Rocks are more reliable than caps

[waksupi]

I see it time and again. At our monthly shoot yesterday, pretty much every cap lock shooter were having problems getting their rifles to fire, while the flintlock shooters went merrily on our way shooting targets. I've seen the same thing at shoots for years.
Why do people stick with cap locks, when flintlocks are so much more reliable?

 

[Rod Man]

Ignorance,

I don't mean that in a bad way, I mean they just don't know. In my case, My first flint gun was a Lyman GPR and it took a minute to figure it all out, but once I did it worked rather well. Lots of people have only seen production flint guns and usually that means sub-par locks that don't go bang consistently. Since I have moved on to a quality lock in my custom gun it is very rare thing for it not go bang.

RM

 

[Stykbow]

Sounds to me like you got a bunch of folks that don’t maintain their rifle properly. I understand that you prefer a flintlock to a percussion, but calling it more reliable/better is false. If that were truly the case percussion guns would not have replaced them just like cartridge guns replaced percussion.

 

[Robby]

Back when we had shoots around here, that was my observation too, the cap guys spent a lot of time fiddling.
Robby

 

[hawkeye2]

I've been shooting percussion for many years (flint too) and have never had any issues. I believe you'll find it's operator error and maintenance issues as a percussion gun should be every bit as reliable (actually slightly more so) than a flint.

 

[Ky_BP50cal]

I shake a percussion gun a bit when loading to get some powder into the bolster no problems and mag caps don't hurt next gun will be a flint though no shortage on rocks

 

[user 49399]

I shoot all kinds of black powder guns, revolvers, single shot pistol, smooth bore, and rifle in flintlock, percussion and that other percussion type we don’t talk about. Haven’t had any problems with any of these since I learned to maintain them properly. Don’t mean to sound boastful, but I think a lot of muzzleloader problems can be attributed to improper maintenance.

 

[doubleset]

I'm real old and don't know what a troll is. Otherwise, I might think this is one.

 

[Rató:rats]

I’m glad so many guys out here shoot percussion
More deer for me and my never-fail flinter

 

[user 49399]

I'm real old and don't know what a troll is. Otherwise, I might think this is one.

Who are you referring to?

 

[doubleset]

Who are you referring to?

Um ... Sorry ... I can see from your own post why you might be a little sensitive. But no, this was addressed to the original post. And, again, I suppose I should have scattered it with emojis to ward off the possibility of offending.

 

[user 49399]

It would take more than that to offend me.

Now back to the topic of guns,,,

 

[Ponderosaman]

I am not a terribly prolific shooter in BP. I have had 1 misfire between my pops civil war muskets and my Pedersoli SXS. Maybe 2 or 3 hundred shots. Can’t say how reliable a flintlock is, since I’ve never fired one.

 

[waksupi]

Um ... Sorry ... I can see from your own post why you might be a little sensitive. But no, this was addressed to the original post. And, again, I suppose I should have scattered it with emojis to ward off the possibility of offending.

Just stating observations covering decades of shooting.

 

[nchawkeye]

The problem with percussions is that 90 degree turn in the drum to get to the powder...Too many times that's where the grease and oil buildup...I've seen it many times...Now, with a flintlock, you have powder in the pan, powder in the barrel that is literally a few thousandths of an inch away...As long as the bore is dry, the powder dry and the flint is sharp and in a good lock you will have ignition...Oh, and typically flint lock shooters shoot real black powder (with a lower ignition temperature) and are probably more experienced than percussion shooters...They got into muzzleloading to learn how our forefathers used their muzzleloaders, not just to fill a deer tag, so they tend to study and lean more about their weapons...If percussion shooters would have been proficient, the inlines that we see now would have never been invented.....

 

[LME]

I see it time and again. At our monthly shoot yesterday, pretty much every cap lock shooter were having problems getting their rifles to fire, while the flintlock shooters went merrily on our way shooting targets. I've seen the same thing at shoots for years.
Why do people stick with cap locks, when flintlocks are so much more reliable?

The reason flintlocks fell out of favor was cap locks were more reliable? I personally have not had any problem with any precussion rifle I have own or fixed for someone else. I have heard of people that didn,t know how to use flintlocks and cap locks have problem.

 

[deerstalkert]

just my opinion. i think many or the problems in cap lock guns is directly connected to the powder used.
i have a neighbor that is occasional shooter with a cap lock. He has about 25% ftf. i always give him some fffg to trickle into the snail. gets him running again for a while. he has several pounds of 777 and wants to burn that up before getting real powder.
ymmv

 

[hawkeye2]

Nchawkeye some good points there. I do agree flint shooters are generally more experienced and knowledgeable and a flint gun can be very reliable in their hands.

The 90 degree turn shouldn't be a problem, easily overcome when cleaning. If you think that's convoluted you ought to see the path on my Shilo Sharps! I've shot both drum and bolster breeches, patent and regular, none of those things make any difference in my opinion.

 

[Whughett]

Do not own nor plan to obtain a long gun that requires having powder and ball stuffed down from the muzzle end regardless of ignition source but I do own a breech loader manufactured in 1864 that has fired the first time and every time with musket caps. And the misaligned in-lines are super reliable or at least the two I did own in my younger days were.

 

[billraby]

Sounds to me like you got a bunch of folks that don’t maintain their rifle properly. I understand that you prefer a flintlock to a percussion, but calling it more reliable/better is false. If that were truly the case percussion guns would not have replaced them just like cartridge guns replaced percussion.

A well built and maintainened flintlock is certainly more reliable when used by someone that knows how to use them. Percussion did not replace flintlock because it is more reliable. It is because it was cheaper and easier to use. Percussion was seen as better because it was the modern new thing. You also had lots of city people heading out into the wilderness that had never fired a gun before. They could figure out how to work a percussion pretty easily, but just did not know how to make a flintlock reliable. It takes some practice. Then you had the military that had to pay to equip and train thousands of soldiers, many who had never fired a gun.

Look at it this way. A Civil War era camera is far superior to a telephone camera and can do things that a modern photographer will tell you is impossible. But how many people know how to work one of those things today. Technology makes things easier. It does not always make things better.