? A Lyman? Something else?

Others will come along soon with more knowledge than I, but you can absolutely find relatively inexpensive T/C and Lyman flintlocks (hawken or Great Plains) that will do a good job with patched round ball. I have an Investarm and a T/C that handle patched roundball well. Both are 50, my father in law has a Lyman in 54 that handles patched roundball well. Some folks don't love T/C's locks, preferring Lyman, but I've not has too much trouble. Then again, I don't shoot as often as some.

Huge TC fan here. Never had a bad one, currently have only a .54 Renegade, which I restocked and used iron furniture. Gave a few .50 Hawken to nephews. Never a flinter though. All locks, triggers and barrels excellent!!
Walk

I can't speak for all of them, but my pops has had a Lyman Deerstalker in .50 for several years. Despite the "compromise" twist rate, it's very accurate with PRB. With 3F in the barrel and pan, and a real knapped flint, it's very reliable. He's hunted in the rain a time or two and it's always fired first time. And the sights are nice. If the rest of the Lymans are as good as this one, I think you'd be real happy with it.

If you are looking for something historically correct and don't mind building I would say go with one of the Jim Kibler kits if you are looking for something simple. Track of the Wolf kit or build from scratch is the way to go if you are looking for something with a bit more work involved.

Flintlocks are all about two issues.

1. Flintlocks only work with black powder. Substitute powders require more heat to fire the pan and the main charge. What is the availability of black powder where you live? Yes, I know you can order powder and have it delivered.
2. Its also a requirement to have a good lock. You need one that can generate the sparks to ignite the pan powder. Far too many cheap locks in cheap beginner level guns have turned some people away from traditional flintlocks.

The used T/C flintlock (with the upgraded lock) or a Lyman flintlock is a possible start for getting into shooting a flintlock. If that works out, then you may want a historically correct gun and all hope is then lost until you get a rifle kit from Jim Kibler with his fine parts and well thought out assembly instructions.

A good quality no frills used flintlock can sometimes be found without breaking the back ( somewhat anyhow). Depends on how much available funds you have but a good sparking lock is very important. My first flinter was a Pedersoli Blue Ridge ( frontier) and I found it to be reliable. Greg

My brother bought a Traditions deerhunter to get started and man let me tell you, that thing is fast and groups exceptional. Good starter gun. Looks nice too (wood stock model).

If your budget permits, you can't go wrong with a kit from Kibler … I am saving for one myself (partial to his Southern Mountain Rifle). If, however, that's too much money, you can get into flint for a good bit less if you go the Thompson Center or Lyman GPR route. There are some things you should know, however. Some will tell you that these are "hawken" rifles... this is like saying that a Yugo and a Maserati are both automobiles.

The Lyman and the Thompson Center fit slightly differently, so you should try to shoot them, or at least put them to your shoulder and see the difference. Some people say they have no real preference, but some suffer 'cheek slap,' depending on your individual conformation (length of pull, drop at comb, drop at comb, etc.)

Also, the Thompson Center is no longer in production, but not to worry - there are still a huge number of them out there, and if you're halfway careful, you can score a decent used one at a fair price. The Renegade has one inch (across the flats) barrels, but their GPR uses, if I remember correctly, 15/16. I use the one inch barrels. You can get drop in barrels for .45, .50 and .54 calibers, if memory serves.

If you are looking to turn Bambi into little white packages, I would encourage you to go with a .54 (not that a .50 is bad, but I think the .54 is better - just one guy's opinion...) I have a .54 which I bought knowing that the bore was a sewer pipe, and I sent it to Bobby Hoyt and he turned it into a .62 (20 gauge) smoothie... great fun to shoot …

Many folks look down their noses at the T/C locks, but mine have never failed to function (with the exception of user error- dull flints and the like). I can't offer any guidance about Lyman, since I've never owned one, but the have a fair reputation. The notion that you have to spend a zillion dollars on a lock is incorrect, to my mind: a well tuned lock with a properly set flint will spark more that well enough to get you going if everything is properly set up).

And that's the "tricky bit:" if everything is properly set up … a good bit of the fun is in the tinkering and getting it to work: each flinter is subtly different from its brethren, and will require slight tweaks to obtain maximum performance. That's the magic: each time it goes "bang" the little voice in the back of my head says, "wow- it really works - how 'bout that."

So, to paraphrase the little green Star Wars fellow, "once rocks banged have you, forever will they dominate your range time."

Make Good Smoke!

I have a 32 pedersoli flint and 2 Lymans. All work well, but I like the lock better on the Pedersoli. I've mainly shot the Lyman Great Plains and had to have a piece of saw blade soldered on the frizzen because it would no longer spark well, so I'm assuming that they only surface hardened my frizzen. It was an inexpensive fix at the time, under $30, and it works well ever since.

Here I am with monkey wrench in hand and not to do much damage. First off, if you want a small game rifle I'd suggest either a .32, .36 or .40. Another possible source for a good flintlock is Tip Curtis or even a kit or "in the white from him or TVM. A small caliber barrel on a T/C or Lyman will weigh a ton.

Hate me if you must.
Traditions "Kentucky Rifle" in .50 or if you can find a good used one for a great price the CVA "Kentuck Rifle" in .45 caliber.
If you are going for bigger than whitetail deer (Elk, Moose, Black Bear, etc) you'll want/need the .50 caliber to comply with the hunting regulations.
The .45 is only legal for up to deer size game in most if not all states.
I cannot think of a single state that allows smaller than .45 caliber for big game hunting.

Save up your pennies and get a quality kit. If you want an easier kit that turns out a beautiful, extremely reliable rifle, go with a Kibler. If you want same quality, but more of a challenge, find another small shop with good reputation. I would suggest Chambers as that is the only one I have experience with. I did my first rifle kit (54 cal) last year and it was so much fun, I'm ordering another in 40 very soon...

I can't figure out if you want a small caliber or larger, so you are in the same boat as me, get both eventually... Flinters are way more fun than a cappers. So sell them and you have some $ for the better kit...

Second hand Lyman, TC or Traditions.
If you're wanting to stick your toe in the waters try a used Traditions Deerhunter obtained for a very low price.

brewer12345 said:

I have been shooting a .50 TC Hawken and a .54 TC Grey Hawk, both percussion guns. I have been having enough fun shooting these things that I will be putting together a .32 rifle kit for small game. It occurred to me that it might be fun to fool around with a flinter. It would be nice to have one that would be a plausible gun for hunting in addition to target shooting, and I would be mostly interested in shooting round ball. So that means something in .54 or .58, 1 in 48 or slower twist, plausible for a beginner, and not inordinately expensive. Am I looking for another TC? A Lyman? Something else?

Click to expand...

Hi there Brewer 12345.
Far from being a purist, I have one of those Lymans in a 50 caliber Flintlock. The whole rifle costs less then a Siler lock. The darn thing works pretty good. I have harvested two deer, one antelope, and plan to do another deer this year. The only thing different about it, I have to put the Flint in upside down. Also, I'm lucky to get over 20 shots from a Flint. Course I don't buy too higher-priced ones. I've been hardening my own frizzens, and that might be part of the trouble, I don't really care, I enjoy what I do. I've had it for about 15 years and it cost about $225, and it is left-hand. Is it period Oriented? The short answer is no, because it's a modified Hawkins design. Worked beautiful for taken apart and cleaning as the barrel comes off so readily. Is a one and 48 twist what does pretty darn good when I finally found the right lube for round balls. Do all the balls go in one hole? No, far from it but then I have a rather large peep installed where the rear site normally sets as it makes it much more effective for hunting, I can see through the peep and around the peep at the same time. So far mini type balls don't shoot real accurate, but plenty good enough for hunting as I'm a short range shooter. Regardless, whether it's period Oriented or brand-new manufacture or one that they found on the Gettysburg field, I still have to make Flint, steel, and powder all come together at the same time, So it's just like stepping back 200 years.
Squint

Everyone's experience is their own. Mine lead me to a simple conclusion. Bought a couple of Investarm/Lyman flinters (I am lefty) and was driven mad by sharp barrels that ate patches, and locks that were not properly set up and ate flints. They often went off, but were not dependable enough to hunt with. My first serious flintlock was a TVM with a Chambers large Siler lock. I now have six of them. I have had four or five Pedersoli/Navy Arms/Dixie flintlocks. I don't own any of them now. Beginning to shoot flintlocks with a low-end flintlock is an exercise in futility and will lead you to think flintlocks are inaccurate, undependable, or worse. They are not any of those things. I have shot flintlocks in competition, hunting, and demonstrations. A well-made, tuned flintlock will perform right along with, or better than, most cap locks. The most common comment I get from those who shoot my flintlocks for the first time is, WOW! That was great! Low-end flinters will turn off shooters faster than misty rain.

Just saying...ADK Bigfoot

ugly old guy said:

Hate me if you must.
Traditions "Kentucky Rifle" in .50 or if you can find a good used one for a great price the CVA "Kentuck Rifle" in .45 caliber.
If you are going for bigger than whitetail deer (Elk, Moose, Black Bear, etc) you'll want/need the .50 caliber to comply with the hunting regulations.
The .45 is only legal for up to deer size game in most if not all states.
I cannot think of a single state that allows smaller than .45 caliber for big game hunting.

Click to expand...

Washington State allows/requires/dictates .40" for deer, and .45" and up for "all other big game".

The .40 is also legal for deer in Maine; but not for moose.

If you are looking to come out to Utah to hunt we have a weird system.

To hunt big game, you must use a lead or expanding bullet or projectile that’s at least 40 caliber in size.
• If you’re hunting deer or pronghorn, your bullet must be 130 grains or heavier, or your sabot must be 170 grains or heavier.
• If you’re hunting elk, moose, bison, big- horn sheep or mountain goat, you must use a 210-grain or heavier bullet, or a sabot bullet that’s at least 240 grains.

My .440 ball weighs 129 gr and my .490 weigh 177gr. Which effectively means .50 for deer/pronghorn and at least 58 for bigger ( I don’t have a 54 or 58 to weigh)

Use a 0.445" (132.5 grain) ball.