stormcrow said:
As a relative newb to the flintlock world I have been doing a lot of reading and looking at various rifle setups. I frequently see references to the style of lock such as Germanic, English, Colonial etc. Is there any reference material out there (web or printed) which describes the various types and styles of locks and the differences between them both functionally and aesthetically? I have to admit that at this point they mostly look the same to me.
Many thanks,
Brian
Lots of good suggestions were made but if I can upset the rest of the Flintlock historians I'll touch on a few of the more obvious differences between the German and the English flintlocks.
These are just general comments and there are exceptions to all of them.
The German flintlocks usually have a flat bottomed pan with fairly large, flat chamfers (corner breaks) running up from the bottom.
The "fence", a fairly upright protrusion just behind the pan is often a part of the pan and is often straight. The Germans quite obviously were going after "function" here rather than trying to make it blend in with its surroundings.
The fence's purpose is to deflect the flash of the pan upward, away from the shooters face.
The German frizzen bridle, if it exists, is often an integral part of the pan extending forward to support the outer end of the frizzen screw.
The German flintlocks often were quite pointed at the rear of the lockplate although the very early English locks were also quite pointed at the rear.
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The English flintlocks usually have a smoothly rounded bottom on the pan transitioning to smaller radii which come upward at the edges. The pan seldom had large flat areas on the bottom or the edges.
The fence on many english locks is sometimes a smooth curving upright at the rear of the pan. Much more graceful than the German styles.
The frizzen bridle, if present is often smoothly and gracefully attached to the pan.
The English lockplates rear or tail is often pointed but generally speaking the rear of the lock is blunter than the German locks.
The later English locks dropped the pointed tail altogether and are often rounded.
On the later, "waterproof" English locks the pan itself is often standing alone projecting from the lockplate with the fence and the bridle standing separate from the pan.
This was intended to allow rain to drip off of the parts without being redirected into the priming powder which tended to happen when the fence and the bridle were connected directly to the pan.
Many of the early English, German and French flintlocks did not use a bridle to support the frizzen. It stood proudly by itself supported only by the shoulder screw attached to the lockplate.
That is not to say that there were not early flintlocks that did have a frizzen bridle but only that these bridles became much more popular as time passed.
English builders like Durs Egg, John Bailes, Nock and Greener in an effort to improve on the flintlock added features like a roller for the frizzen. This was meant to smooth and speed the action. (Personally, I can't see that it was a major improvement as locks without the roller work just as well).
As you may know, many builders try to reproduce rifles from various areas and often the style of lock they use is based on original guns.
The German locks were popular in Pennsylvania with its rich supply of German immigrants.
North and South of the Pennsylvania area, the English were importing locks in large numbers so the English locks were more popular in those areas.
French locks styles were (IMO) a combination of the English and German locks as far as the pan is concerned although the Davis "French Type C fusil lock" has a pan with almost a triangular shape on the bottom.
This Davis lock has a lockplate which has a pronounced curve to it, sometimes referred to as a banana shape. Some of the early French locks I've seen photos of share this shape.
The biggest thing modern French flintlock fans can agree on is there are no current suppliers who make a good French flintlock.
One thing is for certain though. The French are credited for creating the first Flintlock and following the French & Indian war (1756 roughly) the French were no longer importing arms to America. For fans of the F&I war and earlier times, the French fusil's and trade guns are a popular gun which makes a lightweight, easy to carry smoothbore. Maybe this explains their popularity with the Indians.
Hope this helps you figure out what some of the differences are.
