Any flintlock hunters around here?

[HighUintas]

It seems most of the ML threads are about the BS inline stuff.

Are there any flinter hunters here that are successful?

I took mine out last year for the first time on a cow hunt.... That tag was BS last year. Every year I've hunted that unit with a bow in the same time period, I've been within 100yd of cows. Last year when I finally had a rifle tag, I saw 45ish bulls and zero cows. Wtf.

After I get my freezer well stocked, I'll likely take it out for the general bull season.

Anyway, I'm heading back to the family farm in Illinois next week to partake in the whitetail firearm season and planning on christening my flintlock with a couple of does.

58 cal


100yd

 

[jrbarnes9972]

My first flintlock kill from last year!

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

 

[ResearchinStuff]

I've killed 20+ deer with a flintlock. Regs and weather have changed, now I can use an inline and it's typically damp/ rainy, so it's been a few years since I killed with it. They're great fun when they work.

 

[EdP]

Yup, been doing it for 20+ years and have killed plenty of whitetail with them and have never had a problem with a shot going off while hunting. It does happen though so you have to pay attention to details. The biggest downside to me is that I can't see the sights in the first and last 15 minutes of legal shooting light when you are most likely to have deer moving. Although I have taken deer out to 105 yds with my .50 cal, I prefer to stay under 70. Hunting with a flintlock is just plain fun.

 

[Wrench]

I'm actively searching for a roklock myself. I typically hunt with trad archery gear....but I took a dive into muzzleloaders and started with inlines and moved to percussion sidelocks....I have figured out the sidelock to an unfair advantage, so the rocks are my next play.

I wish they were not so dang expensive. I love the idea of always being able to shoot because there's no rock shortage in near sight.

 

[ElDiablito]

It seems most of the ML threads are about the BS inline stuff.

It doesn’t just seem that way - 99.? % of muzzy hunters use an inline.

Been wanting a flinter for years myself.

 

[SchwarzStock]

Here's mine, 54 caliber. Can you see the repaired defect in the butt?

 

[Ditt44]

If you are wanting to get into flintlocks and don't need the latest and greatest and most fancy, a good condition Thompson Center Renegade or Hawken will be more than adequate. They are readily available online at gun broker and you'll be in the $450 to $600 range on most flintlocks. Search the local gun shops and pawn shops as well and if you do, take a bore light!

I have several TCs and they're all great shooters. I think it is the most satisfying way to hunt and more so if you actually can tag a deer! My current favorite is a PA Hunter carbine I found last spring for a great price. Stupid accurate, easy to point, light and again, stupid accurate. Hope to take a deer or two with that this year.

Pics of the carbine and the first shots with it after it came home. Various loads of 60, 65 and 70 grains 3F with a .490 rounds ball and .015 patch; which I later settled on a .018 ticking patch and it's hole-on-hole if I can see straight

 

[HighUintas]

I've killed 20+ deer with a flintlock. Regs and weather have changed, now I can use an inline and it's typically damp/ rainy, so it's been a few years since I killed with it. They're great fun when they work.

Have you used a cows knee in bad weather?
Here's mine that I made. It worked beautifully last winter through rain and snow. I left the load in the barrel for a couple months until season end and then went and shot. It went off just like I'd just loaded it!

The biggest downside to me is that I can't see the sights in the first and last 15 minutes of legal shooting light when you are most likely to have deer moving.

That is something I'm still working through. The sights seem to be a highly personal thing. I'd like to just put a peep and globe on mine, but I don't think I can do it. I'll probably end up with a small polished bead w a 45* angle so that it glows in low light with a deep V for the rear.

I'm actively searching for a roklock myself. I typically hunt with trad archery gear....but I took a dive into muzzleloaders and started with inlines and moved to percussion sidelocks....I have figured out the sidelock to an unfair advantage, so the rocks are my next play.

I wish they were not so dang expensive. I love the idea of always being able to shoot because there's no rock shortage in near sight.

If you get on muzzleloadingforum.com you can probably find a Lyman or investarms or TC flintlock at a reasonable price, in the range of $350-550. Reports are that those locks are ok. Alternatively, build yourself one from a kit using either a chambers lock, kibler lock, or buckridge lock. They're currently the highest quality available, off the shelf tuned, and fast and reliable. Kibler makes a kit called Woodsrunner that would be a near perfect flintlock mountain hunting rifle. He's also going to be releasing a Hawken kit in the next few years. Even though the kibler kits are expensive, they're heirloom quality and the easiest to put together and finish.

Here's mine, 54 caliber. Can you see the repaired defect in the butt?

I can't... Was the toe broken/cracked? That's a good looking Hawken! Did you build it?

 

[HighUintas]

If you are wanting to get into flintlocks and don't need the latest and greatest and most fancy, a good condition Thompson Center Renegade or Hawken will be more than adequate. They are readily available online at gun broker and you'll be in the $450 to $600 range on most flintlocks. Search the local gun shops and pawn shops as well and if you do, take a bore light!

I have several TCs and they're all great shooters. I think it is the most satisfying way to hunt and more so if you actually can tag a deer! My current favorite is a PA Hunter carbine I found last spring for a great price. Stupid accurate, easy to point, light and again, stupid accurate. Hope to take a deer or two with that this year.

Pics of the carbine and the first shots with it after it came home. Various loads of 60, 65 and 70 grains 3F with a .490 rounds ball and .015 patch; which I later settled on a .018 ticking patch and it's hole-on-hole if I can see straight

Is that at 50 yards? Nice shooting! I'm pretty sure mine will stack them in one hole , but I am a terrible shot. The pan going off in my face makes me want to have a seizure.

 

[ResearchinStuff]

i tried a cows knee, have seen others try melting wax around a full pan, don't love either option. most of my flintlock hunts involve driving deer and pretty quick shot opportunities.

i work on my frizzen so it fits perfectly over the pan and keep the whole lock jambed aggressively up into my right armpit if it is wet. Certain flashhole designs seem to work better in wet weather too, you want the cone on the inside towards the main charge, not the outside.

older TC's are good, early 2000's lyman's are good. The few traditions i've seen really, really sucked, hard. apparently lyman/investarms had a major issue a while back, but i don't know the details.

 

[Ditt44]

Is that at 50 yards? Nice shooting! I'm pretty sure mine will stack them in one hole , but I am a terrible shot. The pan going off in my face makes me want to have a seizure.

25 yards as that is the first time I shot it, did not even adjust the sights, just tried to get on paper. The previous owner had it dialed in. I went to the .018 patch after those shots and shot at the 50 yard gongs. I think they're 8, 6 and 3 inches across. Hit. Hit. Hit. The smallest was a stunning moment to see it swinging when the smoke cleared.

At 50 yards that three-inch target is pretty much covered by the front bead. I use a six-o'clock hold when aiming so it's generally hold it about half way up the black and shoot. Similar groups, well under 1.5 inches if I take my time and the pan goes off fast. Always on a rest though. I will never take an off-hand shot at a deer, just too much to go wrong and do not trust myself unless that deer is VERY close, as in feet away.

 

[HighUintas]

i tried a cows knee, have seen others try melting wax around a full pan, don't love either option. most of my flintlock hunts involve driving deer and pretty quick shot opportunities.

i work on my frizzen so it fits perfectly over the pan and keep the whole lock jambed aggressively up into my right armpit if it is wet. Certain flashhole designs seem to work better in wet weather too, you want the cone on the inside towards the main charge, not the outside.

older TC's are good, early 2000's lyman's are good. The few traditions i've seen really, really sucked, hard. apparently lyman/investarms had a major issue a while back, but i don't know the details.

Yup, I've seen some people say they're plenty happy with their traditions, but that was after getting a replacement frizzen because the first wasn't hardened correctly.

I doubled up on the lock weatherproofing. I sealed around the pan with chapstick so I could take the cow knee off in the weather for a stalk if needed. The cows knee was primarily to prevent the lock from getting snagged in all the thick scrub oak. Hunting in Illinois from a stand, I'll likely just seal the pan w chapstick if needed and not use the knee.

I've got a white lightning liner in mine (come on inside) and a chambers ketland lock.... It's incredibly reliable and fast. The only time I have a misfire or delayed ignition is when I'm at the range and get 20+ shots in without wiping the fouling off the touch hole and using a really old dull flint. Keeping that hole clear and the flint sharp does wonders

 

[ResearchinStuff]

it is possible to wear a frizzen out. it is also possible to reharden them. get the thing glowing red hot with a map torch or induction heater, then quench it in the hottest water you can get from your sink.

 

[SchwarzStock]

Have you used a cows knee in bad weather?
Here's mine that I made. It worked beautifully last winter through rain and snow. I left the load in the barrel for a couple months until season end and then went and shot. It went off just like I'd just loaded it!View attachment 793360


I can't... Was the toe broken/cracked? That's a good looking Hawken! Did you build it?

Flaw in the butt, had too much time invested to toss it. Yes, Colerain barrel, L&R lock.

 

[HighUintas]

@Wrench this would be awesome if you're looking for an cheaper one

https://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/threads/cabelas-58-hawken-flintlock.187515/

 

[SchwarzStock]

I like my old guns (or replicas) to be somewhat authentic, no in-lines....