I am a new flinter and have had two sessions with my 50 GPR. I am using 75 grains 2FG goex, lehigh patch lubed patch and a 49 ball. After firing, I run two dry patches through the barrel and clean the vent with a pick. My problem is the first 3 shots go fine, but afterwards, I have extreme difficulty getting ignition -- It takes 5 or 6 primes to fire. Any helpful suggestions?
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Progressive trouble firing
- Thread starter jweston
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What are you shooting for a flintlock?Does it have a patented Breach System(Like T/C,Lyman...)?
Maybe it's got a srraight breach and when your cleaning with a jag and a patch your pushing the crud from the barrell down into the Breach/Touchole area causing severe fouling around the Touchole.Just a thought.
Maybe it's got a srraight breach and when your cleaning with a jag and a patch your pushing the crud from the barrell down into the Breach/Touchole area causing severe fouling around the Touchole.Just a thought.
Hello Blacksburg
Do you wipe your frizzen after each shot, many times fouling will build on the frizzen, holding back good spark.
Does your rifle have a vent liner? They help a lot, especially with a vent liner with an inverted cone, flash is greatly enhanced.
It is great to swab between shots, but, DO NOT send all the fouling into the vent. I would assume that you swab after loading.
I hope this helps.
Best Regards
Old Ford
Do you wipe your frizzen after each shot, many times fouling will build on the frizzen, holding back good spark.
Does your rifle have a vent liner? They help a lot, especially with a vent liner with an inverted cone, flash is greatly enhanced.
It is great to swab between shots, but, DO NOT send all the fouling into the vent. I would assume that you swab after loading.
I hope this helps.
Best Regards
Old Ford
Guest
That's my guess, too--running dry patches down the bore just pushes fouling down into the breech/touchhole area. Try swabbing with a wet patch (either spit or Lehigh) between shots, and continue to ensure your touchhole is clear and wipe of the frizzen and pan between shots.
Guest
...also, what brand of powder are you using? I had the same trouble as you when using Elephant, but it cleared up when I switched to Goex. Also, you might try fffg instead of ffg--some folks think it is less fouling, but in my experience there is not a great difference...I use fffg in my .50, but switch to ffg in the .54 and .62....
Halftail said:
I suspect the same thing, to be sure, stick the quill of a small feather in the touchhole and then clean as you have been doing, if you are pushing crud build-up into the breech, the feather will move, this will let you know...
You could also try running a wet cleaning patch followed by a few dry patches prior to reloading and see if that helps...
Picking the vent is good as well...
Thanks for the replies. The rifle is a lyman GPR. It has a insert vent, but I do not know the geometry of the insert.
So, the consensus is that when I am cleaning between shots, I am packing residue in the vent liner and to prevent doing this I should not use a cleaning patch all the way down the barrel.
I am wiping the crud from my flint with my fingers. I do not appear to have trouble sparking. I have yet to not ignite the primer. I just haven't been igniting the main charge.
Swab after loading?? I thought that the patched ball would clear the barrel.
Oh, the other bit of information. I am in Alabama and it is about 100 degrees and very humid.
So, the consensus is that when I am cleaning between shots, I am packing residue in the vent liner and to prevent doing this I should not use a cleaning patch all the way down the barrel.
I am wiping the crud from my flint with my fingers. I do not appear to have trouble sparking. I have yet to not ignite the primer. I just haven't been igniting the main charge.
Swab after loading?? I thought that the patched ball would clear the barrel.
Oh, the other bit of information. I am in Alabama and it is about 100 degrees and very humid.
If your rifle is new, drill out the touch hole to 5/64th inch. I had trouble with every flinter I own until I started drilling out the touch hole liner. Oh yeah, one more thing, get a touch hole liner with an allen wrench hole to take it out instead of a screwdriver slot and drill that one out.
Blacksburg,
The GPR has a patent breech that needs a 9mm cleaning jag to clean out. The touch hole is located in this area. You can't actually push the crud into the touch hole/vent liner if you are wiping with a .50 cal jag. I suspect when you are wiping between shots that you are pushing a layer of crud over that 9mm opening.
If you can feel the powder with the vent pick after you load then your shot will probably shoot fine. If you can't feel the powder charge then the crud is causing an obstruction. Check it out the next time you go to the range. Feel the first load to see how dense a good load feels, then continue to feel each succesive load until you notice less resisitance to the vent pick.
The suggestion to not push the crud all the way to the 9mm opening is a good one.
I started shooting a flint .54 GPR a few years back and had similar problems. Then I stopped wiping the barrel between shots. The reliability of ignition improved noticably.
Put a 9mm cleaning jag on a .30 cal cleaning rod to clean out that patent breech.
Old Salt
The GPR has a patent breech that needs a 9mm cleaning jag to clean out. The touch hole is located in this area. You can't actually push the crud into the touch hole/vent liner if you are wiping with a .50 cal jag. I suspect when you are wiping between shots that you are pushing a layer of crud over that 9mm opening.
If you can feel the powder with the vent pick after you load then your shot will probably shoot fine. If you can't feel the powder charge then the crud is causing an obstruction. Check it out the next time you go to the range. Feel the first load to see how dense a good load feels, then continue to feel each succesive load until you notice less resisitance to the vent pick.
The suggestion to not push the crud all the way to the 9mm opening is a good one.
I started shooting a flint .54 GPR a few years back and had similar problems. Then I stopped wiping the barrel between shots. The reliability of ignition improved noticably.
Put a 9mm cleaning jag on a .30 cal cleaning rod to clean out that patent breech.
Old Salt
Several things come to mind on this.
1: The jag/patch you are swabbing with is too tight. Modify a jag as shown & this will eliminate 75% of the problem. Use a tee shirt patch to swab with, this is thinner & with a modified jag, it will let the patch go past the cruds (rather than pack it to the breech) and the patch will gather on the jag on the outstroke & pull the cruds out.
2: I would try 3F Goex in the rifle rather than 2F & most of the time you will have less fouling.
3: You may be using too much lube. Get a lil pump/spray bottle from Walmart (2 oz / in cosmetics) and about 2 squirts about 3" from the patch, then load. To swab do the use the same amount of lube. When you swab go down & back one time & you don't need to swab the bore dry with another patch when using Lehigh as you should be using very little lube. If the fouling looks soupy when you swab, cut back of the lube.
4: If you drill & cone the vent it will ignite much better on a GPR. If you want me to modify a vent & mail it to you, I can send you one to try & you can just send me one back if you like the modified one. (And this is of no cost to you other than what it cost to mail them) It is a cheap remedy on a GPR & cheap to go back if you don't like it that way it ignites. We don't want it to get too fast & make ya gun shy.............. :grin: .
5: You Do have a patent breech & it needs to be cleaned out when you clean the rifle. I use a 36 cal breech scraper that I have rounded off the end to scrape the breech of my GPR & this will get right back into the area ya need.
PM me if you would like to discuss it in detail.
1: The jag/patch you are swabbing with is too tight. Modify a jag as shown & this will eliminate 75% of the problem. Use a tee shirt patch to swab with, this is thinner & with a modified jag, it will let the patch go past the cruds (rather than pack it to the breech) and the patch will gather on the jag on the outstroke & pull the cruds out.
2: I would try 3F Goex in the rifle rather than 2F & most of the time you will have less fouling.
3: You may be using too much lube. Get a lil pump/spray bottle from Walmart (2 oz / in cosmetics) and about 2 squirts about 3" from the patch, then load. To swab do the use the same amount of lube. When you swab go down & back one time & you don't need to swab the bore dry with another patch when using Lehigh as you should be using very little lube. If the fouling looks soupy when you swab, cut back of the lube.
4: If you drill & cone the vent it will ignite much better on a GPR. If you want me to modify a vent & mail it to you, I can send you one to try & you can just send me one back if you like the modified one. (And this is of no cost to you other than what it cost to mail them) It is a cheap remedy on a GPR & cheap to go back if you don't like it that way it ignites. We don't want it to get too fast & make ya gun shy.............. :grin: .
5: You Do have a patent breech & it needs to be cleaned out when you clean the rifle. I use a 36 cal breech scraper that I have rounded off the end to scrape the breech of my GPR & this will get right back into the area ya need.
PM me if you would like to discuss it in detail.
Birddog6 said" :thumbsup:
If you drill & cone the vent it will ignite much better on a GPR. If you want me to modify a vent & mail it to you, I can send you one to try & you can just send me one back if you like the modified one. (And this is of no cost to you other than what it cost to mail them) It is a cheap remedy on a GPR & cheap to go back if you don't like it that way it ignites. We don't want it to get too fast & make ya gun shy.............. .
That's what makes this forum the best one on the web :hatsoff:
If you drill & cone the vent it will ignite much better on a GPR. If you want me to modify a vent & mail it to you, I can send you one to try & you can just send me one back if you like the modified one. (And this is of no cost to you other than what it cost to mail them) It is a cheap remedy on a GPR & cheap to go back if you don't like it that way it ignites. We don't want it to get too fast & make ya gun shy.............. .
That's what makes this forum the best one on the web :hatsoff:
Listen to Birddog6. His advise is right on the money.
IMHO, I wouldn't drill the vent any larger than .070, not sure what drill bit number that is, but that's the size I have had the best luck with.
I would also cone the outside of the vent, as Birddog explained. A very slight cone on the outside can make a lot of difference.
I tried the allen screw vent liners and had more trouble with them than with a proper diameter, coned vent.
J.D.
IMHO, I wouldn't drill the vent any larger than .070, not sure what drill bit number that is, but that's the size I have had the best luck with.
I would also cone the outside of the vent, as Birddog explained. A very slight cone on the outside can make a lot of difference.
I tried the allen screw vent liners and had more trouble with them than with a proper diameter, coned vent.
J.D.
I found a handy little tool at a hobby shop. It is a "Servo Horn Drill" made by Hobbico and is a #48 drill in an aluminum knurled "handle"
You can take it very slow and gently relieve out the touch hole using only your fingers. That equates to a 0.076" decimal - right between a 5/64" (0.0781") and a #70 (0.070"). My lock fires very well using 3F priming powder and main charge with this size hole.
You can take it very slow and gently relieve out the touch hole using only your fingers. That equates to a 0.076" decimal - right between a 5/64" (0.0781") and a #70 (0.070"). My lock fires very well using 3F priming powder and main charge with this size hole.
This morning I removed my vent liner. According to Track, it IS 6-0.75 metric. It looks like the interior is two concentril drilled holes, the smaller diameter is on the lock side and the larger diameter is on the barrel side (and the barrel side is offcenter). Chamber's website has a cross-section of his vent-liners and I understand what needs to be done, but what tool should I use to cone the liner?
I think that the Gunsmith of Grenville also has a description...maybe I need to look at that tonight.
Another question that I have is how to clean the lock. Is this something that I would use boiling water to clean?
I think that the Gunsmith of Grenville also has a description...maybe I need to look at that tonight.
Another question that I have is how to clean the lock. Is this something that I would use boiling water to clean?
MikeFromON
40 Cal.
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I was having the exact same problem with my .54 cal Pedersoli Mortimer. The first day I shot it, I managed to get off four rounds before I ran into problems. After that it turned into a one-shot wonder, and my ball-puller became dangerously worn :cursing: . This is what I do now with every shot:
a) Almost no lube on my patches
b) I don't clean the bore between shots
c) Wipe frizzen and ESPECIALLY the flint
d) After I load the powder and ball, I tap the
butt of the rifle on the ground 3 or 4 times
to settle the powder right into breech and I
shove down hard on the ramrod to pack
everything in tightly
e) If the gun fails to fire after 2 or 3 tries, I
will double the priming charge
Since I started doing these things, my rifle has become much more reliable, and it fires on the first try almost every time, and always goes off by the third try. I noticed fouling decreased significantly when I decreased the amount of lube I used on my patches. Also, I took my breechplug out one day and removed some burrs left over from the manufacturing process that were very likely blocking the main charge powder from reaching the vent area. I shoot Goex 2F and 3F and have not noticed much of a difference between the two, although I have noticed that atmospheric humidity makes a big difference in the reliability of my rifle. If I go out after a rain or on a particularly muggy day, the 4F priming powder I use cakes up really badly and I have a much harder time getting it to ignite. Right now I am shooting 7" groups at 30 yards, but that may be because I am still brand new to marksmanship, having only fired a gun perhaps 20 times so far in my entire life. For what it's worth, my rifle seems to be getting more accurate the more I shoot it.
a) Almost no lube on my patches
b) I don't clean the bore between shots
c) Wipe frizzen and ESPECIALLY the flint
d) After I load the powder and ball, I tap the
butt of the rifle on the ground 3 or 4 times
to settle the powder right into breech and I
shove down hard on the ramrod to pack
everything in tightly
e) If the gun fails to fire after 2 or 3 tries, I
will double the priming charge
Since I started doing these things, my rifle has become much more reliable, and it fires on the first try almost every time, and always goes off by the third try. I noticed fouling decreased significantly when I decreased the amount of lube I used on my patches. Also, I took my breechplug out one day and removed some burrs left over from the manufacturing process that were very likely blocking the main charge powder from reaching the vent area. I shoot Goex 2F and 3F and have not noticed much of a difference between the two, although I have noticed that atmospheric humidity makes a big difference in the reliability of my rifle. If I go out after a rain or on a particularly muggy day, the 4F priming powder I use cakes up really badly and I have a much harder time getting it to ignite. Right now I am shooting 7" groups at 30 yards, but that may be because I am still brand new to marksmanship, having only fired a gun perhaps 20 times so far in my entire life. For what it's worth, my rifle seems to be getting more accurate the more I shoot it.
YOu drill it with a #1 centerdrill you will have a 1/16" hole & #2 centerdrill will drill the hole to a 5/64" and also cone the liner with the same bit. Now you won't be able to cone it like a Chambers as his is a nonremovable liner & yours is removable, so you have to leave enough to get a screwdriver in the slot. I also have a little cone shaped crabide reamer I cone allot of vent liners with.
And speaking of the vent liner, don't strip the screwdriver slot out. The vent liner doesn't have to be real right, just Barely snug & it will stay tight where ya put it. Put a lil anti-seize on it when ya put it back in. :thumbsup:
As for cleaning the lock, take it off & take it to the faucet & run water over it & scrub it with a toothbrush. Dry it on a paper towel, completely soak it with Ballistol, clean the rest of the rifle & then dry the excess off the lock with a paper towel & put it back on the rifle. :winking: (NO, the Ballistol will not hurt the flint or the frizzen from sparking)
And speaking of the vent liner, don't strip the screwdriver slot out. The vent liner doesn't have to be real right, just Barely snug & it will stay tight where ya put it. Put a lil anti-seize on it when ya put it back in. :thumbsup:
As for cleaning the lock, take it off & take it to the faucet & run water over it & scrub it with a toothbrush. Dry it on a paper towel, completely soak it with Ballistol, clean the rest of the rifle & then dry the excess off the lock with a paper towel & put it back on the rifle. :winking: (NO, the Ballistol will not hurt the flint or the frizzen from sparking)
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