New Pistol

[lpcenter52]

Hi, just got a new flintlock pistol, it was a gift and it was bought from MilitaryHeritage.com. Just went out today and picked up some english style flint. I was just wondering..whats next???

Thanks

 

[mykeal]

Powder (real black powder only), round balls and shooting patches.

What caliber?

A powder measure
A powder flask
A short starter
A vent pick
Patch lube
A pan charger
A cleaning jag
A ball puller
A patch puller
Cleaning patches

You can use fffg powder as priming powder and as the main charge powder, however some use ffffg for priming powder.

 

[lpcenter52]

Thanks for the info., its a .62 cal Royal Navy Sea Service Pistols from 1756, long barrel. The frizzen sparks nice, long lasting sparks. Any info., or tips would be great.

Thanks

 

[wwfeatherston]

When I got my first flintlock,I got a heap of good advice over here:

Link

 

[lpcenter52]

Thanks, I picked up some powder today and I noticed that the powder would not ignite unless I moved it to the back of the pan. The flint is sharp the frizzen new whats wrong? afterwords I took my gun apart and cleaned it from top to bottom, powder makes a big mess.

Thanks

 

[R.M.]

You say that you picked up some powder. What kind of powder? Only real Black Powder will work in flinters. I hope that's what you got, but then maybe not. If it is real BP, then there are other problems. If not, that's where I would start.

 

[docjim]

Some simple advice from a long time flintlock shooter, Don't fill the pan more than 1/2 full. Keep powder to outside of pan (NOT against barrel). 4f is best for the pan but if you have trouble finding it use 3f for both. Use the finest grain black powder you can get, but you can use 2 spoons to grind some down to get a finer flash powder.
Forget using Pyrodex or the like. It just doesn't work as well..
Leather works better than lead to hold the flint in place, and keep a nipple pick handy to clear the flash hole. Many guys use one before priming the pan every time to make sure the powder is at the touchhole. Wipe the frizzen w/ a rag once in awhile, especially if it's humid.
You also might consider a flashguard around the pan, any shooter on your right will appreciate it & many shoots require them.
Mostly just remember to have fun. DOC
Oh yeah, one more thing. There are 2 kinds of muzzle loaders - Those that have run a ball & forgot the powder, & those that will!! Everyone dryballs at least once... Last week a good friend did it twice in a row..lol, Make sure you get that ball remover

 

[lpcenter52]

Thanks, speak of the devil...I bought pyrodex. I tried about 20-30 shots and only 15 or so fired. English style flint throws good sparks so it must be the powder. What brand of powder should I be using, right now I'm using fffg. How many grains should I put in the pan?

Thanks

 

[Zonie]

The FFFg gives the grain size with FFFg being finer grained than FFg.

IMO a FFFg powder will work well in your pan but only if it is real black powder.
The most common brands are Goex, Kik, Schuetzen, Swiss and a few others.
There used to be a brand called Elephant which was made in Brazil. Their powder was pretty poor but even so it will work much better than any of the modern substitute black powders like Pyrodex or 777.

While some will say that you should get FFFFg (4Fg) powder for priming the pan, IMO it really isn't worth the trouble.
You can not use 4Fg powder for a main powder charge without possibly damaging your gun because of its fast burning speed.

You asked about how many grains to use in the pan and the answer is that would depend on the size of the pan.
You should use enough powder to cover the entire bottom of the pan but not enough to begin to cover the vent hole.
For some locks that would be about 3 grains.
Speaking of 3 grains, sense a pound of powder weighs 7000 grains, buying 4Fg powder would provide enough to prime your pan 2,333 times.
That is why I feel that for the average shooter who may fire 25-35 times a week at most, buying a specialty powder like 4Fg is a waste of money.

The 3Fg can be used for both the priming and the main charge.

 

[paulvallandigham]

If you read the material on the can of Pyrodex, it tells you that it is for use in percussion ignition guns, NOT FLINTLOCKS. you need to both prime and charge the barrel with real Black Powder- no substitute will work.

Understand that the temperature at which Black Powder ignites is about half that of the substitutes, including Pyrodex, which is lower than most other subs. You can shoot off the Pyrodex you have by using a "starter" charge of black powder of 10-20 grains, depending on the caliber of your pistol. Prime with black powder, only.

For example: Suppose that you are shooting a .36 caliber flintlock with 20 grains of FFFg Black Powder behind a PRB. Use 10 grains of BP, and 10 grains, by volume, of Pyrodex, to achieve the same velocity as 20 grains of BP.

 

[lpcenter52]

Thanks for all the info. What kind of flint do you use?, and where could you get a new frizzen?

 

[paulvallandigham]

Contact the source of the gun, or the retailer that sold you the gun about the extra frizzen. As for flints, I am partial to the British, Tom Fuller black flints.

Many of these pistols come with horrendously strong mainsprings, and they are literally Rock Crushers. They smash flints in a couple of shots. That gets very expensive. A flint should last you more than 100 shots( strikes). But, the lock may need to be tuned, and springs reduced in tension to get there.

So you understand what I am writing about, first read Bob Spenser's Black Powder notebook- and article there on Flintlock terminology.
http://members.aye.net/~bspen/flintterm.html

Then, go to the top of the index page to this forum, and look for "Member Resources". Now scroll down to " articles, charts, and links", and click on "Articles". The second article there is on Shooting and tuning flintlocks. That should help you understand what is involved in tuning your lock. If you have questions, and need guidance to do this yourself, just send me a PT and I will guide you through the process. I wrote the article with the idea of helping OWNERS of flintlocks to tune their own guns, so they both better understand their locks, and enjoy shooting a truly fast ignition lock when most everyone they know think a " fast flintlock" is an impossiblity. :wink:

 

[TANSTAAFL]

Thanks, speak of the devil...I bought pyrodex. I tried about 20-30 shots and only 15 or so fired. English style flint throws good sparks so it must be the powder. What brand of powder should I be using, right now I'm using fffg. How many grains should I put in the pan?

Thanks

If it ignited 15 out of 30 with the faux stuff, you have a real sparker there. Henceforth use only the holy black, same powder granulation in the pan as for the main charge will work just fine.

As a rule, I would never prime the pan higher (often less is better) than bottom of the touchhole. (but the TH location could dictate a variance to that rule)