HELPPPPPPPP!

[Peter B]

Guys I have been building muzzleloader for many years. All have been Civil War models for NSSA shooting. Now I have ventured out into the kit building form. But to cut my teeth I picked up an old Pedersoli and redid the whole works on it. Turned out right pretty for a cheapo rifle. But I have a problem and need help.

1st. Cock does not come back far enlough to give a good spark. Rifle will fire on second or third try.

2. Frizzen spring is so stiff that it will not throw open when hit by hammer.

3. There is only about a 1/4 to 1/2 inch of space between the hammer and frizzen.

4. Need a good book on building muzzleloaders mainly flintlocks. Also need a good book on how to knap a flint up to keep it going and so forth.

I have never messed with flint locks on this level before and they bears are way different from precussions.

P

 

[flashpanner]

A book that I have found very helpful was The Art of Building the Pennsylvania Longrifle by by Chuck Dixon. Also, The Gunsmith of Grenville CountyPeter Alexander is very good too. Both books available thru TOTW as well as[url] Amazon.com[/url]

 

[mikelange]

First off, in regard to your hammer being too close to the frizzen -- I presume by that you mean the edge of the flint. You can try to find shorter flints. I believe the Pedersoli locks take 5/8" flints, same as the small Siler. Track Of The Wolf sells 5/8" flints that are shorter than standard, specifically for older small Silers and other small locks with a clearance issue. Also, if you're not doing so, position the flint with the bevel up, so its edge is lower in relation to the frizzen. As a last resort, you can knap some off the back of your flint.

The frizzen spring can be "softened" by carefully grinding it thinner. Grind lengthwise (steel has grain, and grinding crossways may result in spring breakage) and don't overheat. You only need to grind the upper arm, which bears on the frizzen toe, and don't grind too much -- test frequently to be sure you take off only what you have to. Make sure your frizzen pivot and frizzen-to-spring contact are both oiled. This ought to ease the pressure somewhat. You might also check that the pan bridle isn't "pinching" the frizzen; too tight a fit will slow the frizzen's action.

Hope this helps.

 

[mikelange]

Looking over your original post, and then my reply, I realized I overlooked something very basic. If your frizzen isn't snapping forward as the flint strikes it, you won't get a decent spark no matter how far from the frizzen the hammer starts. The scraping of the flint down the face of the frizzen has to be fast and complete to accomplish reliable ignition. Try relieving the frizzen spring, and make sure the frizzen pivots freely, as I suggested, and see if that doesn't solve your problem right up front.

 

[Peter B]

:hatsoff: Mony I will get right on this. Thanks for all the help. Like said I have never messed with these Devils and man they sure can be finiky.

P

 

[CrackStock]

A few questions/comments:

Is the spring tension to only source of resistance here? How tight is the frizzen pivot bolt? Is this binding in some other way? Have you polished this area?

The small distance between the cock tip and the frizzen is a concern. You can use a short flint as has been suggested, but if you were to cold bend it back a bit would this create a problem with the flint striking too high on the frizzen or improve things by creating space for longer flints?

I agree with Mongrel that lightening the feather spring is likely necessary, but wanted to address these other areas as well.

CS

 

[Peter B]

I took care of the tension on the frizzen. But it still wont put out the sparks I need. It will fire sometimes on the first try and other times on the third. I am about ready to go back to percussion. This thing is making me nuts. I just dont get a good shower of sparks. Any suggestions!!!!!!

 

[DrTimboone]

Peter, There are many things that can cause your problem. Several good suggestions have already been made. I have a Pedersoli and went though similar frustration for a while.

• use only small amount of priming powder.
• Wipe the frizzen and flint with alcohol to get rid of any oil before firing
• be sure you pick the vent before every attempt to fire
• use sharp flints and try bevel up and down to see which way each particular flint works best in your lock

• Ue leather rather than lead to hold your flint in the jaws of the cock. Soft lead lets it move too muc!
• Use a rod through the cock screw to tighten it rather than a screw driver. You will probably have to crush a flint or two to find out just how tight it needs to be ;-)

You really don't need a huge shower of sparks to be reliable

my $.02 worth

Tim

 

[Peter B]

:hatsoff: Tim you have one thing that I have not tried as of yet and that is the flint.

 

[mikelange]

In regard to flints -- buy the best you can afford. Knapped rather than sawn tend to work better, though I personally know a couple of guys whose guns are exceptions to this "rule". The cheap ones you come across from some suppliers, in my opinion, are garbage. My apologies in advance to anyone who's found that to not be true, but I've been given "bargain" flints by a friend, and not a one has worked to anything like satisfaction.