Flintlock half cock for long period of time?

[Appalachian Harry]

Hello!

I am new to flintlock muzzleloading and I was just wondering if leaving the hammer on half cock for a long time like on a long hunting trip, would it damage the mechanism if it was at half cock for a long period of time? Especially over the years?

 

[Eric Krewson]

I have done it before I knew better, 6 months at a time perhaps, no damage or problems, Chamber flintlocks. Again before I knew better I would leave a mainspring in my vise just like I took it out of the lock for months and months during a build as well, no problems.

 

[TrapperDude]

At half-cock, I don't see much compression of the mainspring, quite frankly.
However, from what I have read from engineers in the past, springs are designed to operate within a certain range of compression, and it is a LOT of cycles of compression and decompression which eventually weaken a spring, that being a result of micro-fractures developing over a LONG period of use.

Also, compressing a spring beyond the range it is designed to compress will weaken the spring.

With all of the foregoing having been said, it seems reasonable to conclude that a spring won't weaken from being kept at half-cock for a long time.

 

[Sam squanch]

I bought a Albanian miquelet sight unseen a while back. Gun was a wreck, bought it for the lock. Lock was frozen at half cock , probably for many years. Once I got the lock cleaned, the mainspring had plenty of snap left in it, very strong. Won’t hurt with a good spring.

 

[ADK Bigfoot]

I used to leave my flintlocks at half-cock with the frizzen closed for storage. I've done that for twenty plus years. Only recently have I started to leave them fully down with the frizzen open. A suggestion from another poster. I don't know if it makes any difference. I never had any issues leaving them as before.

ADK Bigfoot

 

[Musketeer]

As Trapper noted, what kills springs is either many, many cycles of compression/decompression or pushing them beyond their design limits. Leaving springs compressed for any realistic amount of time will not hurt a spring that is well made and well heat treated. A hunting trip, whether measured in days or weeks, is nothing to a good spring. Fret not and enjoy the trip.