1st flinter suggestions

[Enfield Musketoon]

I have owned a few percussion cap rifles over the years , BUT I have never owned a Flintlock.

So now that I am getting geezer like, it seems like a good idea...

Any suggestions for a hassle free first flintlock rifle.

It will probably just make holes in paper....

 

[dbutch]

Price range,Cal,Length,type of wood,Style????????

Need more bait to catch fish.

 

[Enfield Musketoon]

I would like to keep it $900 or less.

Caliber does not matter since it would only be making holes in paper.

I like old classic styling Penn style or Kentucky squirrel rifle style.

I do not know enough about locks and metal re-hardening to have to rebuild one just to make it work...

 

[Don Steele]

One of the things I've learned about flintlock rifles for the "non-tinkerer" is to buy the best one you can afford. Inexpensive ( read: cheap) flintlocks MAY be made to work "OK"..with some tinkering...but they are cheap for a reason. The worst thing you could do would be to buy one, try it "as is", get frustrated, and give up on flint. Patience and a willingness to wait for a good deal on a used rifle that has received proper care will be your friend. You will be able to find well built flint rifles in your price range if you can be patient.

 

[MSW]

you seek a 'hassle free' flintlock, and this is a good thing, but you should go into this project with eyes wide open ...

hassle free is a pretty 'relative' term ... remember that (1) this isn't you basic deer rifle, where you shove a cartridge into it, close the bolt, pull the trigger and it goes bang; all flintlocks, even very good ones, will require some adjustment and tinkering for optimum performance ... and (2) there will be a learning curve, where the rifle will show you stuff and you will show the rifle stuff.

many of the flintshooters started out with a Great Plains style rifle (think "Hawken," but without the subtle architecture - putting a chrome kitty on the hood don't make it a jaguar) you may find some very good deals if you look at Thompson Center or Lyman, both of which are pretty reliable.

check out the 'classified' section of this site - you can find some reasonably priced stuff.

also check out Dutch Schoultz' method, here:
http://www.blackpowderrifleaccuracy.com/

this has some great tips and tricks, and if you use his method, your groups will shrink.

good luck, and make good smoke!

 

[54ball]

I would like to keep it $900 or less.

In that price range you have the Lyman Great Plains that has a decent lock and also the Cabelas Blue Ridge and Pedersoli options.

Although a lot of folks decry the end of traditional muzzleloading, truth is we are in the second Golden Age of the blackpowder gun; there has never before and maybe never again been so many good builders active. Sure, the days of cheap side locks lining the isles of Wal-Mart are over. Instead the educated buyer has the option of ordering a near authentic as possible gun or rifle that if cared for will never loose value.

As the prices of imports creep up, massed produced Pedersoli Hawkens hover around $1500.00 the price of a custom made gun become more appealing. Due to the economy they have never been more affordable from very accomplished makers.

My advice, put some money down on a custom build like a Beck or Dickert in .50 and .54 and stretch out the expense over time. The wait and expense will be well worth worth it.

Being in Alaska BP may be harder to get so consider that as flintlocks do not function well if at all with substitute powders.

 

[stinkyfeet]

Another vote for a cabelas blue ridge/ pedersoli frontier rifle, or a lyman gpr

 

[Flash Pan Dan]

I agree with 54ball. I have had 1 production made flintlock and now 7 custom and semi-custom flint locks and a well made flintlock rifle put together by someone who knows what they are doing is well worth the wait for additional funds and the build time.

The one production made flint lock was a Japanese made rifle I bought in the seventies and it worked pretty well but compared to the rifle I got from Tip Curtis or the trade gun I got from Northstar West, it is slow and fidgety.

 

[mtech]

I agree with the others. I would advise getting some one on here to build you a Lancaster style long rifle. Check with a guy named Stophel on here.
Or,if you are in a hurry, get a rifle from Tip Curtis. :thumbsup:

 

[KHickam]

Haven't shot my Blue Ridge alot yet - but it worked pretty good on my first range session and only about $650 with shipping :thumbsup:

 

[William O.]

Take a look at what Mike Lange is building as you will easily stay within your budget and have something built to fit you exactly. mikelange.homestead.com

 

[Lonegun1894]

I have one TC hawken flint, three GPRs, and one kit that was built by TVM that I didn't have the skills to finish. All three shoot equally well. The GPRs just fit me better than the TC does. But put them all side by side and you can tell that the TVM built rifle had a lot more care and skill put into it than either the TC or the Lymans. I see two options for you here with the $900. First would be to use it as a downpayment for a more HC flinter such as my TVM-built one (not trying to push TVM as there are may very skilled builders, but I have no experience with the others and no complaints about my TVM) which should get you very close to a very high quality rifle and as has been said, would allow you to spread the cost over a bit of time. The second option would be to get a TC or Lyman and everything else you need to shoot it, starting with powder and a mold to cast your own. Either way, I think you would be happy as far as the quality of your weapon, but which way you would be happiest overall really depends on your preference of rifle style and the history behind it all. It is better (and in the long run cheaper too) to spend a little more and get exactly what you wanted in the first place, than have regrets later and end up paying again for what you should have bought the first time--if that makes sense.

 

[Enfield Musketoon]

I already own a couple 58s and one 54cal GPR.
But real soft lead and real black powder are difficult to find up here these days(particularly over the past 4-5 years...... So What I do have in my stock needs to go a long ways.
I have re-milled some old blasting powder to make something close to 4F for flash pan use.

Ergo I have been thinking about a smaller caliber like 45 and under... A 32 or 36 caliber will punch a hole in paper or pop a balloon at the local black powder shoot in a more affordable manner than my powder burning 54 or 58s...

 

[Richard Brinkman]

I would look at a 40 cal pretty hard to beat as a all around shooter, plinker, and paper puncher. Balls weigh less that 100 grains and powder charges 40 to 50 grains go a long ways.

RB

 

[Loyalist Dave]

Well with that price range, ignition system, and caliber choice, I'd say you are looking at a Cabela's Blue Ridge Hunter in .45 caliber, or as suggested drop Mike Lange a line and see what sort of previously owned flintlock barrels he has in stock to make a less expensive rifle. I'm thinking of sending him a surplus Traditions .50 barrel myself, and have him build it into a plain, longrifle.

LD

 

[Carl Fowler III]

I would watch the used for sale M.L. rifles on this sight...and wait for a good .40 cal...very accurate, less costly in the powder and lead dept. as well...you will get a much better quality deal by watching and being patient...watch and pounce when the right deal comes along!

Also may want to consider buying a used T/C Hawken or Renegade in .45 caliber or one of the T/C Cherokee's in .36 caliber...and then spend the remainder to buy a case of 3F black powder on line and have it shipped to yea! :v

 

[Enfield Musketoon]

Are the Pedersoli locks good enough from the factory or are they some of the ones that require re-heat treating to work correctly?

I thought I read an article someplace where somebody had to change a few angles to get a good spark shower.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

I have handled a bunch of Pedersoli locks, but on only a few models. I am experineced with Bess and Charleville locks, Frontier model rifle locks, and trade gun locks. In none of these have I found geometry problems. None of the locks that I saw that were new had hardness problems.

LD

 

[Rusty_Nail]

Are the Pedersoli locks good enough from the factory or are they some of the ones that require re-heat treating to work correctly?

I own and have had a few Pedersoli's, and the Kentucky Rifle and KY Pistol flint lock, as well as the Frontier/Blue Ridge/Hatfield locks were some of my better sparkers!

The KY lock is also the same as on the Charles Moore pistol, Pennsylvania and Dixie PA Rifles, the Cub and a few others. It works best with a small 1/2" knapped english flint. And has a small pan, which I have found does not need more than 1-2gr. to flash nice.

The Frontier/BR/Hatty lock works best with a 3/4" or 7/8" knapped english. And on all three of these shooters, the lock sits quite high on the gun, have a long throw, and are pretty beefy hammers when they let go!

 

[Enfield Musketoon]

I see that DGW has smaller caliber Pedersoli Frontier rifles. Cabela's only goes down to 45 caliber...
For some reason the DGW rifles are $200 more....
maybe Cabelas has some sort of deal were the features are not exactly the same...