First time firing Flint Lock

[Bassdog1]

Bought a flint lock CVA Squirrel Rifle from a member here in very good condition at a really good price. Arrived today and had time to fire three rounds with no issues other than a slight hang fire when shooting. Been reading on here and trying to learn as much as possible about flinters. Getting supplies ordered and plan on spending a lot of time with this little gun learning.

 

[TreeMan]

Bought a flint lock CVA Squirrel Rifle from a member here in very good condition at a really good price. Arrived today and had time to fire three rounds with no issues other than a slight hang fire when shooting. Been reading on here and trying to learn as much as possible about flinters. Getting supplies ordered and plan on spending a lot of time with this little gun learning.

The addiction will fester until you have another dozen flintlocks before ya know it.

 

[TerryK]

I was always thankful I cleaned mine well after shooting. Good thing to learn early.

 

[fillwa]

There is a lot of great flintlock information on the forum and internet. I started my flintlock journey this past August with a .54 Lancaster rifle. I picked up the book "Flintlocks - A Practical Guide for their Use and Application" and have learned a lot about the rifle while improving my shooting.

 

[SDSmlf]

I was always thankful I cleaned mine well after shooting. Good thing to learn early.

That can be said for any muzzleloader and any muzzleloader propellant. Avoids problems before they start, but @Bassdog1 already knows that.

I would suggest some dry firing to get used to holding through the flintlock firing process. A piece of wood or possibly an old eraser replacing the flint. Here is a photograph of a ‘flint’ made from two pieces of a wooden paint stirring stick. Will last for well over 100 dry firings, although I’ve never actually counted

 

[Eterry]

Welcome to the addition.
When I got my first flintlock there was no internet and no one to give me advice.

I filled the pan to the brim, thinking more powder was better.
What i got was a LONG, LONG, hangfire which killed any chance of accuracy. I sold it for a song, which was a mistake.

I've since learned a smaller amount of priming powder gets better results.

Good luck, keep your powder dry.

 

[smo]

Turn back now before the Age of Darkness consumes you...

Oh! You’ve already shot it! Too late....

 

[SDSmlf]

That can be said for any muzzleloader and any muzzleloader propellant. Avoids problems before they start, but @Bassdog1 already knows that.

I would suggest some dry firing to get used to holding through the flintlock firing process. A piece of wood or possibly an old eraser replacing the flint. Here is a photograph of a ‘flint’ made from two pieces of a wooden paint stirring stick. Will last for well over 100 dry firings, although I’ve never actually counted View attachment 48777

Should probably mention the two pieces of paint stick are glued together.

 

[Cowboy]

You’re starting off right my friend.

Information definitely shortens the learning curb. That’s what we’re privileged to have right here on the forum.

The best teacher is you getting to know your muzzleloader. One on one! That’s where information and experience meet. “ Knowledge “

Make smoke and have fun my friend. Welcome to the dark side!

Respectfully, Cowboy

 

[Bassdog1]

This was a very reasonable purchase and I have been itching to get into flint. I fully intend to purchase a 50 caliber for hunting larger game by next fall. I am real picky on cleaning so no issue there. As for the hang fire I believe I know what may be causing it and will research a solution. The touch hole sits forward of the pan and may be causing it. I plan on trying 4f in the pan and maybe even some Swiss null b. Will post some pics as soon as sighted in and get in the squirrel woods. I tried attaching a picture of the touchhole in relation to the pan but when I try to post it I get an error that says I can only post 10 attachments will try to get it figured out and attach a picture later.

 

[Bassdog1]

This is how it lines up

 

[fillwa]

That can be said for any muzzleloader and any muzzleloader propellant. Avoids problems before they start, but @Bassdog1 already knows that.

I would suggest some dry firing to get used to holding through the flintlock firing process. A piece of wood or possibly an old eraser replacing the flint. Here is a photograph of a ‘flint’ made from two pieces of a wooden paint stirring stick. Will last for well over 100 dry firings, although I’ve never actually counted View attachment 48777

I use a clothes pin cut down in length to fit in too has and provide a little space toward the frizzen at 1\2 cock.
This is a great technique \ tool to get accustomed \ conditioned to the movement of the lock while focusing on the front sight and holding on target. You can practice indoors by picking an object to sight in on and maintain front sight placement during the dry fire drill.

 

[Bassdog1]

Thanks for the tip and I will try that at home along with lots and lots of live fire. Have more flints, pan primer and other accoutrements on the way. Ranger 94 posted a few pics of this gun when he was researching value to sell it but they really do not do it justice. Barrel, stock and lock are nearly pristine except scrape marks on frizzen face from firing. A real testament to his gun maintenance.

 

[Eric Bye]

The alignment of flash hole and pan is not ideal, but it may work OK. A different flash hole liner might help speed things up - one with a good cone on the inside. Otherwise, an easy fix is to use a Dremel or comparable rotary tool with an abrasive cylindrical bit. (Wear safety glasses!) You can remove the lock from the gun and grind away a little bit of the forward part of the pan - just enough to broaden the pan where it mates with the barrel. With a slender grinding bit you may not even have to remove the frizzen from the lock. After grinding, polish the area smooth.
When you prime your pan, half-full is adequate. It doesn't matter too much for offhand shooting whether the priming powder is banked toward or away from the flash hole; however, experiments by Larry Pletscher have demonstrated that banking the powder next to the flash hole produces slightly faster ignition of the main charge.
Figuring out all these tiny details is part of the challenge and fun of shooting flintlocks.
Best wishes,
Eric Bye

 

[Grenadier1758]

I prefer to have my priming powder spread out along the bottom of the pan. If I have a coned liner, I may poke a few grains of powder into the internal cone. That seems to help. Packing the cone full of powder may lead to hang fires. I do poke a wire through the touch hole to ensure the flash channel is open.

 

[Cpt Flint]

Rule Number One: Do not use a cheap lock! Rule Number Two: Shoot with someone very experienced with flintlocks for several days.

 

[mushka]

I have found with my flintlocks that if I use a thin wire pick after loading and insert til a grain or two of powder follows it out that the channel is clear and powder is where it needs to be to fire correctly. Seems to quicken the lock time.

 

[Johnny Tremain]

A pan charger, puts a line 1.5gr down the center of the trough every time.

As far as owning piles of them. I can see that real easy. I decided to build one. Then wear it out before my grandson gets it after Im gone. Been 15 years and Im still working on it.

 

[Bassdog1]

Final three rounds need a tiny adjustment and hit the squirrel woods next week. Fired thirty rounds today using same flint real happy with this little gun so far

 

[toot]

any one would certainly be happy with that group!!