Well, there comes a time for all things to be tested.
Today I went to the range with the BG to see if it would fire.
Having learned long ago not to take only one gun, I also took my "Southern?" flintlock because it is also a .54 caliber.
Using the .018 red and white Walmart Pillow ticking for patches, Hornady .530 dia swaged balls, Bore Butter lube and 60 grains of Swiss FFg powder in the bore with Elephant FFFFg in the pan she fired 25 shots.
I would like to say there were no misfires but I can't.
Out of the 25 shots, she misfired 6 times.
I attribute these to two things.
First, the Davis French Type C fusil lock has a very shallow pan. Even though the touch hole is positioned correctly I think it is too close to the bottom of the pan.
Second, I left the liner hole at the original factory size. I think this is too small for reliable ignition.
At 25 yards, she was shooting a 2 inch group, located on center for elevation, but 2 inches to the right.
This is good because by drifting the rear sight .044 the group should center. Removing about .020 from the front sight should place it at +.4 inches at 50 yards and zeroed at 75. All easily done.
She is muzzle light (as we all knew she would be). The single trigger plus the light muzzle made it rather difficult to hold right on target. I hadn't polished the sear so that was also added to the little tweeks needed.
I did fire one load at 85 grains of FFg, and I note that for me, at least, the rounded top of the buttplate permitted the stock to rotate downward and disengage itself from my shoulder. (Remember, she only weighs 6 3/4 pounds.)
The wide buttplate did spread out the load, so, although my shoulder is still telling me something shoved it real hard, it's far from life threatening.
After the fixes are incorporated, I'll let you know how things work out.
Oh, the Southern?, As you may recall she has a 1 inch octagon barrel and weighs over 10 pounds.
No muzzle lightness here!! Even with a Single trigger, she put 5 .530 balls into a group you could cover with a .50 cent piece.