My first flintlock

[deermanok]

I put together a flintlock rifle from parts of 3 different guns.
All vintage CVA except for the lock with is a L&R.
Sort of a budget gun as I think it cost about $ 350.00 or so for everything.
I took it to the range the other day. It surprised me when on my first shot, it went off instantly. I took 5 shots and the last one was a bit of a delay. Shot # 6 didn't go off at all. I had to fiddle with it but finally fired.
Been a cap gun guy for years and now I found a new rabbit hole.

 

[Grenadier1758]

Good first outing with your new flint lock rifle. It's much better when you are learning on a rifle you have built.

Now it's time to be learning about how to keep that lock getting fire to the main charge. You know from your first shot that it can be nearly instantaneous fire when everything is clean from the pan to main charge. You have learned that as fouling builds up that a delay can build up.

Step one is keeping the touch hole clean. A touch hole pick is the easiest to use. This can be a small paper clip bent to be a vent pick. The vent pick can be a feather quill that fits in the touch hole. It can be one of those dental flossing picks that have a tiny brush, or it can be a small air nozzle brush. A good set can be found at Harbor Freight. The brushes clear out the internal cone of a vent liner.

Step two is to keep control of the fouling in the breech. It's easy to push fouling down the barrel to the breech when swabbing the barrel between shots. Does your rifle have a chambered breech? Some very early CVA rifles have a standard breech. Some have a chambered breech with the touch hole liner threaded into the breech plug. I tend to want to avoid wiping between shots when you have a chambered breech as fouling can be pushed into the firing chamber and block the patch to the powder or create a gap along the flash channel to cause a delay.

Step three is to keep the flint sharp, clean and tight in the jaws of the lock. Keep the face of the frizzen clean of fouling and the pan should be dry as moisture will be pulled into the fouling in the pan.

Welcome to the art of traditional muzzleloading that can best be experienced by shooting a flintlock.

 

[rafterob]

Good for you! I built a Flintlock for my son about 10 years ago all from used parts except the stock, which was a second from Pecatonica. I had right at $200 into it. That rifle is extremely accurate.

 

[deermanok]

I definitely have a lot to learn.

 

[Larry (Omaha)]

I definitely have a lot to learn.

Congratulation! Grenadier1758 has some very good info. On priming: Find where your gun likes the prime best. Most like it right up to the TH and at the bottom. I have one that likes the TH covered. What ever your gun likes take full advantage of the length and width of the pan. The broader the surface area of prime, the better chance of catching any lazy sparks.
Larry

 

[Rock Home Isle]

WELCOME to the FLINTLOCK FRATURNITY.

 

[ohio ramrod]

When your hobby becomes an addiction, we are here for you. we will give you support in acquiring more flintlocks, flints and other treatments for the addiction.

 

[Daveboone]

As previously mentioned...pick your vent after loading, wipe the pan /flint clean, keep your edge sharp. A bit more of a learning curve than percussion, but you catch on quick. I started flinters last year, and am perfectly confident now that I can have the same reliability as with percussion caps. I joined a black powder league and shot my flinter specifically so I would get out more. It paid great dividends.

 

[deermanok]

I didn't know about wiping the flint and frizzen, or exactly how to position the powder in the pan.
I used 3f Swiss for the main charge and priming. 60 grains by volume under a patched 490 ball.
With my target at 25 yards, all my shots were dead straight but hit a few inches low of the bull.
I won't touch the sights at all until I get more familiar with the rifle.

 

[hanshi]

Keep the flint sharp and wiped of fouling every few shots, drill the vent hole out to 1/16". Occasional wiping of the frizzen face also helps.

 

[deermanok]

Keep the flint sharp and wiped of fouling every few shots, drill the vent hole out to 1/16". Occasional wiping of the frizzen face also helps.

I checked the vent hole with a 1/16 drill bit. The hole is just a touch smaller. I'll ream it out tomorrow morning.

 

[Johnny Tremain]

I wipe the pan with the next patch going down the bore.