Flintlock priming powder?

K

kraigwy

New member
I've always dabbled (not seriously) in Muzzle Loaders but they have be cap and ball or inlines.

I just bought a flintlock to play with and dont know a whole lot (anything) about them.

I know 4f is recommended for priming but impossible to find here.

What else can be used? What substitute, if an would work?
 
I use Goex 3F to prime and load a TC Hawken 45 cal.

If the 3F is not fine enough, very carefully flatten some between 2 spoons. But not safe or recommended to do .

I think factories make it while its still wet?
 
I use 3f in the pan. Never messed with 4f and haven't had any problems. Only real bp in the pan though. No subs.
 
I bought a neat little porcelain mortar and pestle at a kitchen shop down in Ft. Collins a number of years ago, and when I need some priming powder for the flinter, I just grind up some 2fg and use that. Some folks just prime with 2f from the horn and claim it works as well. I've just always used a separate priming horn and 2fg grindings. Works very well for me.
 
3-F

I bought a neat little porcelain mortar and pestle at a kitchen shop down in Ft. Collins
Click to expand...
I have often thought about doing this but have too many birthdays behind me, to do so. I do get good results from using 3F and did manage to trade for some 4-F at a G.S. Might add that I don't shoot rock-crushers very often. ... :)

Be Safe !!!
 
As others have already said:

- Real BP only (major frustration item)

- 3Fg if that's all that's available will work fine (as opposed to "best" :D)

- Don't overfill pan. Just enough to reach bottom of/(not cover up) vent hole

- Real Flint.... not the sawn agate supplied with some commercial guns (major frustration item)
See https://www.trackofthewolf.com/Categories/PartDetail.aspx/180/1/FLINTS

- Learn Simple knapping (major frustration item)
See https://thefiringline.com/forums/showpost.php?p=6469913&postcount=10

This all sounds very complex. One range session, though, and it's second nature/no problemmo
 
You can use larger grain. Remember in the 18th Century soldiers primed their pans from their cartridges. It wasn't until the late 18th Century that some soldiers began carrying priming flasks.

Colonial Williambsurg did some high speed photography of a flintlock lock in action. It showed more sparks flying out of the pan when finer grain was used as priming compound. The larger grain had fewer sparks bounce back up. They believe it was because the larger grain would trap the spark better than finer grain.
 
I use Goex 3F for the main charge and the priming in both my own guns, a 62 cal and a 50 cal. I can't tell any difference in the quickness of ignition from 3F to 4F, so I just prime with my regular powder. Never had a problem.
 
I have no problem finding 4F so thats what i've been using. Very fast ignition times. I tried 3F and it works as well but I did notice a very slight delay in ignition vs 4F. There is ways to crush 3F down to 4F although i too am a beginner with flintlocks and do not know the exact method. VERY helpful guys over at the muzzleloader forum , they probably can help :

http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/index.php?
 
Last edited:
Take a Tablespoon of your 2Fg, put it on a flat 1x8 (or your wife's bread board :D ),
then roll over it a few times with (your wife's ;):D:eek:) wooden rolling pin

Presto.... great priming powder.
 
I bought a neat little porcelain mortar and pestle at a kitchen shop down in Ft. Collins a number of years ago, and when I need some priming powder for the flinter, I just grind up some 2fg and use that. Some folks just prime with 2f from the horn and claim it works as well. I've just always used a separate priming horn and 2fg grindings. Works very well for me.
Click to expand...

I have been doing this since the early 70s. Never wanted to keep two different cans of powder for just one gun.
 
While it may be hard to really notice...the finer granulations should give you a more consistent ignition and slightly quicker one as well...as the powder burns faster. Try not to put too much powder in your pan, and don't block the touch hole with it as it will only slow things up. Proper ignition is from a quick flash of powder igniting and not from it just burning it's way into the flash hole.
 
Old stony, wish I'd read you post yesterday. I did notice a difference in ignition time, I think it was because I tried to put the priming powder into the flash hole.

I'll give your idea a try this afternoon.
 
I bought my porcelain M&P years ago .It was made by COORS. I didn't know at that time they made anything except beer . Also design and make their own cans !
 
Tsk tsk.... ;) :D :D :D

Flint_Instr.jpg
 
On priming the pan

A long time ago I was shown by a master flintlock shooter how he primed his pan whilst shooting next to him at a competition. His rifle fired as fast and as consistently as anything on the line, flint or percussion. And he hit everything he shot at. He showed me how he primed to get this consistent ignition:

On his right-handed rifle, and after loading the charge and patched r.b., he laid the rifle in the crook of his arm, pointing downrange.

He filled the pan half full, tilted the rifle with the pan upward just enough so when he tapped lightly on the bottom of the pan, the touch-hole got covered with priming powder (looked like 4fg as I remember).

Then, he took his vent pick and ran it through the priming powder, well into the main charge in the barrel. He did this until he was satisfied the main charge was lined with priming powder. This method also left a slight tunnel through the main charge to aid ignition.

He then closed the frizzen on the pan, tilted the rifle so the pan was slightly downward and gave the rifle a few gentle raps to move the priming away from the touchhole. This gave a little "air" space between the priming and the touchhole to let the sparks do their work quickly, and without having to burn through any extra powder before the rifle fired.

He did all this very quickly, and consistently. And he was a most excellent shot, as I mentioned before. Whenever I hunt with a flintlock, I always use this method to prime. I also check my priming fairly regularly throughout a day's hunt.

What I've found that works very well for a vent pick, is a 56mm bass E (6th) acoustic guitar string with the bronze winding stripped off about an inch and a half, and then leaving about an inch and a half of the winding left on for a grip. These work very well to push priming powder through the main charge via the touchhole.

This is all for nothing more than a FWIW info post. It certainly works for me, and you may want to try it for yourself. If your lock has a good sharp flint in its jaws adjusted correctly, and your frizzen has a good hard face on it, that's a very good start in your new experience with a flintlock. Klatches are going to happen for you from time to time, but that's just part of your journey learning the care and feeding of a flintlock rifle (or smoothie).

Have fun with your new gun.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top