3F powder vs. 2F in .54cal flintlock rifle

[AAAPAUL]

FFFg in my 36. & 54 for years

 

[ChuckJonesWagon]

FFFg in my 36. & 54 for years

Well...doesn't really have credibility until you reach the 60 year mark.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

I have been using 2F powder in my .54cal flintlock rifles (T/C Hawken, Lyman GPR and my new Kibler Woodsrunner) for 30yrs. I did this because, this was always recommended in rifles over .50cal . My understanding for this was, because 3F powder created very high breech pressures. I'm told that modern steel barrels can handle the pressures. The upside being, you can use less 3F powder to get the same velocity as 2F and thereby save money. On the downside, I'm wondering if the 3F produces more kick or a lot more kick. Anyone have any experience or knowledge of this?

I switched to 3Fg when I found it burned cleaner, and at the time, waaaay back in the 1990's, I found four different manuals for four different rifles, each having a different threshold for when one was to use 2Fg instead of 3Fg, and concluded that it was more liability than reality. I have used it for main charge and for prime ever since. Over time more and more people have switched to using 3Fg in .54 and larger calibers. (makes for a lot simpler powder order, too)

YES, all other things being equal, the faster burning powder, especially if you use equal weight loads as with the 2Fg, means more force → which then means more push at the same time this way← Sir Isaac Newton would agree.

Will you actually perceive the increase in recoil? Probably not.

LD