Getting there !

[Rocketman89408]

Even though I have been shooting caplocks all my life and killed lots of deer. I have never shot a flintlock. The Kibler Woodsrunner was making me flinch, BAD. It has taken about 3 weeks but when I do my part it does it's part. I know I suck but I don't care. At 65 my give a manure days are over.
50 yrds, 80 gr 3F Goex from sticks.

Thank You for the ones that served and died so I could shoot this day.

 

[waarp8nt]

I believe your well on your way to being a flintlock marksman! Acknowledgement of your flinch, learning to control it and following through on your shots helped me. It took some time, with patience you can shoot just as good with the flintlock as with a caplock.

A lot of different theories and ideas on how much powder to put in the pan. I purchased one of the flintlock primers and feel that less is more when it come to the amount of powder in the pan. You might fiddle with the amount and number of f's for priming powder.

 

[Rocketman89408]

I believe your well on your way to being a flintlock marksman! Acknowledgement of your flinch, learning to control it and following through on your shots helped me. It took some time, with patience you can shoot just as good with the flintlock as with a caplock.

A lot of different theories and ideas on how much powder to put in the pan. I purchased one of the flintlock primers and feel that less is more when it come to the amount of powder in the pan. You might fiddle with the amount and number of f's for priming powder.

I use the primer pans that dispense 3 grains at a shot of 4 F. Less is more definitely. It's the brain thing.

 

[Frontstuffer070]

Even though I have been shooting caplocks all my life and killed lots of deer. I have never shot a flintlock. The Kibler Woodsrunner was making me flinch, BAD. It has taken about 3 weeks but when I do my part it does it's part. I know I suck but I don't care. At 65 my give a manure days are over.
50 yrds, 80 gr 3F Goex from sticks.

Thank You for the ones that served and died so I could shoot this day.

I am right there with you. My Woodsrunner brings out an AWEFUL flinch in me. If I can control that I think I will have something, right now my Hand Gonne is more accurate than my woodsrunner but its ALLme! What I have been doing is just flashing the pan and trying not to flinch and hold the sight picture. I will say your target looks WAY better than mine.

 

[HighUintas]

That's certainly good shooting off sticks for having a flinch, @Rocketman89408 !

I believe your well on your way to being a flintlock marksman! Acknowledgement of your flinch, learning to control it and following through on your shots helped me. It took some time, with patience you can shoot just as good with the flintlock as with a caplock.

A lot of different theories and ideas on how much powder to put in the pan. I purchased one of the flintlock primers and feel that less is more when it come to the amount of powder in the pan. You might fiddle with the amount and number of f's for priming powder.

Is less primer in the pan supposed to help with a flinch? If so, I'll have to try it. I've got a bad flinch. I'm at the stage of dry firing with a flint but no powder to get used to the sparks first. Next will come dry firing with the pan primed.

 

[French Colonial]

When I would coach different shooters and watch others do the same sometimes what some people thought were flinches would actually be poor follow through. Shooters would lift their head or other no no's right at the shot.

Dry firing several times over several days will fix this and flinches most often.

 

[Johnny Too-Tall]

That's certainly good shooting off sticks for having a flinch, @Rocketman89408 !



Is less primer in the pan supposed to help with a flinch? If so, I'll have to try it. I've got a bad flinch. I'm at the stage of dry firing with a flint but no powder to get used to the sparks first. Next will come dry firing with the pan primed.

If your seeing the sparks or flash in normal light your not focusing on the sights and looking towards the lock. Focus on the sights and you shouldn't see anything but sights and smoke. It takes work.

 

[waksupi]

Put away your cap guns, and only shoot flint for a year. You will then know how to shoot one, and not flinch.

 

[olskool]

maybe i can help with the flinch. i am pushing 67 and have been shooting since i was old enough to hold a gun. when i started shooting flintlocks 20 years ago or so, i caught myself flinching! i couldn't believe it because i shot a lot of big pistols and i do not flinch! LOL, well until i shot a flintlock. what i done to overcome it was simple, i would aim, keep it on the spot and lay my finger on the hair trigger, then in my mind i would count 1-2-3 before i would move. of course, the gun goes of before you pass 1. but it is a mental thing and that set my mind right. now i shoot and never think about it or count, and do not flinch. give it a try,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

 

[Rocketman89408]

Thanks for all the good advice. I use the 3 grain dispenser of 4F. At first I saw the flash but not anymore. I think most of it is poor follow through.

 

[Pete G]

Thanks for all the good advice. I use the 3 grain dispenser of 4F. At first I saw the flash but not anymore. I think most of it is poor follow through.

The secret to beating a flinch is to concentrate on follow through.

 

[waarp8nt]

Is less primer in the pan supposed to help with a flinch? If so, I'll have to try it. I've got a bad flinch. I'm at the stage of dry firing with a flint but no powder to get used to the sparks first. Next will come dry firing with the pan primed.

I first want to say that I'm not an expert. Just kind of muddled through it with some advice from others and some reading. My first flintlock did not function well. A quality rifle with properly sized and placed flash hole, along with loading techniques such as powder in the pan just below the flash hole. These were all things that made a difference for me. I ended up with a more consistent and reliable ignition. In turn I no longer nose dive the barrel on the rare occasion there is a flash in the pan.

For modern stuff, to help a person who is recoil shy and/or anticipates the shot, we place a coin on the front sight and see if the student can dry fire without dropping the coin. I wonder if something like a domino placed on edge on the flat of a barrel would work in a similar fashion? If so, it may really help with follow through.

 

[flatcreek]

Took me about 600 shots before I could shoot my flintlock with the kind of constancy I wanted for hunting. Don't know what it was, flash, lag time, or whatever, but that seem like a lot of shoots. Now it just goes off and I don't notice anything.

 

[bigted]

I first want to say that I'm not an expert. Just kind of muddled through it with some advice from others and some reading. My first flintlock did not function well. A quality rifle with properly sized and placed flash hole, along with loading techniques such as powder in the pan just below the flash hole. These were all things that made a difference for me. I ended up with a more consistent and reliable ignition. In turn I no longer nose dive the barrel on the rare occasion there is a flash in the pan.

For modern stuff, to help a person who is recoil shy and/or anticipates the shot, we place a coin on the front sight and see if the student can dry fire without dropping the coin. I wonder if something like a domino placed on edge on the flat of a barrel would work in a similar fashion? If so, it may really help with follow through.

 

[bigted]

Hmmm not sure what happened here. Next thing I know your post was inna box and this seems the only way out. Please forgive an ol man and fatfingering something.

 

[SDSmlf]

Thanks for all the good advice. I use the 3 grain dispenser of 4F. At first I saw the flash but not anymore. I think most of it is poor follow through.

Do you have a crossbow? Compared to a flintlock they have a very slow ‘lock time’ (from trigger pull until the bolt leaves the rail) and good follow through is critical. While there is no distracting flash in the pan to contend with, you still have a lot of activity going on just below the line of sight, and I’ve found that once someone can accurately shoot a crossbow, a flintlock is a piece of cake.

 

[Codger Craig Wilcox]

Get with a buddy, have him prime the pan - or not! A flinch then becomes very noticeable when the flint sparks into an empty pan.
This is also a good method of diagnosing/fixing a flinch with unmentionables. It may or may not have a suppository installed...

 

[J.D.]

As a former high power rifle competitor, I suggest replacing the flint with a wooden block and dry firing a minimum of 10 minutes a day, while focusing on the sight picture and follow through, all the while, focusing on the front sight. Maintain the hold for a slow, count of five, after the shot breaks. Remember to avoid raising your head, or dropping the muzzle as the shot breaks or during "count of five" follow through. Also keep the sights aligned and on target throughout the follow through. Also work on your natural point of aim by mounting the stock in the shoulder, with you eyes closed. Open your eyes and correct the alignment of the sights, on the target, by pivoting on the front foot, to align your body and sights onto the target. Take the rifle down and relax between shots.

 

[HighUintas]

Strangely, I'm a very very good shot with my compound bow. I can watch the arrow all the way to the target and don't see the string or peep at all when releasing.

I can do ok with my flintlock when rested on a bench and concentrating extremely hard, but I still blink and fight the urge to curl into a ball when pulling that trigger. For some reason, offhand is where it really shows. I can't hit the broadside of a barn with a Flintlock offhand.

I'm going to be practicing follow through and maintaining sight picture, hopefully this week, with a bunch of cheer and agate I picked up when out hiking with my boys. I've been curious about how well it will work but haven't tried it yet. This is a good use for it.

 

[Rocketman89408]

Get with a buddy, have him prime the pan - or not! A flinch then becomes very noticeable when the flint sparks into an empty pan.
This is also a good method of diagnosing/fixing a flinch with unmentionables. It may or may not have a suppository installed...

This is a very good idea. I shoot with lead nuggets almost every weekend with his Woodsrunner. He is very proficient in handgun, rifle and shotgun but new to flintlocks like me and he had a couple of flinches when a flint went bad. We may have to try that, priming or not each other's rifle.