Shooting The Iron Pennsylvania

[Mike.54]

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I've shot percussion guns for a long time but I always wanted to try a flintlock. Last year I did a little looking around and settled on TVM. I'm not into reenacting or an active hunter I just love to shoot. The TVM seemed to fit the bill.

After an eight month wait I finally received my rifle earlier this summer and I have been having a blast. I am fully under the spell of the flintlock bug!

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I chose Walnut for the stock for my rifle because its my favorite and I love the classic look. All browned steel furniture and barrel in my mind completes the perfect rifle. Since the 27th of July I've made 5 trips to the range and put 61 patched round balls down range getting used to the gun and learning about the flint lock action.

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I cast my own balls. .45 cal Lyman double cavity mold.

The first time I took the rifle out was the first time I ever fired a flintlock. Sure I had heard lots of stories from my friends but if you've never done it you really don't know what to expect.

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My very first shot. 25 yards off hand. Beginners luck.

Another first for me with this rifle is the first time I've entered a contest. I've participated in the July and August member postal shoot of this website. I like the added challenge of posting up a target and doing my best with no do-overs.

Today after work I headed to the range and worked up the nerve to to set up on the 100 yard range. I shot from sandbag rest using 60 grains of Goex 2f with a .015 patch and mink oil lube. My first shot was in the black and I was thrilled. The following seven shots were not so pretty but at 100 yards I'm happy to have put them all on the paper.

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I'll keep shootin and hopefully post up some real good targets.

 

[Shooey]

That's some good shooting Mike! Flintlocks are a ton of fun. Try different patches and lubes and see what works best. Only change one thing at a time though!! We're looking forward to seeing some more targets!

 

[kopfjaeger]

Figure out which load is most accurate for your rifle. Then keep shooting and having fun. If your not use to shooting flintlocks follow through after the shot, and getting use to the flash from the pan is important. Your shooting looks good, and you'll get better the more you shoot. :thumbsup:

 

[jamesthomas]

That looks very nice! I've always liked the look of TVM's Iron Pennsylvania. Also its nice to see a left-hander at the range. Are you using .440 round balls or .445? If you are using .440 I would go up to .018 for patch material and see how that does.

 

[Mike.54]

Thanks Guys!

Arma- yes I am shooting .440 balls. I have some .018" and .020" patches and as suggested I am slowly trying different combinations and only changing one thing at a time. I've not tried either of the thicker patches yet but I will give it try.

For a while when I first started with the flint lock I was blinking a lot in anticipation of the shot but now I'm seeing the big orange flash almost every time. Without a doubt it is the most challenging firearm I've ever shot but also one of the funnest.

 

[stinkyfeet]

Hey, ole'Matt at TVM put the lock on the wrong side of the gun

 

[stuartg]

Love the look of the walnut - very pretty rifle.

 

[wvbuckbuster]

You might want to try some 3F powder also. Nice gun! Keep having fun :thumbsup: Dan.

 

[bpd303]

Great looking rifle and about the most unique way of casting balls that I have seen. :thumbsup:

 

[hanshi]

Hey, ole'Matt at TVM put the lock on the wrong side of the gun

Yep, he's been known to make that mistake before. :rotf:

 

[Twisted_1in66]

You'll probably need to up the load a little bit for 100-yard shots. If you're using 2f powder now, I'd try the 3f. If you are still showing wide diversity of shot placement from a rest, then I'd suggest going up about 5 grains at a time, shooting 5 or more shots with each load before changing it. When the barrel gets what it likes, the shots will tighten up.

Twisted_1in66 :thumbsup:

 

[dcriner]

I have a TVM early Lancaster - with brass trim. I wish I'd gotten iron. I like the double-set triggers, but the brass furniture is a bit too gaudy for my taste.

 

[Mike.54]

Thanks bpd. I call it the crucible. It's made out of cast iron and sits on my patio. If you look closely in the photo you can see a flat piece of fire brick just inside the opening. the ladle and mold can rest firmly on the brick with the handles against the edge of the bottom of the opening. Never had the ladle tip and spill the lead. It works a little better than casting on an open fire because of the enclosed space makes it easier to keep the temperature constant. Once I pull the ladle and mold out into the open air and once I get into the rhythm and casting 8 or 10 balls from the ladle that keeps the mold hot and it all goes well.

I also have a little pot that I fill with slugs scrounged from the range and rest on the fire brick when I'm making ingots. It's nice to sit on the patio and enjoy a fire but extra fun to play with some lead too.

 

[Mike.54]

Thanks for the input twisted. I will be headed up to the Log Cabin Shop in couple weeks so I will pick up a tin of 3F to try out on the 100 yard range.

Here is a couple targets I shot earlier on the 25 and 50 yard range.

25 yards sandbag rest 45 grains Goex 2F 8/14/14


50 yards sandbag rest 45 grains Goex 2F 8/14/14


Those are the 6" diameter small paper plates not the full size ones.

 

[rr11]

Looking good, I am thinking of the Iron Pennsylvania or a Southern from TVM as my next rifle. I will be ordering a .36 for small game hunting.

 

[F.G. Ford]

Hi Mike,
Think about it for a moment.
Your first shot was bang on, and the others wandered a bit.
What was different with the first shot.........the barrel was clean.
So clean the barrel between shots ( see Dutch Shoultz method ) and all your shots will be in the center.
Nice gun!
Thank you for sharing!
Fred

 

[BFJ]

Mike
Great looking rifle. Very interesting post also.
BFJ

 

[Swede50]

Show some more pictures of your shootin iron.

 

[Mike.54]

I got out to the range this afternoon to shoot a few. I took the good advice from you guys here and got some 3f Goex for my rifle. I'm liking the 3f -seems much quicker ignition. The above target shows 5 shots patched .440" round balls over 40 grains of 3f. The range was 50 yards off sandbag rest. I moved up to .020" pillow ticking patches. They're a little tighter than what I was using before but still load easy enough. The lube is mink oil.



Here are the patches. The first 40 or 50 shots I was getting a little cutting but then the barrel was brand new and I was shooting thinner patches. These look fine.

 

[hanshi]

Keep shooting; it gets better. :thumbsup: