When Do You Use Your Vent Pick?

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Josh Canuck said:
Could the pick used to clean oxy-acetylen copper tips be used as a pick for flintlocks too or do you find it too "raspy" ? The pick kit contains lots of sizes so I simply wondered ...

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If you do be carefull with them as theyre as brittle as a Carrot and break off easily, no-one wants a jammed obstruction in a barrel vent.
 
On a flintlock I pick the vent after every time I clean the barrel: removes blockage caused by fouling that is pushed into the vent by the cleaning patch.
 
After every reload before I prime. Seems like to only after a flash in the pan is kind of like closing the barn door after the horse got out. My vent pick is attached to my priming horn, so it is in the same motion, almost.
 
I use the pick on my very first loading of the day and that's usually it. The pick doesn't get used again unless I get a FITP or sometimes I use it to block the touch hole during loading. I often blow down the bore just to make sure it's all open.
 
smoothshooter said:
Try it out for yourself and see if you get better results.
Each gun has its own preferences.
I personally run a pick in there every 8 to 10 shots. My vent pick is a large paperclip with the long leg straightened out, with a slight bend in the end about 1/4” long. The bend allows me to scrape some of the crusty fouling that forms on the face of the breech plug.
This works best on non-recessed breeches (which I hate for several reasons).
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You can actually flatten the end of the paper clip, and fashion it into a chisel shape. No need to sharpen, however.
And you've probably already done this!
 
I’m a blow down the barrel guy. I got a clod in 2015 at a shoot in Leslie Arkansas, that’s the last time I recall using it for Ty’s purpose.
I’ve used it as a tooth pick at times
 
Codger Craig Wilcox said:
You can actually flatten the end of the paper clip, and fashion it into a chisel shape. No need to sharpen, however.
And you've probably already done this!
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Actually I prefer the blunt factory end. I like to push powder fouling and unburned granules out of the way of the vent rather bore a hole thru them.
 
I like to have a vent pick dangling by a thin thong from lower down the shoulder strap just inside my shooting bag, my personal habit is to have pre-cut lubed square patches pierced through the approx centre of a "slab" of patches with the Vent pick so theyre immediately ready for use.

Its a case of making a vent pick serve 2 purposes and why not.
 
Coinneach said:
I like to have a vent pick dangling by a thin thong from lower down the shoulder strap just inside my shooting bag, my personal habit is to have pre-cut lubed square patches pierced through the approx centre of a "slab" of patches with the Vent pick so theyre immediately ready for use.

Its a case of making a vent pick serve 2 purposes and why not.
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Now that is an idea I might try, I usually string several "slabs" of patches on a doubled piece of string and have them so when I run out I discard the string and slip whatever I am tying them off on through the loop on the new batch.
 
French Colonial said:
Now that is an idea I might try, I usually string several "slabs" of patches on a doubled piece of string and have them so when I run out I discard the string and slip whatever I am tying them off on through the loop on the new batch.
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I don't see how a PC of smooth steel is going to ream a hole in something that is already bigger. I pick the vent hole with every shot. If you are using a pc of hardened steel there is a possibility but I wouldn't want a pick that wouldn't bend. By the way 40 yrs as a tool and die maker so I am not talking without experience
 
Every single shot before I load the pan. It hangs nect to my primer so I don’t forget.
IMG_0756.jpeg
 
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I also like to look at the vent hole after loading to make certain I can SEE my main charge. That's a little iffy on an overcast day; kind of difficult to see those little grains of gray powder though the tiny hole. It is a nice thing to have a vent liner that is coned on both the inside and outside. That really brings the powder near the flash of priming.
 
TDM said:
I rarely, maybe 1 in a 100 shots, use a vent prick. I blow down the barrel after each shot, my range, my rules, and wipe the pan as needed for the humidity at the time.
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If YOU blow down the barrel, TDM, I am prone to think there must be something to it, although I never have. Your advice is always dead on.
 
fjrdoc said:
Hello Gang
This may sound like a silly question But I'm going to ask it anyway. I've been shooting flintlocks since the mid '70's. I have not really utilized my vent pick unless I happen to have a flash in the pan while shooting at the range.
I saw a video in which the shooter used his vent pick after loading his charge but before he primed his pan. This got me wondering about whether there was any advantage to this procedure. Other than making sure the vent is clear, would this procedure help in the speed of ignition?
Just thought that I would throw this out to the forum for some insight.
Thanks.
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Only when I get a flash in the pan or when the cartridge accidentally falls down the barrel without pouring the powder first
 

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