Traditions Flintlock Kentucky Rifle

[Flinter987]

Hello,
I was wondering if any of you own one of these.
I am thinking of getting one for my first muzzleloader. Did any of you have any problems with it working properly? Is it a good reliable begginer's gun? Is it close to looking the way the originals did? Or is it quite a bit different.
Do any of you use round balls in it? That's what I was thinking of using. Would you get the kit, or for about $30 more should I buy it completed?
:yakyak: :winking:
Thank-You very much,
Flinter987

 

[howlingwolf]

I've always thought Traditions to be a middle of the road, decent functioning, gun. It should make a good beginers rifle just realize the extra effort, on your part, to learn the in's and outs of a flint lock as aposed to a cap lock. Helps if you have someonelse with a flintlock to shoot with and learn from. I personally would pay the extra $30 learn to work with that one and then attempt a kit. Again just my opinion

 

[jderrick]

The Traditions Kentucky flinter was my first muzzleloader. I got it as a kit and it has been a great learning experience and a lot of fun.

The kit came with a lot of education in a variety of skills and an amount of extra work, but few real hassles. I will say that by the time I'd bought the tools, materials, specialty goods (barrel browning solution...) it would have been more economical to get the finished piece. But I learned a lot. I'm shooting round balls.

I'm told by folks it's not period correct (and I understand they're pretty right) and it's not as outstanding as some of the finer pieces (look who made it :grin: ) but it's been a more economical introduction to the field.

In terms of reliablity, I'm still working through a number of misfires, but I suspect that's operator error by a pretty green operator who's still working on his flint skills.

So here's a photo of me and the piece our first time out. On my blog at[url] jderrickstar.blogspot.com[/url] I've got more photos, columns and even some video than most folks want to look at. Just scroll on down, but I warn you that along with BP stuff I've got on there a variety of whatnot else that flows through my mind -- clean, but occasionally outlandish or opinionated.

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[Flintlock_bob]

I own this gun. I bought it as a kit and it was my first flint rifle (I had a flint pistol first).

When I bought it the lock that came with the kit was not timed right so they sent me a new lock which was a better lock than the one that came with the gun so I can not speak as to the quality of that lock.

While not real pretty this gun has been very reliable. On a trail shoot with some percussion folk I had fewer missfires than they did. My missfires were the result of the flash not getting to the main charge, not a failure of the lock itself, and it was only a couple of times out of a 20 station shoot.

I would recommend buying a completed gun as there was much work in fitting the parts in my kit. The curve in the stock butt did not fit the butt plate by a LONG ways, much work to fit it. The cast brass trigger guard needed to be heated and rebent to match the stock as well. The extra $30 is well spent.

 

FLINTER, while I don't have one of their flintlock rifles I have shot a few of their percussion guns and found them to shoot as well as I was capable of holding them. A friend who is new to flintock guns bought one as it is inexpensive. With a little help getting set up he had it working well right out of the box. Went bang every trigger pull. No delay or flash in the pans. Worked very well.

 

[bradmartin]

I also have one that I got used. Went out last Sunday. I think they shoot just fine.

 

[LRB]

In my opinion, you would be way ahead to spend more and get a better gun. There are enough problems learning flintlocks without possibly compounding them with a cheap gun. Check out Tip Curtis, or even TVM. You can get a decent operating gun in the white at a reasonable price, and finish it yourself. At least you will have quality parts, and a gun much more PC.

 

[Toomuch_36]

Hello,
I was wondering if any of you own one of these.
I am thinking of getting one for my first muzzleloader. Did any of you have any problems with it working properly? Is it a good reliable begginer's gun? Is it close to looking the way the originals did? Or is it quite a bit different.
Do any of you use round balls in it? That's what I was thinking of using. Would you get the kit, or for about $30 more should I buy it completed?
:yakyak: :winking:
Thank-You very much,
Flinter987

The Traditions Kentucky is a quality rifle of equally compareable quality with the other major manufactures (T/C , Lyman etc.),and very accurate with patched roundball. I have a Traditions Pennsylvania longrifle and have no problems with it (except those that I generate myself).
As to being historicaly accurate with any origional rifle, there are few in this class that are but it is still a very handsom weapon and will stand the test with all but the hard core purest.
As to getting the kit vs. a finished rifle. If you have the time and enjoy do-it -yourself a kit can be very rewarding and you can fit the stock to yourself as you go. If not for the price difference it is best to go with the finished rifle and avoid the hassle.

Toomuch
...........
Shoot Flint

 

[Mr. Chester]

I went to Traditions the other day - they do not offer a flintlock in a Kentucky kit.
Drat!

The Kentucky they offer fits me well - though I do not like the trigger. Currently finishing up the cussing kit.

 

[Flinter987]

Thank-You very much guys. I appreciate the info.
Here's a dumb question. What does TVM stand for?
Flinter

 

[spitfire]

TVM=Tennessee Valley Muzzleloading also another good company for kits is Early Rustic Arms. :winking:

 

[great plains]

what is early rustic arms web site??? thanks great plains :blah: :shocked2: worm

 

[Rebel]

Here ya go
[url] http://www.earlyrusticarms.com/pricesanddescriptions.htm[/url]

 

[Flinter987]

Thanks again guys. I really apppreciate all the information you gave me.
Flinter987

 

[adbranaman]

The biggest problem I had with the Traditions was that it would misfire or not fire at all. I figured it out ,but later on this site someone said they had badly placed touch holes and the pans could be ground down a little to help. By that time though I had gotten it to fire most of the time by making sure there was pleanty of powder down the hole and not so much in the pan. It fired quicker too. Bad thing about mine was the frizzen was only surface hardened and I had to replace it once in the 5 years I had it. Still- I like flinters a little better then percussion. :thumbsup:

 

[BennyMac]

Does TVM have a web site.

 

[Rebel]

Try here
[url] http://www.avsia.com/tvm[/url]/

 

[jderrick]

They may have discontinued it since then, but I ordered a Traditions Kentucky flinter from[url] ThePossibleShop.com[/url] late last Fall....

 

[BennyMac]

Thank you .Marked for my favorite.. :hatsoff: