Sparks not flying

[Craig Wilcox]

Bushfire, there is a place about 2.5 hr SE of me that has been a source of flints for a few centuries.  They have a nice get-together each spring.  So next spring I will try to get you a few chunks of raw flint and send them off to WA.  Duty for raw flint - "rock specimens" - should not be too dear.

Or you can hike out in your "desert", find some gold, and import whole bunches of flints!  Or find opals.  WA ha a fine history of really nice geologic specimens.

[Birddog6]

Notch the leather in the flint jaw & push the flint ALL the way back to the screw & see if that helps.

I have one lock you put a std 3/4 flint in it & it hangs up.  put a short 3/4 flint in it & it will light up
the house every time.  So I just sort thru & use the short ones for  it.

Sometimes a thick leather does best. Sometimes a thin one is best. Some need a hole in the back, some don't.

I would try all things Before I messed with heating the cock & bending it.  Cause unless you set up some blocks
& Measure it well,  you will bend it too much or not enough & end up it not working at all. 

I see allot more locks messed up, than fixed.

I had two dif guys call me 6-8 mo after I sold them the rifle & said it quit firing. They send me the lock, they bent the cock & it is all screwed up.  Since then,  I don't take them back. They have an issue (seldom) with a
lock it goes to the lock MFG, not to me.  I am not paying for you playing with a torch & the lock.  That is your baby.

Other option is Brad.  I hear nothing but Good from his work.

[Birddog6]

First of all, he sid he is New to this. Forming & fitting a Chambers lock is not even a option.

2nd, He needs to stick with the basics & Learn first, not modify the cock. (IMHO)

Cost $9.45 to send the lock to Brad. Prob won't cost much to adjust it.  $9.45 back.

I'd have it in the mail tomorrow, AFTER you tried all the flint suggestions I mentioned in the above post.

You need bout a dozen flints anyway, before ya even get going good with a flintlock. Flints & all the other
misc & some time at the range.

I have shot 2F in a pan Thousands of times with no issues.  Heck when I hunt in the rain, I use 2F or 3F.
4F in the rain in AL will turn to wet mush.

The Flint makes a big dif too, Every angle of it. NONE  of them are the same, all will differ slightly.   I usually buy 100 at a time as get them allot cheaper in bulk. Soon as I get them I grind the hump off top of all of them & make it a flat top.  Saves allot of aggravation at the range.  Flint sits well & doesn't slip or tip, etc.

Main thing is Get PAST this lil issue & get some time in at the range & Learn the rifle.  Time & shooting
will teach you what TO DO & what Not To Do. 

Also, if you can, shoot with someone that really Knows flintlocks. He/she can teach you more in a day
than you will remember. And it is time well spent.

[Natureboy]

  At our local National Park, we demonstrate historic weapons. According to NPS rules, we have to use paper cartridges, and no loading from the horn. We are also limited to 2F powder, meaning that we must prime with 2F. Here is a photo of my flinter, using much more powder than I usually do--the ranger supervisor makes the cartridges for the Brown Bess, 120 grains, so my gun looks like a flame thrower. But take a close look at the pan flash, and you'll see streaks of 2F that didn't burn in the pan. The gun fires great with 2F prime (I usually use 4F), but much of the 2F powder (I prime sparingly) doesn't ignite immediately. No wonder that I come home smelling like BP (I'm not complaining about BP perfume).

[Daryl]

LIGHT MY FIRE!!!!!!!!!!!!  Natureboy, I see closed "shooting" eye - I don't blame you one iota.

[Birddog6]

Appreciate the suggestions on people to look at the lock but bear in mind I’m not American and sending a lock half way across the world isn’t feasible.

Be that the case, the flint adjustment may b the easiest try . I think you need a more downward
Direction of the sparks. The shorter the flint the more downward it will push the sparks. If that
doesn’t work, might try a thin sliver of wood under the rear of the flint.
If either works, then you can decide if you want to bend the cock a tad or live it.