My first flintlock rifle!

[markhait]

I just bought my first flintlock rifle after MANY years of just thinking about it. The political climate finally pushed me over the edge and I figured that now WAS the time to take the plunge.
I bought a Traditions Deerhunter in .50 cal.
While the price was right, the instruction manual sure lacks information. I understand about using 4f blackpowder for ignition, but what grade do you use in the barrel? I'm guessing 2f from what I've read.
I also just ordered some $130 worth of accessories from Dixie Gun Works and I plan on making a trip out this Friday to the closest place by me for Blackpowder. It's 1 1/2 hours from my house!
On the ram rod....one end is kind of tapered with a flare as well as the opposite side, but it's straight. Whats the difference? Is the tapered end just to keep it locked into the gun?
Thanks for all your help and I'm sure I'll have a TON more questions!

 

[David W.]

Welcome to the forum!

I find 3Fg good for both the barrel, and the prime. Use 10% less for 3Fg than you would 2Fg. 4fg is OK for the prime, if you want. One can of 4Fg will last you forever.

Knapped flints are better than those pre-cut one's. Dixie should have English black flints. I believe your rifle will use 5/8" flints.

BTW, yes, you will have a ton more questions, but we don't mind answering them!

 

[ebiggs1]

Real hand knapped flints.
Real black powder, preferably 4f as the prime.
Pretty bottom line stuff there. But not ever having shot a Deer Hunter I really don't know for sure but I suspect it has the same lock as the GPR. If so it leaves a lot to be desired. I suggest you try it first and when it doesn't work as well as it can, come back and get some solutions.
Also, if it shares the same touch hole, it needs to be fixed before you shoot it. Drill it with a #50 drill and cone the outside.

 

[markhait]

Thanks for the great answers!
I plan on shooting it this weekend with only the powder. How do I do that?
Also, when I finally shoot her do all I need is powder, patch and ball? I thought I read about a wad or something.

 

[graybeard]

Where are you in Michigan? Might be someone close by to give hands-on instruction. Weather forecast is for kind of cold. graybeard

 

[graybeard]

Sorry, should have read yr last post. Wads are mostly for bird shot out of smoothbores. graybeard

 

[hanshi]

Welcome to the forum. You actually chose a pretty decent rifle. Ebiggs is correct; the lock may need attention before you get total reliability. I have a 23 year old DeerHunter that has taken many deer over the years. Mine is percussion but those barrels are very good.

 

[markhait]

I just got my shipment in from Dixie Gun Works. Now before I get lectured, let me just say that I have no idea what I'm doing and only went by hunch. I bought a lead flint holder and I have NO idea of how this holds onto the flint and then how you attach it to your lock. Please help!
Also, I read that most people swab between shots, but if I'm running a jag down the barrel, how do I get the patch back out? Do you have to remove the barrel and then some breach plug or use something other than a jag?

 

[Spikebuck]

Regarding the patch, the jag edges hold it in place, so just lightly wet the patch, lay it centered on the muzzle, and using the jag, push it down. It will come back out when you pull the rod/jag out. After the wet patch, you want to run a dry patch down to get the moisture out of the barrel before pouring your next load in.

 

[Zonie]

Now that you have the lead flint wrap, bend it into a U shape so it fits on top and under the flint.

Place it into the cocks (hammers) jaws so the lead is butting against the jaw screw and the flint is as far back into the U as it can go.

Tightening the cock jaw screw should clamp everything in place.

When the lock has been 'fired' a few times, the lead and flint will loosen up so have something to screw the jaw screw in to retighten it.

While your at it, find an old leather belt you don't like any more. Cut a piece of it so it wraps around the flint like the lead does and take it with you when you go shooting.

If the lead refuses to hole the flint, try the leather. Many have found it works just as well if not better than lead.

While we're talking about the flint in the jaws, the best position for the sharp edge is when it is just clearing the face of the frizzen when the cock is at "half cock" and the frizzen is closed.

This position will give the greatest amount of sparks when the lock releases from its full cock position.

If the flint is sticking out too far to do this, it's time for the leather flint wrap but first, after bending it into a U, cut away a bit right in the center of the U's bend so it can move back towards the jaw screw. With a big enough cut, the jaw screw will have leather on both sides of it and the back of the flint will be right against the body of the screw.
That will allow you to move the flint back a bit from the frizzen face when the lock is at half cock.

 

[nmdd]

Two years ago I was like you,I had decided I wanted a flintlock rifle. I decided on a production kit(Investarms "hawken" kit). While I was working on it, I luckily found this forum and had lots of time to read through the older posts. By the time I finished the gun I had found the answers to every question I had and was able to safely take my new gun out and shoot it. Please take the time to read through the older posts on the forum, you will be glad you did.... :hatsoff:

 

[jamesthomas]

Two years ago I was like you,I had decided I wanted a flintlock rifle. I decided on a production kit(Investarms "hawken" kit). While I was working on it, I luckily found this forum and had lots of time to read through the older posts. By the time I finished the gun I had found the answers to every question I had and was able to safely take my new gun out and shoot it. Please take the time to read through the older posts on the forum, you will be glad you did.... :hatsoff:

Ya beat me to it, cause that what I was gonna say, so I second this remark, go back at least a year and read through the post I believe you'll find 95% of your answers there. It may seem like a lot of stuff to read, but it will go by fast and it will be like reading a good book! :thumbsup: One more thing start off at at 25 or 30 yards and shoot 3 or 5 round groups. Start of at 50grns and go up by 5 grn intervals until the group is less than an inch, When ya find the charge go to 50 yards and see were she shoots. Btw,I would also check your patches after you shoot, in the beginning they may have small rips in them from the lands being sharp, shoot it at least 100 times, this will smooth down the lands an your patches should stop being ripped. Also wait until you've shot those 100 times before you mess with the sights because the groups will (might) be different. And some folks (like me) use a wad between the powder an patch to protect the patch from burning up if its too thin. Start with a .18 patch. as this is what 90% of us use. Hope this helps.

 

[ebiggs1]

Here is a photo of a GPR lock and I am going to assume the Deer Hunter is the same. This shows using the lead as a wrap. I don't recommend lead to new flintlock shooters because it is harder to get it right. Plus lead will not stay tight and needs a lot of attention. Use leather as a wrap.

Lock with lead.

You can see there is an extra piece of thick leather under the lead wrapped flint. This is to help improve the bad geometry of the Lyman lock. You should try it both ways. It may work for you either way but I suspect it can be better with the additional height.

This photo shows a modified touch hole liner. I consider this mandatory. This one is coned on both sides. Do this first before you shoot the gun. No need for extra frustrations.
Touch hole

You can go the Cabela's or Bass Pro and buy the necessities off the shelf that you will need. This will get you going the fastest and easiest. (Bore Butter for lube, 018 pillow ticking patches Hornady round balls and cleaning patches). You will have plenty of time later on to experiment with all the bestest and greater stuff that some of the guys will acclaim but this will get you shooting fast.
Do not swab between shots, yet, anyway. Leave that for later as it cause a lot of problems for new shooters, and old ones for that matter.
Start with a 50-60 gr load of 3f GOEX and have a great time!

Oh, BTW, you most like can not get GOEX at either Cabela's or Bass Pro so you must use a different supplier for it but it is mandatory, too.
Now go have a great time! :grin:

 

[markhait]

Wow! You guys are amazing! Thanks for all the help! I'm cutting up an old leather belt after I post this and play a little. I am just learning how to flint knap and I'm sure that's going to come in handy soon. The touch hole....does that unscrew out of the receiver? I'll take a better look when I play with my flintlock tonight. I was looking at my lead flint holder and its HUGE. I'd have to fold it over itself many times just to get it to fit. I bought a Traditions flint when I bought my rifle, but its pretty small. The width looks to be ok, but it could certainly be longer as it's going to be setting toward the end of the clamp. Maybe this weekend I'll sit down and knap one that fits a bit better.
Do you guys buy precut cotton swabs to clean the barrel or do you cut your own.
Thanks again everyone!!!!!

 

[markhait]

I forgot to mention that I live near Novi. Thats about 35 miles NW of Detroit and about 15 miles east of Brighton.

 

[Zonie]

If your gun has a touch hole liner in it, the liner is removable but it should be left in place unless it has become worn out.

Knapping a flint is a good thing to know and doing it properly can extend the life of a flint many times over.
Knapping your flint when it's not needed is a waste of a good flint, so, unless it has become 'dull' from firing your gun, leave it alone (unless you have a good replacement and just want to use it for learning how to properly knap it.)

Most folks cut their cleaning patches from whatever is available like an old T shirt.
Cut your cleaning patches about 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 inches square.
While I'm talking about these, if you run a dry patch down the barrel and it gets stuck, pour a little thin oil down the bore and let it sit for awhile. Then you can remove it easily.

 

[markhait]

I just got through looking at my touch hole on the flintlock and while it sort of looks the same, it is different. Mainly that its a hollow screw thats about 1/4" to 3/8" long. How on earth does the spark make it from the pan, go through the hollow screw and then ignite the powder in the breach? Are you supposed to leave some sort of trail of powder from the pan to the breach? Because if I have powder in the pan and there's powder in the breach, there is still a distance of 1/4 to 3/8" of hollow screw void that the burning has to make it through. Seems to me like too long of a distance. It would make more sense if mine looked like the picture that was posted which was pretty much a thin disk that was threaded. That way the burning would have a much shorter distance to travel to the breach for ignition.

 

[Ron_T.]

Mark...

When I charge the pan (put FFFFg powder in the frizzen pan), I put the priming powder in the pan, then lean the rifle SLIGHTLY to the LEFT and "bump" the rifle with my left hand hitting against the left side of the rifle opposite the flash-hole 4 or 5 times to insure that some of the 4Fg powder goes into and through the flash-hole and into the flash-channel near the main powder charge of FFFg.

Then, since much of the priming powder is stacked up against the flash-hole, to re-distribute the powder, clear the flash-hole and level the FFFFg priming powder in the pan, I lean the rifle slightly to the RIGHT, and bump the rifle near the pan with my RIGHT hand a few times... enough to re-distribute the prming powder back to being level in the pan WITHOUT removing the powder back out the flash-hole or removing the priming powder out of the flash-channel.

I'd recommend you use FFFg rather than FFg because you'll get a bit more muzzle velocity with a safe load of FFFg than you would with a load of FFg... and it's claimed that the FFFg cleans up easier and better than FFg, but that is not by my knowledge, it's just what I'm heard other BP shooters say.

Of course, prior to priming the pan, I always insert a bent-open paper clip into the flash-hole to insure flash-hole is "clear" and will allow the "flash-of-fire" from the igniting priming powder to go through the flash-hole, into the flash-channel and ignite the small amount of priming powder you've gotten in the flash-channel by "bumping" the rifle and having a little of the priming powder flow through the flash-hole and into the flash-channel.

This tiny amount of burning priming powder also aids in giving faster ignition to the main powder charge laying close by in the rifle.

If you do the above with reasonable care, your flinter lock should ignite the main powder charge in haste thus firing your rifle's main powder change in very close to the same time-frame as a percussion cap rifle without any hesitation or hang-fires.

Incidentally, I bought a set of diamond-impregnated files at Harbor Freight for about $10 and use those files to sharpen my flints while they're still in the cock (hammer). This works out just fine and can quickly be done at the shooting range with little time spent doing it since you can leave the flint in the cock while you're sharpening it's edge.

In addition, I use lead to hold my flints... and once it is re-tightened, it rarely works loose, but tends to "hold" the flint in position somewhat better than leather since the soft lead conforms better than leather to the irregular shapes and crevices on the flints.

In truth, there is no "wrong way" with using leather or lead to hold your flints securely, it's just a matter of the shooter's preference... and it's MUCH less costly to pound a lead rifle ball or two down flat with a hammer to make your own lead flint holders.

The use of the file in sharpening your flint is more precise than any other way of sharpening the flint... and it's relatively fast as well. In addition, you usually get longer life outta your flints because you are NOT knapping off useful pieces of the flint for no reason which might give you added shots if left on the flint. It has not been unusual for my flints to average well over 60-70 or more shots per flint, but then with the lead and using the files, I tend to get more "life" outta my flints than many others get from their flints.

It's usually a very good idea to use a clean rag to wipe off the face of the frizzen and the edge of the flint after a couple of shots.

Doing all these small, but important "chores" helps to make your flintlock much more likely to fire. Those fellas who don't do these "chores" are usually the ones who complain about the "reliability" of their flintlock rifles.

Another post recommended you find, befriend and get with another black powder shooter(s) who is hopefully also an experienced flintlock shooter who can mentor you and bring you up-to-speed in your use of your new flintlock rifle as well as what is the best way to clean it after shooting it.

The rifle MUST be thoroughly cleaned as soon as possible after shooting it. If you leave it to be cleaned until the next day, you'll probably find the barrel's bore is ruined. Black powder is VERY corrosive!

I hope you've now got a better idea of how to go about loading and shooting your new flint-lock now... so good luck...

AND... make "GOOD" smoke...!~!~! :thumbsup:


Strength & Honor...

Ron T.

 

[Col. Batguano]

Best is of course to clean it at the range as best you can, and then a more thorough cleaning as soon as you can get to it afterwards. I myself use the cleaning solution, dry patches to swab it, and then a patch full of oil to retard any residual residue and oxidation from taking place between the range and home.

In other words; shoot, clean, drive home, clean, then do what you are wanting to do, like eat, or butcher your deer, get to the honey-do list, or watch the ball game.

 

[TFLeader]

What is the method to sharpening the flint? What shape are you trying to get when finished?

New flintlock owner (1795 Whitney Contract Musket)