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  • Oct 4, 2017
    58
    So I've been wanting to get a flintlock rifle for a while. Preferably a Pennsylvania or Kentucky style. I know the process of loading and firing. But before I buy anything, what I would like to research/study is the in depth details: which powder is best, the right charge amount for the type I'm using, the thickness or size of patches to use. All the knowledge that will keep me from damaging the rifle or preventing my rise to stardom as the next Kentucky Ballistics.
    Does anyone have a source in mind that I should find? Thanks
    ~Sledgehammer
     

    JohnC

    Active Member
    May 29, 2019
    311
    Baltimore, MD
    The internet is your friend. Unfortunately, there are about 15 different ways to load a flintlock depending on the individual shooter.

    Here's what I do:
    Start charge of 2F real black powder equal to the diameter of the projectile (i.e. 50gr for a .50 cal). Move around a few grains plus or minus to find accuracy. Some people use 3F but I would say the majority of people use 2F for rifles and black powder cartridges. Goex works just fine for blasting stuff at the range, and it's cheap. Some people use Swiss, but it's more expensive. Stay away from the Hodgon fake black powder. Won't work in a flint lock.

    Pure soft lead projectile that's .01 under sized. 50 cal barrel = .490 diameter ball.

    Pre-Lubed Patch that's .01 thick. Here's where a lot of people differ. Some do a .015 for a tighter fit. Choose what works best, or in the state of things right now choose what you can find! Some people will cut a shirt and get some lube, others some linen cloth that's lubed. They all work just fine in my experience.

    Make sure you ram the patched ball all the way down

    Prime the pan with 3F or 4F. 4F is better, but 3F works. Use a REAL flint not agate. More expensive and you run through them quicker, but agate in my experience has failure to spark quite often.

    Good luck. Plenty of youtube videos on the subject, and many ways to skin a cat
     
    Oct 4, 2017
    58
    The internet is your friend. Unfortunately, there are about 15 different ways to load a flintlock depending on the individual shooter.

    Here's what I do:
    Start charge of 2F real black powder equal to the diameter of the projectile (i.e. 50gr for a .50 cal). Move around a few grains plus or minus to find accuracy. Some people use 3F but I would say the majority of people use 2F for rifles and black powder cartridges. Goex works just fine for blasting stuff at the range, and it's cheap. Some people use Swiss, but it's more expensive. Stay away from the Hodgon fake black powder. Won't work in a flint lock.

    Pure soft lead projectile that's .01 under sized. 50 cal barrel = .490 diameter ball.

    Pre-Lubed Patch that's .01 thick. Here's where a lot of people differ. Some do a .015 for a tighter fit. Choose what works best, or in the state of things right now choose what you can find! Some people will cut a shirt and get some lube, others some linen cloth that's lubed. They all work just fine in my experience.

    Make sure you ram the patched ball all the way down

    Prime the pan with 3F or 4F. 4F is better, but 3F works. Use a REAL flint not agate. More expensive and you run through them quicker, but agate in my experience has failure to spark quite often.

    Good luck. Plenty of youtube videos on the subject, and many ways to skin a cat

    Thank you sir. Appreciate the insight
     

    babalou

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Aug 12, 2013
    16,016
    Glenelg
    damn

    The internet is your friend. Unfortunately, there are about 15 different ways to load a flintlock depending on the individual shooter.

    Here's what I do:
    Start charge of 2F real black powder equal to the diameter of the projectile (i.e. 50gr for a .50 cal). Move around a few grains plus or minus to find accuracy. Some people use 3F but I would say the majority of people use 2F for rifles and black powder cartridges. Goex works just fine for blasting stuff at the range, and it's cheap. Some people use Swiss, but it's more expensive. Stay away from the Hodgon fake black powder. Won't work in a flint lock.

    Pure soft lead projectile that's .01 under sized. 50 cal barrel = .490 diameter ball.

    Pre-Lubed Patch that's .01 thick. Here's where a lot of people differ. Some do a .015 for a tighter fit. Choose what works best, or in the state of things right now choose what you can find! Some people will cut a shirt and get some lube, others some linen cloth that's lubed. They all work just fine in my experience.

    Make sure you ram the patched ball all the way down

    Prime the pan with 3F or 4F. 4F is better, but 3F works. Use a REAL flint not agate. More expensive and you run through them quicker, but agate in my experience has failure to spark quite often.

    Good luck. Plenty of youtube videos on the subject, and many ways to skin a cat


    damn, most excellent. Thanks!!
     

    damosan

    Active Member
    Feb 21, 2009
    261
    A buddy of mine started with a flintlock - he was frustrated with it at first but he got a hang of it. I've always found it a good idea to start with a percussion gun. Run it through its paces and then move to a flintlock. You'll be able to apply everything you learned.

    Besides...once the black powder addiction hits you...one gun won't be enough anyway. I had one TC Renegade for years. Now I have the Renegade, a TC Hawken, two cap and ball revolvers, an old Manhattan Arms pepperbox in some weird dinky caliber, a EIG horse pistol, and a trapdoor rifle. I'm eyeballing antique Colt 1849s right now...
     

    Mike OTDP

    Ultimate Member
    Feb 12, 2008
    3,318
    So I've been wanting to get a flintlock rifle for a while. Preferably a Pennsylvania or Kentucky style. I know the process of loading and firing. But before I buy anything, what I would like to research/study is the in depth details: which powder is best, the right charge amount for the type I'm using, the thickness or size of patches to use. All the knowledge that will keep me from damaging the rifle or preventing my rise to stardom as the next Kentucky Ballistics.
    Does anyone have a source in mind that I should find? Thanks
    ~Sledgehammer
    Let me take this from the top.
    1. Buy a quality gun. There are no good, cheap flintlocks. A quality lock alone will cost you about $300. Seriously consider buying used.

    2. 3F powder. Very few competitors at the top level use anything else for propellant. Start with the caliber in grains, work up in 5 grain increments. Fine-tune for the most accurate load. Goex is good. Swiss and Olde Eynsford are better, but you may not have the need for the extra consistency. Stay well clear of substitutes, they won't work.

    3. If the manufacturer has a recommended bullet size, use that. If not, my rule of thumb is that the bullet diameter + one patch thickness should be the bore diameter.

    4. Knapped flints vs cut flints vs agates will vary with the gun. I've got a 220-year-old duelling pistol that loves the cut flints...and a modern-made repro that demands knapped flints.

    5. Get a touchhole pick. Insert it before loading. This ensures a clear flash channel and an ignition cavity, which will speed up ignition.

    6. Prime with 4F...or Swiss Null B, if you can get it. It's 7F equivalent, lightning-fast ignition. Spread a thin layer over the entire pan.
     

    Inigoes

    Head'n for the hills
    MDS Supporter
    Dec 21, 2008
    49,354
    SoMD / West PA
    Is this going to be a meat gun that you will be hunting with?

    Traditions makes the PA pellet rifle, that can be broken down and cleaned after shooting, and it also can use Black powder substitutes like pyrodex.

    If not, feel free to buy a period correct flintlock of your choice.
     

    JohnC

    Active Member
    May 29, 2019
    311
    Baltimore, MD
    Let me take this from the top.
    1. Buy a quality gun. There are no good, cheap flintlocks. A quality lock alone will cost you about $300. Seriously consider buying used.

    2. 3F powder. Very few competitors at the top level use anything else for propellant. Start with the caliber in grains, work up in 5 grain increments. Fine-tune for the most accurate load. Goex is good. Swiss and Olde Eynsford are better, but you may not have the need for the extra consistency. Stay well clear of substitutes, they won't work.

    3. If the manufacturer has a recommended bullet size, use that. If not, my rule of thumb is that the bullet diameter + one patch thickness should be the bore diameter.

    4. Knapped flints vs cut flints vs agates will vary with the gun. I've got a 220-year-old duelling pistol that loves the cut flints...and a modern-made repro that demands knapped flints.

    5. Get a touchhole pick. Insert it before loading. This ensures a clear flash channel and an ignition cavity, which will speed up ignition.

    6. Prime with 4F...or Swiss Null B, if you can get it. It's 7F equivalent, lightning-fast ignition. Spread a thin layer over the entire pan.

    Equally good info. OP, I hope you realize that there are many ways to do this. It's quite unique compared to loading cartridges, where there are a lot of different ways to get a flintlock running.

    I somewhat disagree with the 3F vs 2F for my personal experience. Most people I know use 2F for flint locks greater than 50 cal, and 3F less than 50 cal. Could just be my small sample size. However I would argue that either will work just fine for blasting clays and balloons at 50 yards.
     

    IronDuck

    Active Member
    MDS Supporter
    Jan 11, 2021
    488
    Frederick ish MD
    Great hobby to get into, if you have places to shoot.
    Hodgdon's makes some good Pyrodex powders, should fit your needs unless you want true black powder.
    What type depends on the caliber your shooting and style, and how much cleaning you want to do!
    Way back in the day, I made some of my own lead round ball. It was easy/cheap to find molds and lead then. Just used an old t-shirt for patches. Lube anything from spit to lard, until I got cash, then I purchased whatever lube was on the shelf and cheapest.
    The old days, scoop a spoonful of grease out of the coffee can my mother collected it in, put it into a Kodac film can,(metal screw top type), push in the t-shirt precut or not, patch materials and away I went. Summer real hot day it was a little nasty...

    If you want to do your own build check out "Track of the Wolf, Inc."
     

    Harrys

    Short Round
    Jul 12, 2014
    3,362
    SOMD
    All great info, I had a flint lock many years ago and enjoyed it.

    However, after you load it before your hunt and come up dry now you have a loaded fire arm to contend with. In MD if you have it leaning up against or in your vehicle it is considered loaded and a fine or jail. Not a good thing and if you hunt public property you cannot just discharge it as it could be considered hunter harassments.

    Just saying.
     

    Pale Ryder

    Ultimate Member
    Jan 12, 2009
    6,232
    Millersville
    On a percussion you just need to remove the cap to render it “unloaded”. They make a brass jag to remove the lead round ball so you don’t have to fire it at the end of the hunt, and then you don’t have to contend with the necessary cleaning.
    For a flintlock I suppose you could dump the flash pan powder and remove the flint to make it “unloaded”.
     

    Inigoes

    Head'n for the hills
    MDS Supporter
    Dec 21, 2008
    49,354
    SoMD / West PA
    All great info, I had a flint lock many years ago and enjoyed it.

    However, after you load it before your hunt and come up dry now you have a loaded fire arm to contend with. In MD if you have it leaning up against or in your vehicle it is considered loaded and a fine or jail. Not a good thing and if you hunt public property you cannot just discharge it as it could be considered hunter harassments.

    Just saying.

    A muzzleloader is not considered loaded, if the ignition source is removed. It is legally known as "charged", which can be transported home.
     

    Harrys

    Short Round
    Jul 12, 2014
    3,362
    SOMD
    A muzzleloader is not considered loaded, if the ignition source is removed. It is legally known as "charged", which can be transported home.

    Good to know but would not want to test it out on a traffic stop. MD Natural Resource Police probably are familiar with the laws more than a local LEO.
     

    Inigoes

    Head'n for the hills
    MDS Supporter
    Dec 21, 2008
    49,354
    SoMD / West PA
    Good to know but would not want to test it out on a traffic stop. MD Natural Resource Police probably are familiar with the laws more than a local LEO.

    Yes,

    That is what is in the Maryland Hunter and trapping guide. Maryland distributes literature, they might as well live by it.
     

    BigRick

    Hooligan #15
    Aug 7, 2012
    1,140
    Southern Maryland
    So I've been wanting to get a flintlock rifle for a while. Preferably a Pennsylvania or Kentucky style. I know the process of loading and firing. But before I buy anything, what I would like to research/study is the in depth details: which powder is best, the right charge amount for the type I'm using, the thickness or size of patches to use. All the knowledge that will keep me from damaging the rifle or preventing my rise to stardom as the next Kentucky Ballistics.
    Does anyone have a source in mind that I should find? Thanks
    ~Sledgehammer


    Guys have pointed you in the right direction. My advise would be find a hooligan thread and pm Joe. He doesn’t hang around much but he is the man when it comes to flintlocks.
     

    dannyp

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Oct 30, 2018
    1,463
    great info in this post , shot my 1851 army this past weekend , had a blast ! it's definitely addictive , one leads three , and so on .
     

    Blacksmith101

    Grumpy Old Man
    Jun 22, 2012
    22,154
    The best book for what you want is Flintlocks - A Practical Guide for their Use and Appreciation by Eric Bye but it is out of print and very expensive if you can find it. I see it is available as a Kindle edition here is a link: https://www.amazon.com/Flintlocks-P...nd+appreciation&qid=1625768462&s=books&sr=1-1

    Other resources are Track Of The Wolf: https://www.trackofthewolf.com/Index.aspx
    Love their catalog, also out of print.

    Dixon Muzzleloading Shop http://www.dixonmuzzleloading.com/
    Host of the Gunmakers Fair for 37 years which is a must attend event.
    It appears the Gunmakers Fair is undergoing some changes so here is a link:
    https://www.nmlra.org/news/gunmakersfairatkempton
     

    damosan

    Active Member
    Feb 21, 2009
    261
    BTW, as an aside, they make these CO2 cartridge holding thingies that will use CO2 to pop the charge and ball right out of the barrel.

    Or if you're like me...you point the gun in a safe direction and pop it off. If you do that you can almost guarantee a herd of 290 point deer will walk right past you. :-/
     

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