NO SPARK?

[ffg]

Being new to flintlocks, i picked up a t/c renegade, and can not get a spark. I took the lock apart and even scraped the frizzen with the flint by hand, still no spark? does the frizzen need to be rehardend?

 

[rabjr]

I would send the lock to T/C and tell them the problem. You may have one of the older locks with the old Cock. They were changed and made better. You sould get back a working and probably new lock from them.

 

[ffg]

Even without using the lock, and doing it by hand, no spark, a piece of flint can't go bad, thats what make me think about the frizzen

 

Even without using the lock, and doing it by hand, no spark, a piece of flint can't go bad, thats what make me think about the frizzen

But, the flint has to be sharp enough.

 

[Stumpkiller]

Never oil the face of the frizzen or even handle it with oily fingers. Any oil will kill the sparking ability. Try wiping off the frizzen face with alcohol.

I'm not sure I could get a spark by hand from my frizzen. Never tried. Be sure you have a sharp flint and a solid grip in the cock-jaws. Use a piece of leather around the flint to keep it tightly in place.

 

[R.M.]

How thick should the leather be??????

 

[redwing]

That is not the case at all. If the Frizzen is correct and the flint correct a little oil or a lot of rain will not stall a good fliter. I always like many others rub my thumb across the fizzen to remove the carbon. Do you need to do this no, but it doesn't hurt anything. A poor lock is a poor lock nothing will change that. You can not buy bargain flinters and expect them to work every time. Is the frizzen hard? Try to cut it with a good file. If the file cuts the frizzen its too soft. You can case harden the frizzen but this is a short term correction if you shoot a lot of powder. Look at an RPL lock most likely a better way to go long term. :hmm:

 

[Emet Huntsman]

Willing to put good money on a bad frizzen. Chances are it needs to hardened properly.
Just my 2 cents.

 

[ebiggs1]

Don't let anyone tell you it's a cheap lock and it won't spark good. It will but do make sure you have the new cock. I now have 15 TC flintlocks and they all spark just fine and yours will too. They like real flints with the bevel up and about 1/8th inch from the frizzen. Yours may need a little adjustment from that. Make sure it's clean. If you send it to TC they will upgrade it if necassary and test spark for free.

 

[Tom Compton]

Tell us about the flint? Is it one of the sawn commercialo things? My guess is you need a good black English flint.

TC

 

[ffg]

this is the flint that was in the lock when i bought the rifle at a gun show, a believe its an agate in a leather holder

 

[ebiggs1]

To get started get yourself a real knapped flint and real black powder. If possible get 4f for the pan and 3f for the charge. Although 3f will work for both. Hold the lock on the down side when you charge the barrel.
You can make the sawn flints work and you can make subs work but wait till you get going and have some experience.

 

[Tom Compton]

Broken piece of file would probably work better. I use Tom Fuller black english flints from TOW but just ordered some from Rich Pierce who poss on here.

Get a decent flint and real BP FIRST!