best flint

[ebiggs1]

I disagree with Mr. Vallandigham on lots of things but he hit the nail on the head here! :grin:

I know some people like those cut agate "flints", but those I have tried are terrible. The Edges crush, and load up with steel cut from the frizzen, so that the next blow cannot cut steel- ie. no sparks.

 

[rich pierce]

I was wondering why my ears were burning! I will agree 100% that a properly hardened frizzen, tempered slightly, is key to getting good sparks. Some locks seem to favor one type (material) of flint more than others, but a good reliable lock should ignite the powder using any decent flint. Some folks do well with cut agate flints but my experiences have been less than stellar because they do not seem to self-knap as well. A hand-knapped flint has small irregularities at the edge and under magnification looks saw-toothed. Those (almost microscopic) teeth "scratch and claw" at the frizzen and when they do, are often broken off, revealing fresh new edges that scratch and claw at the frizzen next time you fire. All the time the flint is shortening a little bit. Some cut flints seem to just sort of round over and dull instead of self-sharpening. I also have trouble (though I've knapped a flint or two hundred thousand)successfully touching up the edge on a sawn flint. Paul V has posted before on how to touch up flints in the gun using just the lock to do it, and that may work better than what I've tried with a knapping tool for sawn flints.

To wrap it up, no flint type is going to completely fix a problem with your lock. A good lock whould function with any reaosnably sharp flint, but may still have preferences for one type over another, and nobody seems to know why.

 

[Larry Pletcher]

Rich,
Good explanation. Since knapping is part of the issue, I'd mention that while timing a lock, the first or second trial after knapping was never the fastest trial in the set. Usually the 3rd or 4th trial after knapping was. My gut says that right after knapping the edge is very ragged, with less contact along the frizzen. The first couple of strikes even up the edge, giving the best contact after a couple of strikes.

Regards,
Pletch

 

[Bob J]

Does Rich sell knapped or cut flints?

I have all the lapidary stuff capable of cutting flints and buckets of agates, chert and obsidian.

However, I don't have a flintlock. Kind of a waste,Hmmm?

OPINION: The only flints worth using are knapped by someone who knows what he's doing. Contact Rich Pierce.
http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/showuser.php?uid/1953/[/quote]

I bought some 3/4" white Missouri flints from Rich Pierce and they are sparky and durable :thumbsup: Definitely on par with the Black English flint.

 

[roundball]

"...Some locks seem to favor one type (material) of flint more than others..."

"...may still have preferences for one type over another, and nobody seems to know why..."

I've never commented on the white flints one way or another...given this thread, and your comments above Rich, I'll add that I did try some several years ago. It was on T/C's locks, and their newly improved / upgraded ones at that...but I couldn't get the amount of sparks and reliability that I always got with Tom Fuller BEF's, so I stayed with them.

Now that I've been using Chambers locks for a while, and noticing that they have more spring power than the T/C locks, it may have simply been that the T/C locks just didn't drive the white flints hard enough, don't know.

But by now, having invested in a good supply inventory of Fuller's BEF's, there's wasn't any justification to buy more white flints just to try on the Chambers locks I now use for comparison.

 

[ApprenticeBuilder]

Does Rich sell knapped or cut flints?

I have all the lapidary stuff capable of cutting flints and buckets of agates, chert and obsidian.

However, I don't have a flintlock. Kind of a waste,Hmmm?

OPINION: The only flints worth using are knapped by someone who knows what he's doing. Contact Rich Pierce.
http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/showuser.php?uid/1953/[/quote]

:thumbsup:

 

[Joel/Calgary]

How do you sharpen them? Wet diamond lap? Dremel? Grinder?

So far, I can't.
See: http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/showtopic.php?tid/261905/post/1053171/hl//fromsearch/1/

Wish I could. A friend has some lapidary diamond blades he is going to try. I'll post his results when I get some.

I've done a couple, and flattened a few "humpbacks", with coarse and extra-coarse diamond laps. It's slower than I'd expect a Dremel or grinder to be but works. I about wore out my first extra-coarse lap before I read the tip that they work better and last longer if you use them wet rather than dry. It controls the rock dust, too.

My strong preference is for a knapped flint, and if the lock does not self-knap, I most often pressure flake with copper or antler, though I do use heel-of-the-hammer(frizzen) or percussion occasionally.

Regards,
Joel

 

[Marc Adamchek]

I've got a bunch of Tom Fuller English flints from Track of the Wolf sitting in a pile. They're great flints, but I tried some Rich Pierce flints and put in a couple more orders. At the moment my flinters have his white flints.

Really, they're both really good, but some of my flinters definitely seem to prefer Rich's (as silly as that may sound.)

Plus he's a wonderful guy to deal with and I like to patronize good craftsmen who are gentlemen. There's currently a dearth of those types in this country.

 

[Macon Due]

Agree on all counts! :thumbsup:
Macon

 

[J D Hoffman]

Frustrating to have a clatch on a deer isn't it? I would have your lock checked out first. How's the mainspring? check your frizzen also. As for the best flints I use amber all the time Track of th Wolf carries them at a resonable price. My lock is a rock crusher it is a Haddaway prototype one of his first locks and the main spring is thicker than normal amber is the best i found for my rifle good luck

 

[Greenjoytj]

I resharpen my cut agate flints with a flat diamond grit sharpener, its about 2.5" x 6" x0.5" plastic block with a metal grid wraped around the plastic block the metal grid has diamond grit on it.
I put the sharpener in a 9"x9"x2" cake pan and add warm water to just cover the grit surface.
Then slide the flint around till the edge has been improved.
The water turns milky with suspended flint dust.
I got the sharpener tool from Princess Auto.