Powder for Flintlock

[Sidney Smith]

Great, I'll call it that too, when/if it ever happens!

 

[Rob M.]

I was watching a youtube video of a guy shooting a Kibler Colonial. He loaded powder from his powder horn and then added patch and ball. Then he primed the pan with the powder from the same powder horn. I watched it several times to be sure I was seeing it right. I’m fairly new to muzzleloading and am under the impression that 3F powder is used for load and 4F for primer. Does anyone have an explanation???
Thanks!

When I first started out in the wide world of flintlocks I thought you had to have different powder for priming too . After a short time some folks in the know told me to try using the same powder as the main charge and , as they said , it made no difference , it was just as fast as using priming powder in the pan .NOW ....you have to understand this is in a perfect functioning lock / firearm . I know folks that have been shooting flintlocks for a decade or two , but not as frequently as some , and swear that there is a difference . Then they shoot my trade gun and just shake their head as its faster in ignition than anything they have ever seen let alone shot . I JUST shot the new Fusil de Chasse I built 5 minutes ago . First any only shot ever ...and it was as fast as a cartridge gun . I used 2F for charge and prime . I dead on here yesterday about a guy getting into wing shooting with flintlocks and folks telling him to lead the bird more because of the fli flocks delay . LOL ....if you have a delay in your ignition your gun has problems that need to be fixed . Same goes with filling g your pan a certain way ...just dump the powder in the pan and slap.it shut ...done . Any who ... Best of luck bud ...I'm going back to shooting this Fusil !! If you want to see the VDOs look in the building / work bench section here ...Building a Fusil de Chasse . Later gator ....

 

[smokepolehall]

I have never poured powder from my horn down the barrel. How would that method of measuring work for you. I use one of my antler measures i fill from my horn. I use both, priming powder 4f if i have it. If not then its 3f. I feel the better quality the flint n bigger flints that fit your lock give better ignition. Yeah more sparks, light'em up ! Personally i really never worry about a burning powder ember on my 1st loading ! I doubt i could speed load fast enough on couple of hunting shots .

 

[Rob M.]

2F charge and prime ...powder dumped in pan ...shooting the gun upside down

 

[ffg]

I've been usen FFG both pan and charge for more than 50 years thats why they call me FFG, do you think back in the day mountain men carried different grain powders, heck they used what they had

 

[Rob M.]

Exactly ! ...And T.H. size

I'm no expert but a lot of the difference to me. Depends on the quality of your lock and the position of the touch hole/ vent... JMHO

 

[TonyC]

I was shooting with a buddy yesterday and he borrowed some of my FFFFg powder for his pan. He began to have misfires. After several attempts with the FFFFg powder he used FFFg to prime and the gun fired. Go figure! By the way, I was using the FFFFg with no problems.

 

[WALT53]

Exactly ! ...And T.H. size

Exactly,th size and location.

 

[le125verne]

Honestly I think that burning ember line is a myth. I've never seen it happen, nor have I had it happen to me. I do not blow down the barrel either. That said, I'm still not going to pour powder directly from a horn into the barrel. Moreso because how can you gauge how much you're putting in versus using a measure, than the next to nil chance of an ember setting it off.

You have apparently not seen hands removed by embers left in the barrel of a cannon.

 

[Grenadier1758]

You have apparently not seen hands removed by embers left in the barrel of a cannon.

As @Sidney Smith has observed, the setting off of a charge in a rifle barrel is very rare. I have not seen it happen, but there are enough documented cases that it can happen. Most of us take the necessary precautions, such as running a damp patch down the bore often enough to put out the ember or using a wet patched ball to keep the fouling soft.

The certified practice for a canon crew preparing to reload the canon is to run a wet sponge down the tube to put out any embers. After the wet sponge, the touch hole is blocked by a stopper often a gloved thumb, to prevent any air movement from fanning an ember even though the wet sponge will have extinguished any burning embers. An excess of caution, perhaps? But no one wants to see the injuries caused by a canon charge going off when a hand or any other body part is in front of the canon mouth.

 

[jd945043]

You have apparently not seen hands removed by embers left in the barrel of a cannon.

Really a cannon! You are talking a totally different animal there. I happen to agree with the above statement.

 

[TKhuntsman]

I was watching a youtube video of a guy shooting a Kibler Colonial. He loaded powder from his powder horn and then added patch and ball. Then he primed the pan with the powder from the same powder horn. I watched it several times to be sure I was seeing it right. I’m fairly new to muzzleloading and am under the impression that 3F powder is used for load and 4F for primer. Does anyone have an explanation???
Thanks!

He's using the same 3fg powder to prime it was pretty common back in the day.