My first Muzzleloader

[Randis]

I recently acquired a flintlock as part of my living history/re-enactment hobby. Familiar with modern weapons but no experience in vintage black powder firearms. Honestly, this rifle will spend 80% of the time as a display. However, I'd like to participate in target shooting and woods walks if possible.

In keeping with my historic background I've manage to pick up a Jaeger style flintlock. I'm in the process of assembling all the accoutrements that will allow me to display and operate said weapon.

This Jaeger was probably assembled sometime in the 1980s or 90s. 50 Caliber. Overall length is about 43", barrel 26". Has a double (set) trigger setup. Lock and trigger appear to function correctly. No cracks or bulges in the barrel. No evidence of any rust. Certainly could use a good cleaning.

First question is; Should I have a gunsmith look it over and give it a good bill of health before attempting to shoot it?

Still need to figure out ball and patch sizes.

Second question: Should I start with .490 or 495 balls? Most likely use pillow ticking patches.

Third Question: Main Charge FFF, prime with FFFF? or,.......try and use FFF for both

Based on the photos supplied,

Fourth question; What time period does this firearm best represent?

Please excuse my ignorance in advance. Just wishing to weigh the advice and opinion of those who have the

knowledge.

 

[sheriff john]

Neat gun. Best advice is for you to go to Dixie Gunworks website and order one of their catalogs. Hundreds of pages of info, items, and ..pertinent books. Last time I checked, the catalog was under $10. Basic stuff - measure the bore inside diameter with a micrometer to get the true caliber. Next, you need to know the rifling's twist per foot to more rapidly choose an appropriate starting load.
Others will certainly chime in to help you ...Have fun. That's why we do this stuff.

 

[rchas]

I would remove the barrel from the stock, use a borescope to check the breech, and check if the flash hole liner (if it has one) is tight; but not worry about a gunsmith. But YOU do what YOU feel comfortable with!

3F is fine for a .50 caliber. You'll need to experiment to find what combination of ball size and patch thickness the rifle likes best--a good start is a .490 ball with .015 patching and 80 grains of 3f. i would prime with 3f just to reduce the amount of stuff to carry.

The rifle is shaped vaguely like a jaeger, but it is a fantasy rifle that doesn't really follow any regional or gunsmithing school pattern. There is much debate and conjecture about short rifles in the colonial period. A few exist but there is debate if they originated in Europe, or are American restocks of used parts. Given that, the date range might be 1740 to 1770.

Frankly, the stock is not done very well. The architecture is poor, as well as the carving. The furniture is not fitted well. That doesn't mean that it won't shoot...it may be a tack driver.

You could present it in your persona as a restock done by a blacksmith?

 

[Randis]

I was advised to start off with 50 grains. Not sure whether there's a difference between a "re-enactor's" load (powder only, no ball or patch) and a real load (Powder, Patch, ball).

 

[Iceman]

I was advised to start off with 50 grains. Not sure whether there's a difference between a "re-enactor's" load (powder only, no ball or patch) and a real load (Powder, Patch, ball).

That is a typical load for a 50 cal rifle if shooting patch and ball. For target use you can try starting lower, 40 grains. No idea on reenactment loads. It’s a neat looking piece, enjoy!!!

For your questions.
1) Up to you.
2) 490
3) yes and yes, either way works fine. 2F would also be acceptable.
4) No idea but it is a neat looking piece, enjoy shooting it!!

 

[Grenadier1758]

Real black powder. Avoid substitute powders as they work poorly at best in a flint lock. 3F will work as both main charge and pan powder.

Get a volumetric powder measure. Black powder functions well and is repeatable in performance using a volumetric measure.

Read lots of threads on the Forum and ask lots of questions.

 

[BoomStick]

I think you have all the information required to safely shoot the gun. Moderate charges often get the job done on targets and woods walks, so I'd suggest 40-50 grains of 2F or 3F to start.

The comment about stock architecture and carving is fair. The gun is jaeger-ish, but the styling and fixtures are just a bit off. Jaegers would generally also have a short, swamped and larger caliber (like 60) barrel. If you're at an event, and a thread-counting person is there, you may get some comments that it's not really right.

Bags and accessories for a Germanic hunter? I've been eyeing this one here on the forum for some time. Please buy it so the temptation goes away:

https://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/threads/german-styled-hunting-bag.184797/

 

[GrizzLeeBear]

The copper flash guard on the side of the pan is kinda neat. One thing I noticed, the vent hole seems to be pretty low, near the bottom of the pan. When you put powder in the pan you might want to try and keep it towards the outside of the pan, maybe even tip the rifle towards the lock side and give it a couple taps (with the frizzen closed of course) before bringing it up to fire. You want the prime to flash into the vent, not have to burn its way down through the priming powder.

 

[Goli0]

You should Start with .50 grain

 

[French Colonial]

Ignore the naysayers, it looks like a very nice lock and an equally nice trigger set.

If the barrel is of the same quality, you may have a very good shooter. Get some .490 balls and some 15 to 18 thousand patch material and load up 40 grains of 2 or 3F and shoot a group then do a group at 45 grains, 50 grains, 55 and so on.
Pick the one that groups the best and life is good. Enjoy your new addiction.