1st Squirrel with a Flintlock Smoothbore

[roundball]

Opening day of squirrel season here, was in the woods at first light...saw a young 4 or 6 pointer crossing my line of travel up ahead right after first light, I froze while he moved on across...then about 8:00am saw what looked like a young doe moving away from me through the trees up ahead...sat for a while...got moving again and finally saw a squirrel at 9:00am...closed to about 25yds and was getting ready to take the shot when he saw me, and helped me out by hopping up on a stump and sitting upright staring at me....62cal Flintlock with a load of #4s...

 

[ratgunner]

:thumbsup: good job.I barked one this morning[was trying for a head shot].After lying there abit it got up and ran off.LOL.

 

[Britsmoothy]

That looks like a good piece of flint in that cock. How long do you expect it to last?

 

[roundball]

That looks like a good piece of flint in that cock. How long do you expect it to last?

3/4" Tom Fuller black english flints in my TC locks normally give me a 50 shot range session with barely any attention, and I can start into the next range session before I have to start knapping them every few shots and at that point I quit fooling with them swap them out...so 50-70-ish.

On either side of that average is the rare one that will last only 25 shots, and the rare one that will go to 95-100...but week in and week out 50-70 is what I expect.

 

[slowpokebr549]

All right! Good to see a smoothbore in action. I am going to have to get a flinter soon.I should of never started looking at this forum.

 

[paulvallandigham]

Congratulations, Roundball on a fine trophy. It is a rare day when the squirrel cooperate as this one did. Thanks for sharing the woods with us. I like that gun, and of course, thoroughly enjoy reading that the squirrel fell to a flintlock smoothbore.

It does kind of seduce shooters into buying flintlocks, when they see a picture like that, and read about the hunt. More power to you.

 

[roundball]

All right! Good to see a smoothbore in action. I am going to have to get a flinter soon.I should of never started looking at this forum.

Just be aware...there is NO 12 step recovery program...once you start down that slippery Flintlock slope....well, you'll see

:wink:

 

[jethro224]

:thumbsup:

 

[wvbuckbuster]

Good going roundball! I still think it is fun to hunt them.

 

[shootemup]

A guy just haven't lived until he's chased small game with a flintlock, it's almost a kept secret in these parts however.

Congratulations Roundball, stay after 'em.

Spot

 

[roundball]

Fun for sure...wish the season didn't run parallel with deer season through November/December...by the time January gets here to go back to squirrels, the woods are bleak and bare, plus they can see you coming a mile away.

 

[paulvallandigham]

I agree. Any game taken with a flintlock is a trophy, and hunting something as wary as squirrels can be is a challenge. Being in the right place to take a shot, and waiting for it is the mark of a mature hunter.

We all would like to fill our daily bag limit every time we go out, but if we have hunted very much, we soon find out that just being there is the real reward. If you get even one animal to bag, as Roundball has done, its a GREAT DAY of HUNTING! His story tells it all for those who have not stalked the lowly tree rat. They often are far more difficult to hunt than deer.