gunner2292 said:
My main spring is about 10 lbs i think. The frizzen I am not sure. Ill have to check the direction the hammer strikes though. Is it possible to buy lighter frizzen springs? Im not sure where to find some that fit my rifle.
If this is a new muzzleloader, I wouldn't think a strategy of starting to replace parts would be the best place to start.
First of all, flints do wear down and do require occasional knapping...part of the charm of learning how to shoot Flintlocks...so the fact that you may have to do this is not unexpected at all...the primary variable is how often.
Only getting 10 shots before having to knapp the edge does sound a little premature...by contrast using 3/4" black English flints in TCs redesigned locks, it is not uncommon for me to go through a complete 50 shot range session without having to touch the flint, or possibly knapp it once lightly.
For me, the primary cause of short flint life has been caused by the angle that the flint hits the face of the frizzen...if it hits to straight on, too square into the face of the frizzen it will be smashing into it.
Ideally, at the moment the falling flint strikes the frizzen, it should be contacting it at a slightly downward shaving angle, to "slice" bits of steel off the face of the frizzen.
Impacting this way, at a downward slicing angle, there is not the head-on smashing into the frizzen which dulls the edge after only a few shots.
The angle of the flint hitting the frizzen is usually controlled by two things:
1) Orientation of the flint in the jaws... "bevel up" or "bevel down"...if the bevel is up it will usually result in the sharp edge of the flint hitting at more of a downward angle than if the bevel is down, because with the bevel down the edge of the flint sits up higher and will hit the frizzen higher, and usually more head-on square.
2) Positioning of the flint in the jaws (forward or backwards) to affect the angle of impact to the frizzen...on some locks if the flint is sitting too close to the frizzen it will hit it too head on...and if it's slid back away from the frizzen a little, by the time it travels further through it's arc to hit the frizzen, it will do so with more of a downward slice as it's further down in it's arc at impact;
On the medium size locks that TC uses, I use 3/4" black English flints, bevel up, and adjusted at half c o c k so the leading edge of the flint is all but touching the frizzen...can barely slide a sheet of notebook paper between them...results in a very long flint life, very seldom requires knapping, provides excellent sparks and fast ignition.
Just look at yours and experiment with bevel up and down, plus how close to the frizzen...the goal is to get the flint to hit the frizzen at a slightly downward slicing / shaving angle...same principle as using an axe to cut down a tree...if the axe hits straight into the tree, it will make very little headway...bit when it struck into the tree with a downward slicing angle, it makes a good cut...and that's literally what you're doing...cutting/shaving off tiny slivers of steel from the frizzen which turn red hot from friction, and ignite the prime.
