Percussion locks

[Erwan]

As far as I remember, I never had any real problems with percussion locks.
On the other hand, I can't say the same about some production flintlocks, some of them I even had to replace, including some Pedersoli on which it could be sometimes necessary to work too much for a hypothetical result.
In flintlocks, design defects sometimes exist on some models in all brands, but they are not all prohibitive, and fortunately...

 

[kelljp]

TC Senaca locks would be hard to find a replacement for. I've been told it's possible with an L&R lock ( but some additional work would be needed, not a drop in). If you do, please post what you come up with.

 

[morehops52]

The best advice I've ever gotten is..... "If it ain't broke, don't fix it"

 

[Pete G]

The best advice I've ever gotten is..... "If it ain't broke, don't fix it"

I am an engineer If it ain’t broke, fix it til it is.

 

[lbothell]

TC Senaca locks would be hard to find a replacement for. I've been told it's possible with an L&R lock ( but some additional work would be needed, not a drop in). If you do, please post what you come up with.

Yeah that lock is pretty solid and very smooth and I wasn’t going to touch that one!

 

[necchi]

more just wondering about the CVA.

There's darn little wrong with those locks that warrant spending $200 to replace it.
If anything, a one time tear-down for light stoning of the individual parts to smooth out any factory burrs is about all that's needed.
And of course regular cleaning with fresh lube.
With the old CVA MR the common problem is the trigger inlet being compressed making the trigger too deep making the trigger cams contact the sear arm.
There is a balancing act with the 3 trigger adjustment screws AND the tumbler screw that confuses most folks but that's all covered in multiple threads on the forum.

 

[lbothell]

There's darn little wrong with those locks that warrant spending $200 to replace it.
If anything, a one time tear-down for light stoning of the individual parts to smooth out any factory burrs is about all that's needed.
And of course regular cleaning with fresh lube.
With the old CVA MR the common problem is the trigger inlet being compressed making the trigger too deep making the trigger cams contact the sear arm.
There is a balancing act with the 3 trigger adjustment screws AND the tumbler screw that confuses most folks but that's all covered in multiple threads on the forum.

The more I lock over the old CVA lock the more I think it’s a pretty good one. And the fact that I have two on hand I can replace anything if it does go so I think I’ll keep it

 

[Grenadier1758]

The best advice I've ever gotten is..... "If it ain't broke, don't fix it"

As an engineer, one of our sayings was to test it to find out what is going to break so that can be fixed.

 

[Bullit]

I have a TC Renegade and a Lyman GPR, both percussion. They work well enough and are crisp enough that I've never thought about replacing them. I'm with the, 'If it ain't broke crowd'.

 

[Mulemauler]

On a flinter, get the best money can buy, a lot of things have to be just right for maximum performance. Percussions are much simpler, all they have to do is drop the hammer hard enough to ignite a cap. Even the poorer ones can be smoothed out.

 

[Eterry]

I see no reason to change the locks on a production gun. If your shooting long range competition a fast lock is wanted, but the average guy, average gun, an average percussion lock is fine.

The only lock I've had problems with is a left hand Queen Anne flint from L&R. It was a Disaster.

My good friend used L&R cap locks on trap guns. They have a short throw and fast lock time. But these were for trap shooters who routinely broke 50 straight for big side $$$.

 

[TDM]

All locks can benefit from being properly polished. Will you notice a dramatic improvement with a percussion lock? Probably not. But a new, out of the box flintlock, whether it be a Chambers, Davis, Kibler, or L&R will definitely respond and improve with a cleanup and polishing.

 

[Ed C.]

I agree with that it’s not that I don’t, but the world we live in and who knows if things will get scarce again I tend to get things before they break. But I agree with what you said

Yep, with all the supply issues, it is best to have a stock of the most likely to fail parts on hand.

 

[Uncle Miltie]

For offhand competition a quality percussion lock with short hammer throw and just enough spring pressure to detonate the cap makes a difference in lock time.

 

[lbothell]

For offhand competition a quality percussion lock with short hammer throw and just enough spring pressure to detonate the cap makes a difference in lock time.

Plus most likely a lifetime of service, not guaranteed but chances are better then with the lock I have now which is giving me troubles

 

[vintovka]

Been seeing problems with some TC flys and sears. In each case the breaks have a very granular look to them

 

[Uncle Miltie]

Been seeing problems with some TC flys and sears. In each case the breaks have a very granular look to them

The most troublesome locks I ever had were T/C locks: Hawken percussion lock and Patriot locks each required repair twice. The fly broke on each of them, albeit over 35 years ago.

 

[gpsd55]

i have only this to say ... my rifles that have the flat spring are almost all smoother in the action then the coil spring rifles. now having said this ... if you take the coil spring locks apart and polish and smooth every friction point then they will be very smooth as well.

now the other point i want to make ... disassembly ... the coil spring locks are a bit of a bugger to disassemble what with needing to grasp the spring rod for disassembly while the flat spring locks only need the spring vice which i carry in my possibles bag for just this purpose. lets say you have dunked it in water by accident ... or ... live here in western Oregon where the rain will creep into everything you have along ... i like the option of complete disassembly for drying and re-oiling every moving part while setting round a good warm fire at the end of the day..

 

[BillRob]

Took 40 years, some questionable maintenance and a poorly-fitting cap before a T/C percussion lock gave me any trouble! Dang thing!

 

[Maxjon]

Which would be the best spring type? Coil or leaf spring percussion lock, for the fastest lock time?? My Armi sport has a leaf, which I'm contemplating, bitsing, and polishing everything. Or maybe replacing the whole thing....