markthenewf
Member
- Joined
- Sep 8, 2018
- Messages
- 21
- Reaction score
- 4
Finally got a chance to take my new Pedersoli Harpers Ferry 58 cal flintlock out to the range to test out. The gun itself is pretty for sure, though I did get an aftermarket brass ramrod. I'm not fussy about that wood stuff as I have a habit of breaking firearm stuff with uncommon consistency.
I wasn't sure as to what would work best, so I brought both 2F and 3F for the main charge and 4F for the pan. 0.01" lubed patches for everything. Tried 35 and 40 grains starting off as that was in the lower end of recommended charges. It was not an overly productive trip, considering the amount of time I had fiddling with the flint & frizzen. Seems that, or appears that, it is super picky on having it all perfectly clean and dry. This is not the case with my flintlock rifle, which only requires a quick dry patch wipe of the flint & frizzen for perhaps 4 or 5 shots. Add to that, it's what I would classify as being "damned difficult" to be consistent with a single front blade sight.
So, here's the fugly target of my 15-yard exploits of the day. There are 3 sight-in shots (1 high and two low) where I was trying to figure out where the heck it was popping off to. It also seems as though it prefers a pristine barrel because I would wet-patch+brush+wet-patch+dry patch clean after each set of 3 shots just to keep things as consistent as I could. Those first shots were always at roughly the correct elevation. I didn't have a chrono with me today, but the 3F @35gr and 2F @40gr 'felt' the best.
I obviously need more practice, but I also need to get another flint. The one it came with seems to be a bit of a turd. I've tried knapping it and resetting it in the clamp, but it just wans't doing well. Also, a decent slab of it fell off when I pulled it out of the clamp, so perhaps it's already fractured and not yet fallen apart. Either way, my trip probably took three times as long as it should have because of it.
Anyways, it's been cleaned up and put back on my Texas wall until next time!
I wasn't sure as to what would work best, so I brought both 2F and 3F for the main charge and 4F for the pan. 0.01" lubed patches for everything. Tried 35 and 40 grains starting off as that was in the lower end of recommended charges. It was not an overly productive trip, considering the amount of time I had fiddling with the flint & frizzen. Seems that, or appears that, it is super picky on having it all perfectly clean and dry. This is not the case with my flintlock rifle, which only requires a quick dry patch wipe of the flint & frizzen for perhaps 4 or 5 shots. Add to that, it's what I would classify as being "damned difficult" to be consistent with a single front blade sight.
So, here's the fugly target of my 15-yard exploits of the day. There are 3 sight-in shots (1 high and two low) where I was trying to figure out where the heck it was popping off to. It also seems as though it prefers a pristine barrel because I would wet-patch+brush+wet-patch+dry patch clean after each set of 3 shots just to keep things as consistent as I could. Those first shots were always at roughly the correct elevation. I didn't have a chrono with me today, but the 3F @35gr and 2F @40gr 'felt' the best.
I obviously need more practice, but I also need to get another flint. The one it came with seems to be a bit of a turd. I've tried knapping it and resetting it in the clamp, but it just wans't doing well. Also, a decent slab of it fell off when I pulled it out of the clamp, so perhaps it's already fractured and not yet fallen apart. Either way, my trip probably took three times as long as it should have because of it.
Anyways, it's been cleaned up and put back on my Texas wall until next time!