So I want a flint gun

[MR. GADGET]

What to get, do you look for a repop or real. Want to use it, not hang on a wall.

I see the U.S. Model 1816 Flintlock Musket in 69 cal, cool I have the ball molds and stuff for it.
Kind of wanted a 75 cal, just for the heck of it. Something Like Pedersoli 2nd Model Brown Bess Musket or Pedersoli French Model 1777 Charleville Musket in 69.

What you think, any good ones out there? Think I would find a used repop or a good real on for a deal?

I don't think I'm looking for one to rebuild or spend a year finding parts, and lining it. If that would be the case I will just get a repop.

Any help would be great.
Thanks

[Greg Ogdan, 11444]

Jon,

Tim Cooper, in the Northwest Territory, Shoots a brown Bess repro that is deadly, even shooting N-SSA style. Of course, he's well practised in flint and he's a pretty good shot anyway. D*mn, I really do hate to give hin a big head. Just a little FYI.

[John Holland]

Personally, I like the old Navy Arms Charleville made in Japan. I can break 25 yd targets with it consistantly. I use a .678 Lyman ball dipped in Crisco and 65 gr of 2FFG Goex.

JDH

[MR. GADGET]

know of any on the market?

Anyone that I should stay away from due to problems or parts?

[hp gregory, 9128]

i have shot flinters for a lot of years. all sizes and shapes. if its a well made gun it can be a very enjoyable experiance to shoot. lots of people think that there is this huge delay with the ignition. that all depends on how you treat the gun. you have to learn what it takes to get good igntion. every gun wants something a little differant to make it work well. there are several things that can help or hurt a flinter. first is the lock. if its giving good sparks you can then take a look at the touch hole. this needs to be the proper size and shape. it also needs to be above the pan far enough that when the priming powder goes off the flame jumps up and into the hole. if you have these two things in good shape you then need to learn how much priming powder to use. the largest mistake most folks make is to cover the touch hole with powder. they think the more the better. actualy its the opposite that works best. you need just the correct amount to create a hot flame that can jump up and into the main charge through the touch hole. over the years i have built some flinters that were faster than a percussion gun. however if you varied on your loading procedure the gun would let you know it wasnt happy. shooting a flinter in the correct manor can do a lot of good for your shooting in general. you learn to shoot a flinter well and it will make you a much better overall shot. just one mans views on having fun.

hp gregory

[Mike McDaniel]

I have to agree with HP. A flintlock is a postgraduate education in flawless technique.

My advice (as a pistol shooter): Use Swiss Null B priming powder. Put a thin layer across the entire pan, so that if a spark touches anywhere it hits powder. Reknap or replace the flint if you have any doubts about ignition. And never take the line without at least one spare flint ready to go.

[newtekpa]

Hey Jon,

When you get an appropriate flinter (I have a Japanese made Navy Arms Charleville), you're welcome to join us West of Fuquay at LLR to play. We have several smoothbore shooters, most are shooting fowlers, but some of us enjoy the military style.

Email me if you'd like more info.

[Southron Sr.]

First of all-if you are new to flintlocks, keep in mind that a "well tuned" flintlock is just as "fast" as a percussion muzzleloader. Unfortunately, a lot of the flint repros out there on the market come with flint locks that badly need to be tuned up. So, when you buy your flinter, plan on finding an experienced flintlock gunsmith to tune up the lock of a gun IF it needs tuning.

Personally I am in AWE of the Japanese made Brown Besses. Back in 1979 I ran into a 20 year old college student who was wearing a cast on his broken right shoulder.

He told me that the way he broke his shoulder was that he was in a Rev War re-enactment! He was engaged in "Volley Fire" as a member of a company. While his unit was blazing away, he kept dumping powder down his barrel, never realizing that his musket WASN'T shooting in each volley UNTIL it finally did.

"KER-BOOOOOOM"

He estimated that he had loaded "20+ something" powder charges in the gun when it finally fired. He told me that when it went off, it sounded like a cannon. The recoil knocked him down and broke his shoulder!

He also informed me that AMAZINGLY his musket's barrel was not injured in the least by the massive charge! So, apparantly those Japanese use some very strong steel in their Brown Bess barrels!

P.S. The above described incident is another illustration as why you need to use a well tuned flintlock!