A Man Has to Know His Limitations!

[PastorB]

Went to the rifle range today with my Pedersoli Frontier in .45 in flint. I am an OK shot with a caplock, but just plain suck with a flinter. All these shots were at 100 yards, circles are off-hand, "X"'s are from a rest. I limit myself to about 40 yards when actually hunting deer, and only about 25 when firing off-hand. Like I said in the title, a fella has got to be aware of his limitations.

Speaking of deer hunting, I live in Missouri and I choose to limit myself with a traditional muzzleloader. We now have an abomination called "Alternative Method Season", whereas we used to have a Muzzleloader Season. You had to chose to buy a modern rifle tag, or a muzzleloader tag. Now anything goes, except regular centerfire rifles for Alternative Season. One tag is good for all seasons, and you can buy as many antlerless tags as you like. The woods used to be empty for ML season, now they are full of guys with modern handguns, including scoped bolt action single shots, and dudes with short barrels AR's with detachable stocks that are qualified as handguns here in MO. If you live in a state that still has real Muzzleloader Season, count yourself very fortunate. Missouri game laws are driven by tags sold by the MO Dept. of Conservation, and car insurance companies wanting to eradicate deer populations to avoid paying claims on deer/car collisions. Yeah, we got big bucks on private ground, if you can afford a $1000 per day deer lease. Commoners like myself are left without options, and since Alternative Season became a reality, the public areas are even packed during that season. I'm done ranting, just as I am about done hunting. Had a good 50 years of so.

 

[Dale Lilly]

very sad... greed is king

 

[Dale Lilly]

very sad... greed is king

 

[Dale Allen Raby]

When I was young, I seldom saw another hunter. Now I can't find an piece of untrammeled deer woods anywhere. Guess I'll continue to be a milk jug hunter.

 

[TDM]

I've said this before, I blame much of the decline in traditional muzzleloading on the state game & fish commissions who over the last 20 years have turned BP season into a anything goes. They kept knawing at it, a little at a time, year after year, and state by state. Looking for more ways to make money and damn the consequences.

 

[azmntman]

RE Target, that's one adverse enemy soldier off the field for a long while! Keep at it, I seemed to suck too then all of a sudden I was near matching percussion accuracy. Truly believe its all n your head! Thats where a cheap production Flinter can help make ya a good shot.....never know if its gonna go off or not LOL. Then I learned to Knapp (kinda). You will improve once yer mind convinces yer nerves "its been 300 shots and yer still using both eyes and all your digits" No danger here!

 

[PastorB]

RE Target, that's one adverse enemy soldier off the field for a long while! Keep at it, I seemed to suck too then all of a sudden I was near matching percussion accuracy. Truly believe its all n your head! Thats where a cheap production Flinter can help make ya a good shot.....never know if its gonna go off or not LOL. Then I learned to Knapp (kinda). You will improve once yer mind convinces yer nerves "its been 300 shots and yer still using both eyes and all your digits" No danger here!

I've been shooting flinters for 30+ years now, and percussion for about 50+ years. I just have never been able to shoot a flintlock worth a hoot, but I really enjoy them, even though I am a terrible shot! Nothing wrong with the rifle, I shoot my higher dollar flint rifles just as bad. If I just want to kill game, I use a modern centerfire. That is boring. If I want to wait for the perfect opportunity so I can get one with a flint, that is a real hoot! I am very careful with my shot selection, knowing that I am awful, so it is very satisfying to get a nice buck with one of my flinters. Sadly, due to reasons stated in my previous post, those days are probably over. I am gonna keep shooting a lot however, just bought 10 more lbs. of powder!

 

[MedicMike3762]

I agree, I wish we (Missouri) would just keep alternate methods limited to muzzleloaders. Like you said if a guy wants all he has to do is build an AR 10 with a 14.5” tube and slap a brace on and bam you have a second rifle season! Also hat part of the state are you in?

 

[ohio ramrod]

I also regret the "sell more licenses" theory of most states game laws. To top it off, the farm where I have been caretaker for thirty years and my family has always hunted was leased by the youngest son to a commerical hunting operation and our family was kicked off. The mother of the family and older son knew nothing of his leasing the land. They brought in at least four hunters a day from the beginning of bow season to the end of gun season. Now all of the people who own farms around us have no deer left to hunt. They are charging $2100 for three day hunts. Which leaves those of us who rely on venison for our meat having to buy beef. It used to be a country boy could survive, now only those that can afford to pay seven hundred dollars a day are hunting.

 

[M. De Land]

I also regret the "sell more licenses" theory of most states game laws. To top it off, the farm where I have been caretaker for thirty years and my family has always hunted was leased by the youngest son to a commerical hunting operation and our family was kicked off. The mother of the family and older son knew nothing of his leasing the land. They brought in at least four hunters a day from the beginning of bow season to the end of gun season. Now all of the people who own farms around us have no deer left to hunt. They are charging $2100 for three day hunts. Which leaves those of us who rely on venison for our meat having to buy beef. It used to be a country boy could survive, now only those that can afford to pay seven hundred dollars a day are hunting.

At least with Jack Lighters and poachers you had a chance of catching and stopping them but not well healed game wackers with political connections !

 

[Dale Allen Raby]

Start a rumor that the deer in your area have covid?

 

[Timber Wolf]

My very limited experience opinion is that quick ignition is the answer to accurate flintlock shooting. I seem to do about as well with my Kiblers as my percussion rifles. Although I do have this one old CVA Mountain rifle that makes me look particularly good.

 

[M. De Land]

My very limited experience opinion is that quick ignition is the answer to accurate flintlock shooting. I seem to do about as well with my Kiblers as my percussion rifles. Although I do have this one old CVA Mountain rifle that makes me look particularly good.

Consistent ignition is a real advantage and when linked up with learning to hold through the flash of the pan and discharge (ball exit), adds up to higher scores.
This gives the sights time to come back into alignment with the target before ball exit.
With most shooting, holding through the trigger break works very well but with flint shooting one must learn to hold sight alignment through the discharge.
I describe this as reacquiring sight alignment until the recoil makes it impossible.
This technique will also help to counter inconsistent ignition timing from poorly tuned locks, but when both are working well in tandem, one can expect higher scoring. One mans opinion that seems to work for him.

 

[Pete G]

If there is a secret to flintlock marksmanship, it is follow through

 

[woodsnwater]

This is my first year with a flintlock and I hope it gets better. I rarely hit anything offhanded, even easy shots. I guess my brain is still on centerfire time. When the smoke clears the squirrel is still there, laughing at me! Sometimes they stick around for the reload until I'm almost done priming the pan then POOF, gone. I hate squirrels.

 

[TDM]

Your not alone, have the same problem.

 

[Pete G]

Concentrate on your front sight also.

 

[sheriff john]

Agree with Pastor B - Missouri's primitive weapons season's morphed into not only the total opposite of what we started with, but has also landed on Christmas Day and following week. Nearly 200,000 deer have been harvested legally by now. The rut's over. Night hunting for coyotes (hah) is ok and disease has arrived killing more. We aren't only an afterthought, we are the endangered specie of hunters.

Great. Now that "muzzle loading" season's here, temps are predicted to be zero with 40 mph winds and snow. My hope is to use one of my flinters, practicality will be a caplock. Not surprising M/L hunters are way down. There's not as many deer left at this time of year and conditions suck.

 

[sussexmuzllodr]

Pastor you are not alone. It took me a while to completely ignore the dropping flint hammer. Concentrating solely on the front sights. At one point I blamed the gun until I worked it out. Believe it or not in NJ there was so little people out in ML season I had hundred,s of acre,s to my lone self....

 

[TFoley]

The much-maligned UK has no tag system that can cost you a fortune, but on the downside has no muzzleloading season of any kind, as they are not deemed 'powerful' enough to deal with UK's deer genres.