Have you ever fired a flintlock pistol?

I've been shooting some reproductions for decades . They are fun to shoot , easier to clean than my flintlock rifle and musket and unless you really overload the pan you aren't going to get powder burns . That being said , the longest hangfire I ever had was from a CVA "Kentucky" pistol I put together from a kit .
 
Not a pistol but the first flintlock rifle I ever fired shot a hole in the grown about 3 feet in front of me feet. When I pulled the trigger the flash came up in front of my face and my head jerked back and the gun barrel pulled down and boom hole in grown.
 
I've been shooting some reproductions for decades . They are fun to shoot , easier to clean than my flintlock rifle and musket and unless you really overload the pan you aren't going to get powder burns . That being said , the longest hangfire I ever had was from a CVA "Kentucky" pistol I put together from a kit .
when I did fire them I put a good dose of powder in the pan to better insure a discharge since flint was so unreliable. Had good discharges that way, never got burned.
 
My flintlocks have always been equipped with a flashpan guard, which helps to contain and direct the flash up rather than out. It´s a safety feature that flintlock era reenacting requires almost universally. That said, I fired once from the hip and set fire to the right side of my beard. Had to shave it off... and I liked that beard, too. :bounce:
 
I started with cap-locks, and then went to flintlocks... That's the steeper learning curve right there! Cap-locks are no fuss: Load the powder, put the patch on the muzzle, put the ball in the center of the patch, (or cut the patch behind the bullet after you "start" the bullet into the rifling with a short starter...), ram the patched ball down until it is seated, cap at the line for safety's sake, and then put the piece on full-cock. Goes bang every time, unless you didn't follow the powder, patch, ball instruction in precisely that order!

Flintlocks... Doesn't necessarily go bang every time. When it doesn't, which is like 10 to 15 percent of the time... You've got no "twist, tap, rack" drill! It's more like---"Hmmm. Was it a flash in the pan? Add more powder to the priming pan, try again. Is the priming powder just sitting there? Check the battery or steel: clean? dry? Check the flint? Still there? Sharp? Set correctly vis-a-vis the steel at half-cock? Do I need to sharpen the flint? Is the flint clean? Do I need to wipe it off and make sure it is clean and dry? Do I need an entirely new flint? Is the vent hole clear? And so on.

To test to see if a flintlock was perfectly tuned, some gun makers would fire them held upside down.

The first flintlock I fired was a .40 caliber rifle, perhaps a bit like David Crockett's. I'm more of a rifle and musket guy, but I've fired a few flintlock pistols, and own one. Mine is a .45 "Kentucky" pistol with a sawn agate flint that I need to swap out. In fact, the pistol definitely needs some TLC to get back into tip-top shape, mostly from neglect.

I shoot a .310 patched ball in my .32 flintlock "skwerl rifle" and .670" round balls from a pair of .69 flintlock muskets. Only one has a broken mainspring that needs to be replaced, and probably needs work on the interface between the cock and the tumbler. The other one should be "just right" but sometimes the paper stuffed down the bore goes down the wrong way (it should be mostly on top of the bullet, if using paper cartridges, not between the ball and powder!) and stops up the vent hole... The problem with flintlocks is that they are machines in which the parts all have a limited life span... Some are incredibly long-wearing, others, mostly things like springs and so on, are rather less so.
 
My "Kentucky" pistol I made from the CVA kit 30 plus years ago. Not an accurate piece with its stainless steel insert , but it shoots surprisingly well. One important thing about flintlocks is to have a properly hardened frizzen . I browned the barrel .

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What I enjoy about shooting black powder, both percussion and flint, is the unpredictability of the shot. There are more variables with a flintlock, but the challenge - even shooting reenacting blanks - is how well you can keep the gun firing. I once changed flints on the move while marching - and still got off the next shot!!
 
Honestly, for me it is the history and one or another aspect of the loading process... That and follow-through. Shooting the muzzle stuffers really impresses on ya that this is it... You only got the "one shot" and when it fires, you hold on target....

The unpredictability of flintlocks is something I have yet to get used to... It kinda makes me "jump" a little. As far as musket shooting goes, I've gotten much more efficient and faster over the years... I used to get razzed for being slow, but now I get compliments for "loading in 12 times..."
 
I've been shooting black powder for years and in my opinion, when it comes to period weapons, there's nothing more beautiful than a flintlock. The looks of the lock appeals to me much more than a percussion-fired gun, although I'll admit that the percussion is more reliable. And a flintlock they can be a PITA to shoot, ( most are until you figure out what's wrong). It's mainly due to dull flints, a dirty pan or frizzen, or the touch hole has become plugged. Some of these issues can be mitigated a bit by slightly enlarging the touch hole a bit, or putting something in the touch hole when loading to keep the hole open. There is a continuous debate in the black powder community with regards to the ignition; does the priming powder set off the main charge by a few grains entering the touch hole, or does the heat generated by the burning of the priming powder in the pan set off the main powder charge. (I lean on the heat generation side of the debate).

But there also has to be a good geometry of the lock, (does the lock hold the flint at the right angle), does the frizzen have the correct hardness to render good sparking, and there needs to be a balance between the various springs in the lock, so the lock works well. Unfortunately, many of the commercial makers of these guns suffer from locks that do not have the right geometry or spring balance. I know this well, as I have a few that I worked hours on to get them to shoot with some reliability. Shoot a custom made flintlock with a high quality lock that's all in balance and you'll understand what I'm talking about. There is hardly any elapsed time between the flash in the pan and the discharge of the main charge. The mainspring and frizzen spring have the right spring rate so they don't wear out the flint too fast. A well made flintlock is a joy to shoot. Buy good quality flints, (I prefer English flints), and you might get 30-40 shots before the flint needs to be knapped.

The nice thing about shooting a pistol is that your holding it well away from your face.

One last thing that's very important, you should always wear shooting glasses when shooting. It's even more important to wear shooting glasses when shooting a flintlock. You've got a minor explosion, with burning powder and tiny shards of flint flying around just inches from your face.
 
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Powder burns on you hands?
The most severe powder burns I've seen, and that friends have sustained, are when a powder charge is introduced into the bore of a fouled, just fired barrel, and something ignites the powder. Never, ever wear gloves with any synthetic materials. That stuff will melt. It will adhere to your hands. Not quite napalm, but burning things that stick are mighty hideous and painful! Unburned powder and burned powder will "tattoo" your hand and fingers. You might go to the hospital to get the skin abraded. Like any burn, it HURTS.

For cap-locks, the recommendation is to leave the hammer down on the cone and the just fired cap (you'll cap a couple times on the line to ensure the barrel is clear, so there will be a fired cap on the cone). That way, the vent is sealed by the cap and hammer, and there's a minimal amount of oxygen inside the barrel, and anything smoldering will rapidly snuff out. Many of us fret and worry about what is being used for lubricant on the patch... A smoothbore can use a wet patch, so not to worry, but some kinds of grease may lend themselves to this kind of "cook off" issue (different from a metallic cartridge 'cook off' caused by a super-hot chamber and a closed bolt with a cartridge in the chamber...). Some opine that certain types of grease might be a factor. Personally, I stick (pun intended) with bees-wax and mutton tallow that I mix in a stove-top double-boiler.

Historically, and in living-history, historic impressions, re-enacting, we do the common drill, which is to prime the flintlock from the paper cartridge before we load the main charge. In modern safety practices, this is a major no-no. You'd want to leave a flintlock pistol at half-cock (having checked thoroughly to ensure it won't "go off half-cocked"--literally!), with the pan shut, and unprimed, load the main charge first, and then prime at the firing line just before firing your shot. You'd likely want a separate priming powder container or tiny priming horn to do that procedure for convenience.
 
Alamo - The Price of Freedom montage.jpg

Working on the IMAX movie The Alamo - The Price Of Freedom I caried my Mlle. 1777 French pistol on my belt using its belt hook whether I was portraying an Alamo defender or Mexican serjento but I don't remember ever actually firing it!
 
Our next door neighbor called one memorable spring Saturday morning. She asked if my dad & I would please come over & help put her husband into the car…

We hustled right over & found him laying in the backyard. At his side was the beautifully crafted flintlock pistol he had been working on during the winter. He had machined the barrel himself.

Having finished the inlays & the elaborate box made to hold the flintlock pistol & its furniture he loaded ‘er up. Power poles ran across the back of our properties. He took careful aim & pulled the trigger. His momentary elation was cut short by an agonizing pain in his right shin.

The ball had rebounded from the power pole he had aimed at. It bounded straight back, striking him squarely on the narrow front of his tibia. It knocked a sliver off the bone & ricocheted into the lawn. My dad & his wife did some first aid . I helped put him into the car she drove into the yard. After she drove off dad & I found the bullet. I kept it in my cigar box of arrowheads & other goodies for years… he did not want it back.

Oddly enough, I have fired every kind of black powder weapon from matchlock to blunderbuss to cannon with linstock but I have never fired a flintlock pistol. Some things just make a lasting impression, don-cha-know?
 
Our next door neighbor called one memorable spring Saturday morning. She asked if my dad & I would please come over & help put her husband into the car…

We hustled right over & found him laying in the backyard. At his side was the beautifully crafted flintlock pistol he had been working on during the winter. He had machined the barrel himself.

Having finished the inlays & the elaborate box made to hold the flintlock pistol & its furniture he loaded ‘er up. Power poles ran across the back of our properties. He took careful aim & pulled the trigger. His momentary elation was cut short by an agonizing pain in his right shin.

The ball had rebounded from the power pole he had aimed at. It bounded straight back, striking him squarely on the narrow front of his tibia. It knocked a sliver off the bone & ricocheted into the lawn. My dad & his wife did some first aid . I helped put him into the car she drove into the yard. After she drove off dad & I found the bullet. I kept it in my cigar box of arrowheads & other goodies for years… he did not want it back.

Oddly enough, I have fired every kind of black powder weapon from matchlock to blunderbuss to cannon with linstock but I have never fired a flintlock pistol. Some things just make a lasting impression, don-cha-know?
During my range safety officer training, we learned of cases where things like this occurred in modern, air-conditioned/ventilated indoor pistol ranges. In one case, a .45 acp bullet ricocheted/ rebounded and hit the firer in the leg. Apparently, he lay there bleeding while people stepped over him going too and fro the firing line?! :furious::nah disagree:
 
During my range safety officer training, we learned of cases where things like this occurred in modern, air-conditioned/ventilated indoor pistol ranges. In one case, a .45 acp bullet ricocheted/ rebounded and hit the firer in the leg. Apparently, he lay there bleeding while people stepped over him going too and fro the firing line?! :furious::nah disagree:
I was in the hospital in the Canal Zone with a Special Forces Sgt. He was an instructor at the School of the Americas. The striking lever of the firing mechanism on a detonated device audibly ticked through the leaves, bounced off a tree trunk & hit him on the back. It penetrating near his heart. He owed his life to the quick action of a medic.
 
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I was on the hospital in the Canal Zone with a Special Forces Sgt. He was an instructor at the School of the Americas. The striking lever of the firing mechanism on a detonated device audibly ticked through the leaves, bounced off a tree trunk & hit him on the back. It penetrating near his heart. He peed his life to the quick action of a medic.
I´ll bet he did. Probably owed his life too! :bounce: My wife grew up in Gamboa, Panama - where Dredging Division for the Canal is Headquartered.
 
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