flintlock or caplock I am very leery about what I want the first trigger pull to deliver! I DO NOT want to hear a loud CLICK! To prevent this from happening I'm not going to run a patch down the bore that is even remotely loaded with too much liquid to foul the ignition area. I wipe the bore prior to each shot because I've discovered over the years that this method gives me a consistent POI! Rather than wiping with any of many liquids I use one I carry onboard aka SALIVA! I put a 3"x 3" white patch in my mouth and I then wrap it around a .45 caliber brush and run it down the bore followed by a same size dry patch wrapped around the same .45 brush. This gives me the same amount of pressure when ramming the ball down shot to shot. I don't use fake powder! BP is the only way to go IMO especially if shooting the flintlock rifle. And make certain that the powder is DRY!! This works for me!