"is "should my next rifle be flint or percussion". And I would say "flint if that's what you really want, but practical considerations favor percussion.""
The question was what should I get for my 1st ML, and practical considerations between the two types are really meaningless in this day and age, as suevival is not an issue, the fact is that either one would be a good choice for a first time ML shooter as both are not particularly hard to mastrer if one chooses quality equipment, I suppose that the capper could be considered easier to use/learn as some steps are missing from the flintlock experience, but then if one wants it easier the old 30/30 is always there, either flint or cap are acceptable choices of a first ML particularly as this poster has mentioned previous experience with traditional ML's.