Flintlocks?

[Frag Muppet]

I have a couple of slots on my Ticket for a .54 Cal Rifle and .44 Cal Pistol.
I am looking at buying Pedersoli's .54 Cal Mortimer Rifle
( I fancy the Standard Version over the Target Version. I want the traditional sights/look of the Firearm. Is this the right choice, accuracy is important? )
I am also looking at a Le Page .44 Cal Rifled Barrelled Pistol.
Both Flintlocks.
I already own a Black Powder Rifle and Pistol, both percussion caps.
I have shot a Flintlock before and quite fancy owning one.
Will Pedersoli Flintlocks fire reliably every time?
Or will I end up getting frustrated with misfires?
How long will a Flint last?
I know they do both in percussion caps, but I just fancy the challenge of shooting Flintlocks.
I have found a website "Will Lord Beyond 2000BC" who can supply Flints for shooting, others in the shooting community seem to rate him.

[Turnup]

No flintlock will fire reliably every time, even if perfectly set up.

Flints break, frizzens lose their case hardening, and BP is just generally perverse.

.... such are the joys of muzzle loading.

That said, Pedersoli make good guns and, when correctly set up, should fire as reliably as the best.

[enfield2band]

Flintlocks are prone to misfires, but do not let that deter you they are good fun to shoot.

Misfires can be caused by damp (condensation) on the frizzen, grease and dirt so it has to be kept clean. Flints are unpredictable. You can get several shots from one flint and the next one you put in might shatter the first time you try to fire the gun.
There is also a slight time lag before ignition that you have to allow for so you need to keep the hold on the target a little bit longer than you would with a percussion gun.
Don't fill the flashpan to the top with gunpowder. If you do it has to burn all the way through before the gun fires which adds to the delay in firing. Put as little as you can get away with for quicker ignition.

Shooting flintlock is challenging and does make shooting enjoyable once you have got used to them.

I'm sure others will come on and give better advice than I.

Good luck.

[steve medlock]

I've got a Pedersoli Mortimer Flint Rifle. it came with aperture sights but like you I prefer the open sights and managed to get a new front sight for it from Pedersoli via Vikings.

I use Will Lord flints and if it is properly set up, get reliable and relatively fast ignition. As others have said though, you can't guarantee that the gun will fire every time, but its far better than some of the Indian stuff.

I use a very small amount of Swiss priming powder in the pan and th elock is pretty much as fast as possible.

What I don't like so much about the Mortimer is that the accuracy seems to go off quite quickly unless you clean out between shots.

Steve.

[Turnup]

A long standing flinter colleague (who has an enviable collection of original duelling flinters) plugs the touch hole with a piece of wire before priming the pan, then fills the pan only to just level with the bottom of the touch hole. The idea is to allow sparks from the surface of the priming to propel themselves along the touch hole, giving minimal lock time. He let me try a few and I was mightily surprised by how fast a lock time he got with this method. Of course this was with one of the finest locks ever made (Manton), polished and fettled and set up to perfection. He claimed that he could get even faster by omitting the priming powder altogether, but although fast when it worked, it was not reliable enough to be useable.

[Frag Muppet]

I've got a Pedersoli Mortimer Flint Rifle. it came with aperture sights but like you I prefer the open sights and managed to get a new front sight for it from Pedersoli via Vikings.

I use Will Lord flints and if it is properly set up, get reliable and relatively fast ignition. As others have said though, you can't guarantee that the gun will fire every time, but its far better than some of the Indian stuff.

I use a very small amount of Swiss priming powder in the pan and th elock is pretty much as fast as possible.

What I don't like so much about the Mortimer is that the accuracy seems to go off quite quickly unless you clean out between shots.

Steve.

Thanks for the info

Its good to speak to somebody that owns one.
How many shots do you get from a Flint before you have to Knapp it, how long will one flint last?
Is learning to shoot a Flint Lock worth it or will I get frustrated, should I consider the percussion cap version, although I'm really hankering after a Flint Lock.
What sort of accuracy do you get at 25, 50 & 100yards?
My Parker Hale 577 Enfield shoots better when the barrel is fouled, go figure?

Thanks for any help you can give.

Stuart

[tacfoley]

[QUOTE=Frag Muppet;6375552][SIZE=4]Thanks for the info

How many shots do you get from a Flint before you have to Knapp it, how long will one flint last?

Anything from one to twenty shots, .

Is learning to shoot a Flint Lock worth it or will I get frustrated, should I consider the percussion cap version, although I'm really hankering after a Flint Lock.

Go for it. It will teach you patience and how to hold the firearm, whether it be long or short.

What sort of accuracy do you get at 25, 50 & 100yards?

I shoot a flintlock [note that it is one word, not two] .50cal rifle, custom-made about ten years ago, with a Coleraine swamped barrel. At 25 yards it makes cutting clover-leafs. At 50 yards it shoots into about three inches at most for ten shots, and at a 100 yards I can ring a 12" gong most every shot. All shots taken from standing only.

My Parker Hale 577 Enfield shoots better when the barrel is fouled, go figure?

You might be shooting undersized Minié bullets.

I have no experience of shooting a modern Italian replica flintlock of any kind - this might colour your decision.

tac

[enfield2band]

Thanks for the info


What sort of accuracy do you get at 25, 50 & 100yards?

Stuart

I have had a score of 79 ex 100 with a smoothbore pedersoli flintlock at 25 yards, and I know other people get much better scores than that.

It is not the method of ignition that affects accuracy, it is whether or not the barrel is rifled, obviously a rifled barrel will be more accurate.
Allowing for the time lag for the ignition and concentrating on a steady hold until the gun has fired is another crucual factor when shooting with a flintlock, rifled or smoothbore.

The type of patch and the lubricant can also play a major part in the accuracy. A friend of mine had an original flintlock rifle, with a rifled barrel, and he could shoot 1" groups at 100 yards.
It took him two years of trying different patches, lubricants and loads to get there but it was worth the effort.

If you have an hankering for a flintlock then get one. Once you have got used to it you will enjoy it.

I traded in my Pedersoli for an original smoothbore flintlock and I woud rather shoot that than my percussion repro revolver.

As tac said:
Go for it. It will teach you patience and how to hold the firearm, whether it be long or short.

[Frag Muppet]

Thanks for the info guys.

I think I will go for it!

I will be contact Krank's & place the order for 2 new firearms along with Moulds & other paraphernalia.

Don't know how long it will take them though?


Stuart

[airgunnut]

A friend had a brown Bess flint lock, 200 shots and only 3 flints used non reknaped (even kranks was amazed) the flint varies like all natural products do