Can I smooth out my Frizzen?

[logan]

I have a notch in my frizzen where my flint hits and it is having an effect on my flints. It causes the underneath side of the flints to become gouced out. Can I smooth out my frizzen in some way. It is a commercial traditions rifle.

Thanks

 

[rabjr]

People have smoothed the face of the frizzen with a dremel tool and the right attachment. I've never done it or had reason to. If you do, go slow and don't get the frizzen to hot. I believe Roundball has done this so you may want to check with him.

 

[flintlock50]

A 6" grinding wheel, water and patience will do the trick. DO NOT let get to hot to touch!!

 

[Billnpatti]

It can be done but many frizzens have case hardened faces. In these cases, you will likely cut through the case hardening and have to re-harden it. That can be done using Kasenite. It is available from Brownell's. Another choice would be to contact one of the black powder rifle companies that sell parts for locks and just buy a replacement frizzen. Check out places like Track of The Wolf, Dixie Gun Works, Muzzleloader Builder's Supply, etc

 

[roundball]

It can be done but many frizzens have case hardened faces. In these cases, you will likely cut through the case hardening and have to re-harden it.

True...I gently resurfaced the face of a few different T/C frizzens over the years using my Dremel...I'd prechill the frizzen in a cup of ice water, gently smooth over the groove for 10-15 seconds...chilled the frizzen again...3-4 cycles of that in a minute or two and they were like new again.

On one that I shoot the most, I touched up that recurring groove area probably 8-10 times and finally began to see performance fall off.
Suspecting I had worn through the surface I held the used frizzen up alongside a new one, and the amount of reduction after all those resurfacing actions was obvious as the frizzen had become noticeably thinner and I tossed it.

It was a good hands on experiment and you definitely can resurface them, forstalling the frizzen replacment for many, many more shots.
But the good news is Frizzens are about the least expensive part of a Flintlock and I suppose can be thought of as a consumable eventually...in fact, I've sold several Flintlocks this year and before I did I installed new Frizzens on most of them just to be sure the new owner didn't get one that might have given out in just a few hundred more shots.

 

[lonehunter]

I bought a new frizzen recently $12 bucks from TOW i think, but it was a good one and works great. resurface the other one and have a spare :v

 

[Grenadier1758]

It was a common practice to resurface the face of the frizzen with a piece of high carbon steel. I admit, I think it will be cheaper to get a new and hardened frizzen. Some replacement frizzens may be cast and not yet hardened since it is not yet fit to the lock.

 

[MikeC]

Yep...I used a dremel with a sanding disk, went real slow and very lite to no pressure at all, only took a couple of runs up and down. Finished up with emory cloth using pressure from my thumb. That was hundreds of drops back and it still has a loooong way to go.

 

[Ken Rummer]

I just resurfaced the frizzen on my TC PA Hunter with a hard Arkansas stone. I was concerned that using my Dremel might result in the uneven removal of material across the frizzen face. The hard stone keeps the surface flat and I thought this was an important consideration.

 

[Tumblernotch]

A 6" grinding wheel, water and patience will do the trick. DO NOT let get to hot to touch!!

Same here. A 6 inch wheel fits the profile of my frizzen just right. Light pressure smooths out any washboarding. You do have to keep it cool and you don't want to remove any more material than necessary. My frizzens are tempered all the way through. Some frizzens may need to be casehardened again or half-soled.

 

[Vaino]

If the groove is fairly deep, a 6" grinding wheel is used, and if shallow, a Dremel 1/2" sanding wheel does a good job followed by a stone. When the Dremel is used, the sandpaper wheel has to be at an angle to the groove lest it deepens the groove. I use only through hardened frizzens and use a 4" length of 2" dia. pipe that's capped on one end and the cap has some holes drilled in it. The frizzen is wired up, placed in the pipe and heat is applied w/ a Mapp gas torch. When a bright red is reached, the frizzen is dunked in motor oil and is swirled about in the oil. The frizzen is then placed in the oven at 375 degrees {my oven has been checked} for 1 hour. The pipe concentrates the heat and causes the frizzen to attain an even bright red. The toe area of the frizzen is polished and is then hit w/ a fine flame until a bright blue and is cooled in oil...Fred

 

[Russ T Frizzen]

Fred, I think that this is the most important single thing to get through to people. A through hardened frizzen is the only correct way to do it. They last just about forever--and give no trouble.

Thanks for the tutorial. That will help a lot of folks solve a vexing problem. Dan

 

[Blasterbear]

You can smooth out the frizzen face and re-harden it as directed in other posts. If you don't have the know how or the tools you would do better to buy a new frizzen. A quick phone call to Traditons is all it takes.