Flintlock Caliber

[ckckck]

Let's say I hit the lotto and want to buy a flintlock. At the moment, only one of those is true. What are the sorts of concerns that would help steer me toward the right caliber (or range thereof) for me? I know how to think about this question in other firearms contexts. But I don't want to assume. I'm not a hunter, just a plinker and a target shooter. Any advice? Or, if this has been done to death already, any thread links? Much obliged.

--Chris

 

[Flash Pan Dan]

With those stipulations, I would choose a 40 or a 45. You can’t go wrong with a larger or small caliber, so far as accuracy, but 40 or 45 gets you the best bang per shot dollar spent. Now you just got figure out the style of rifle you want. That’s tougher.

 

[BullRunBear]

I don't hunt with my rifles either but love target shooting on paper and steel targets out to 100 yards. I've had best results with 45 and 50 calibers with the edge going to the 50 cal. Those roundball sizes are commonly found (or molds if you will cast your own ammo). The ball weight seems to handle wind drift better than the lighter and smaller calibers. I have no trouble knocking over steel targets with either caliber, assuming I can hit them. :grin:

I'll be curious how others with more experience reply.

Jeff

 

[ohio ramrod]

Back in the sixties 40 caliber seemed to be the most popular target caliber. As the years past people tended to go larger. I myself shoot 45 for both targets and deer hunting. But many prefer 50. Fifty seems to be the most common "big box" caliber for buying accesories. But if you go to a black powder supply or vender any of the common calibers are available. :idunno:

 

[Grenadier1758]

I'll second the caliber recommendation for a 40 or 45 caliber rifle. It will be easier to find ball for the 45. Black powder only is a must for ALL flintlocks.

Now the choice of rifle styles will drive us all to distraction.

Ultimately the decision is yours. My choice would be a simple full stock semi custom rifle or a used rifle of similar specifications.

 

[ckckck]

Many thanks for the thoughts. Keep them coming. I think that a hundred yards is all I'd be good for, for a long time. I've been looking at the Lyman stuff because it seems to have a good mix of reputation and affordability. Those seem good in a first try. But if folks have more caliber and/or gun suggestions, I'd love to hear them. This thread has already talked me out of .54 and bigger. So now I'm feeling .40-.50...

 

[Stumpkiller]

It doesn't take much to kill paper. But you still have loading ease, wind resistance, bench vs. offhand. A .32 built like a .32 is a delight. But a .32 built on a .50 blank and stock is a club. I'd go with a .40 or .45 for paper.

But paper is practice for real shooting. Get meat for yourself and treat yourself. :hatsoff:

 

[hanshi]

I'd have to go with .45 first then .40. You don't want to go smaller and there's no reason to go bigger.

 

[FishDFly]

If you ask folks what caliber to get in a modern gun it would be a .22 and for a M/L it should be a .45, nothing is better for one gun.

Seems simple.

 

[tenngun]

Back in the early 80sI had a .36,had lots of friends with .40.That .36 was dead on to what I could see out to 50 yards,and at a hunndred could keep well in a 4inc bull.The one thing that steered me away from this and the.40 was itty-bitty ramrods,tiny balls to handle.tiny patchs.I had a .45 that extra .05 may not sound like much, but my fat fingers felt more comfotable with it.Be warned however,guns get lonly and any one you get will soon want a sister or a big brother, and soon cousin smoothy will come sniffing around :rotf:

 

[William O.]

Around here the .50 is easiest to find on the shelf as far as RB and accessories like jags and such go but the .45 would be my choice for strictly target shooting and plinking. Since I try and get out hunting now and then, I'd want to have at least a .45 but as been mentioned, you don't need much to kill paper. A 40 caliber is going to be plenty accurate and I know several shooters who favor it for it's accuracy but they never shoot targets farther than 80 yards and it takes a good ear to be able to tell if they've hit the steel gong at 60 yards, much less 80 yards. Since Lyman only offers their rifles in 50 or 54 caliber I would then recommend the .50. If you are willing to spend more money and want a new rifle in .45 then check out what Pedersoli has to offer, however you can find very good used rifles in that caliber as well by other manufacturers.

 

[Shooey]

Well if you are just a plinker, then maybe caliber shouldn't be the distinguishing characteristic? Maybe how the gun fits, and how well it is made should be the distinguishing characteristic?

Just my two cents. Shopping for a new rifle is half the fun, enjoy the trip and don't get in a hurry!!!

 

[Loyalist Dave]

Yeah, I put down some rifle criteria first, then worried about caliber. I wanted a long rifle at least 38" barrel, and swamped, a single trigger, not much hardware and no carving. I was looking for a simple rifle that might've been carried by a market hunter. Patchbox could be wooden or not present at all, and brass hardware for the little bit of hardware that was there. As I wanted to hunt deer, it had to be at least .45 caliber, and the fit of the barrel and the lock to the mortise for me was crucial. Also It had to be priced at under $1000.00 as that was all I had.

I found a used rifle that met all those requirements in .54. Calibers .45, .50. and .54 can usually be found in round ball in gunshops not heavily dedicated to BP shooters, but if I had found the rifle in .58 I would have bought a mold for it as my next objective.

In your case as the folks have suggested .45 - .50 will suit your needs for punching paper, and you don't have to go swamped barrel as I did for I was concerned with carrying it all day while hunting, while for range use only that's not an issue.

LD

 

[Rifleman1776]

Many of the champion shooters are using .40 cal. As said, it will kill paper just fine. Another thought is with the difficulty buying powder and lead these days it is far more economical than larger calibers. For target work only, that is what I would get.
Smaller calibers than .40 can present the challenge of finding proper (safe) skinny ramrods.

 

[Billnpatti]

Since you are not a hunter, you can choose any caliber that suits your fancy. :hmm: Many target shooters seem to like a .40 caliber. I am not sure why but it has been said that the .40 caliber is just inherently more accurate. I don't know if that is true or not :idunno: but there must be something to it or you wouldn't see so many .40 caliber rifles being shot by some of the top match shooters. I have a .40 flintlock but I am just not a good enough of a shooter to say whether it shoots any better than any of the other calibers. One thing I can say about it is that it burns less powder and lead than some of the other popular calibers such as the .50 and .54. A pound of powder and a pound of lead go farther when you are shooting a .40. So, I think I might suggest that you consider a .40 caliber as your caliber of choice when you are buying that flintlock that you want. Be sure to get a swamped barrel on your rifle. Lighter weight and better balance and it just looks nicer. :thumbsup: That's just the opinion of a dried up old fart so take it for what it's worth. :haha:

Good luck on that lottery :thumbsup:

 

[ckckck]

Excellent, everyone--many thanks. I'm hearing a lot of .40 and .45. Which is great! But it does tend to get me away from Lyman. So now my easy (where to get it) question just got harder! Some of you must have stuff in your closets fit for a beginner. And you should really sell it. Your other guns need better company!

 

[kopfjaeger]

I'd go with the .40 caliber. You use less powder and lead so that adds up to more shooting per pound of lead and powder. Since your not hunting why go with a bigger caliber.

1 pound ( 7000gr ) of lead = 75.2 ( 93gr lead balls ) ( .395 dia.)


1 pound ( 7000gr ) of 3F powder = 175 shots / 40gr loads


Of course your load might be different, just shows a .40 caliber can be more easier on the pocket book.

 

[Col. Batguano]

Make sure you get the appropriate twist rate in your barrel too. Slow twist is for round ball. Fast twist is for saboted stuff and Minnie / maxi's.

 

[ckckck]

Looking hard now for some good firearms. I'm starting to see that I can have whatever I want in mind, it doesn't mean that I can find it!

 

[shootrj2003]

Well target and plinking say .45-.40 longrifle and a slow twist for those caliber s works out to 1-48",nowadays a Pedersoli as a starter gun new is about $700- $800 that's a production rifle but as good a production rifle as you can get and pretty.It's also big enough for deer in most states in case you change in interests.At least a grand for anything better except a high end kit.
Lyman is the way to go for .50-.54 and not quite as costly ,also available in kit form and also pretty in it's. own rugged and plain way,and accurate.
These are both good starter rifles you can get less gun for less,used guns for less(I ALWAYS look in this department but I know what I need to know) or you can get more for more $ .
As far as lock type,if you get a flint and learn your lessons well you won't have any problems when you want a percussion maybe later,if you get a percussion first you 'll alway's be wondering why there is a certain group who swear by those beautiful rock locks and one day you'll just have to get one and learn all new rules!