Ouch!

[Versanaut]

Sometimes our purpose is just to serve as an example to others on how NOT to do it.

I took a shot and the flintlock failed to fire.
KEEPING THE MUZZLE POINTED DOWNRANGE, I redrew the hammer to half cock, reset the frizzen and drew the hammer to full cock.
The lock clicked and I released the hammer. Well, she dropped all the way and fired with my hand still in front of the vent.

Gun went off into the berm. No one other than myself was harmed. Ring finger took the brunt of the blast and deflected it up into my middle finger. Pic is after 2 days of scrubbing the stuff that did not penetrate deep out and picking powder out of my fingers with a needle. (Doesn't come out clean like regular splinters, kinda dissolves in there.

Tried a few dozen times afterwards to duplicate the failure. Does not reoccur. The notch in the tumbler is a bit mangled. Holds strong though. Could have been some debris or something. Don't know. Will send the lock to be looked at and tuned anyway.

Hurt like a mother chicken. 0/10 - Would not recommend.

(PS: I would pull the hammer back with my index finger, the others just trailed behind. Will be rethinking this. )

 

[Coolhand]

I bet them fingers will be tinder for a few days. Thankfully nothing worse happened.

 

[deerstalkert]

nasty way to get a new tattoo!
glad it wasn't worse!
had a friend that lit off a 100g pile of fffg with a zippo. he had stippling on his fingers to his dying day.

 

[TDM]

Thanks for sharing. I’m glad you had minimal, but unfortunately painful, damage. You never know what’s coming for you.

 

[EC121]

I have two tattoos on my belly and one on my hand. All were BP related but had different causes.

 

[Nazgul58]

Painful reminder to keep body parts clear. Glad it is a minor wound.

Ok this is off topic: Had a large bug of some kind go down my shirt yesterday while riding the motorcycle. Whatever it was stung/bit the H**L out of my back! The cars going by saw an old guy with his shirt off dancing beside the road until I was sure it left.
Make a note: wear a shirt that fits right around your neck.

Don

 

[RIDE-RED350R]

I can imagine that was quite painful. Seems similar in nature to a high pressure hydraulic injection injury.

I know a fellow who nearly lost his thumb to hydraulic oil injection....he broke the first commandment of diagnosing hydraulic leaks, which is not to use your hand or any other body part to search for a leak.

 

[deermanok]

Good thing it wasn't a crossbow.

 

[jdw276]

Yea did mine when I gripped the rifle to far back as I was trying to work through a decent balance point shooting offhand to reduce the front heavy feeling of the rifle. Forgot to tuck my fingers in and ring finger got tattoo'd from the vent blast. Said man that stings......

 

[dave951]

The tattoo from the Holy Black will disappear over time and must be reapplied or the earth will reverse spin, the moon shine blood red, cats will befriend dogs, the dead will walk to haunt you forever.

 

[Rifleman1776]

The only firearm mishap I have ever had in my life was with my flinter longrifle. I had loaded it for deer season. But, then we had the death of a close member of the family and I never got to the hunt. Months later, forgetting it was loaded, I was demonstrating to a friend how a flint lock sparks and fires. The rifle was turned sideways and I was looking at the lock when I pulled the trigger. Next day I was at the doctors office getting small black stuff taken out of my forehead. My glasses spared my eyes. That was probably the only time in my life I forgot that all guns are always loaded. I was lucky.

 

[stevenjay1]

Good news, bad news. I did something stupid when I was a young stupid teenager. Good news, all healed well except for my finger tattoo. Bad news, I still have the tattoo 60+ years later!! Learn to enjoy it!!

 

[mushka]

I read somewhere that with injuries such as are being discussed here, one's tetanus shots should be up to date. Just something I read a long time ago.

 

[ord sgt]

I had bp tattooed into my bicep during a woods walk and, in another incident, first degree burns of my fingers from a "cook off". Life goes on.

 

[Versanaut]

Thanks for sharing. I’m glad you had minimal, but unfortunately painful, damage. You never know what’s coming for you.

We share for others to learn right?

Big lesson here is to keep that muzzle pointed in a safe direction when drawing back the hammer!

Now I have painful memory to remind me! Ha!

 

[Versanaut]

Good news, bad news. I did something stupid when I was a young stupid teenager. Good news, all healed well except for my finger tattoo. Bad news, I still have the tattoo 60+ years later!! Learn to enjoy it!!

Lol,

Reading these comments, it seems I might be a marked man for a while. Too bad my middle finger was tatooed with the other, now I’ll be flying dirty birds!

I appreciate everyone’s comments! A good lesson for sure. Three days in, the swelling is gone as is 99% off the soreness. Just a really odd tattoo on my fingers remains.

 

[ADK Bigfoot]

I experienced a cook-off after a heavy rapid fire string at a N-SSA National late summer shoot. 35 grains of FFFg Goex went off as I dumped the charge. Blew my hand out of the way and burned the palm and three fingers. Had burnt and un-burnt powder and soot in my hand for years. Still have a couple of spots after 45 years. I do remember the "sting" the I had for a week or two. Rather alarming at the time.

ADK Bigfoot

 

[hanshi]

I had a bout of "vent tattoo" years ago that taught me a valuable lesson. I was pulling the cock back with my thumb when the sucker slipped and fired. My hand was exposed right outside the the frizzen. I thought my hand was on fire and I mean it did evermore HURT! The palm, thumb and a couple of fingers were speckled. For many weeks afterward I needle picked them out - and there were a lot of speckles - one by one with needle and tweezers. Whenever THAT happens you are then awarded your PhD in flintlocks.

 

[deerstalkert]

I had a bout of "vent tattoo" years ago that taught me a valuable lesson. I was pulling the cock back with my thumb when the sucker slipped and fired. My hand was exposed right outside the the frizzen. I thought my hand was on fire and I mean it did evermore HURT! The palm, thumb and a couple of fingers were speckled. For many weeks afterward I needle picked them out - and there were a lot of speckles - one by one with needle and tweezers. Whenever THAT happens you are then awarded your PhD in flintlocks.

Peppered hand doctorate!

 

[Versanaut]

I had a bout of "vent tattoo" years ago that taught me a valuable lesson. I was pulling the cock back with my thumb when the sucker slipped and fired. My hand was exposed right outside the the frizzen. I thought my hand was on fire and I mean it did evermore HURT! The palm, thumb and a couple of fingers were speckled. For many weeks afterward I needle picked them out - and there were a lot of speckles - one by one with needle and tweezers. Whenever THAT happens you are then awarded your PhD in flintlocks.

Hmmm,

Cured 'Flinch' Fever - Check
Dryballed Flinter - Check
Cut fingers on flint - Check
Broken flints on first strike - Check
Shot attempted with no flint (fell out) - Check
Leather, Lead, and sticks on the ground flint shim use - Check
No spark on a hunting shot - Check
5-10 second hangfire on flinter (and still hit target - with no score though) - Check

and now the 'Vent-Tattoo'.

I'll be submitting my thesis to flintlock school of muzzleloading later this week. Fingers crossed for at least a masters degree in Flintlockery.