New rifle advice needed!

[Mike in Oz]

G'day gents,

Well I soon hope to be taking delivery of my brand spanking new Pedersoli, Alamo, .50 Cal, flint-lock, long rifle.

Now this is the first rifle i have ever owned that is brand new.

When i examined it at the dealers there appears to be a hard cruddy gunk in the barrel and on some parts that i assume is some type of preserving grease, that will need to be cleaned off.

Apart from the obvious cleaning and oiling what else do you need to care for and preserve a brand new flint lock?

[deepcreekdale]

Once that preservative is removed, cleaning is simple. YOu will find that everyone has an opinion and an method, probably all of them work fine, As many have posted here, there is nothing in black powder residue that cannot be quickly and efficiently dissolved in water. I like hot water but many here say that creates a flash rust problem although I have never had an issue with that. After shooting, I remove the lock, stick a toothpick into the touchhole and fill the barrel with water. Let it soak a few minutes and then scrub until the patches come out clean. A bore face scraper is good to have to remove fouling along the breech face. I clean the lock with a toothbrush and thoroughly dry then spray with some water displacing oil and wipe that off. Every so often, I put a little dab of grease on the bearing parts of the lock, like where the mainspring meets the tumbler. Then, oil the bore with oil of your choice, replace the lock and wipe it down and you are finished. Usually, I will come back after 3-4 days and wipe out the barrel one more time, then re-oil lightly if I am shooting again soon, if not, I might wipe the bare with some RIG (rust inhibiting grease). That is about it. Some like to use soap and water, others like some of the solvents that are on the market, they work but are not necessary. On e other thing, flints are variable things, some last dozens of shots, others wear down in a handful of shots. Make sure it is sharp and it should work find. Best thing to maintain a flintlock is to shoot it often but I expect that won't be a problem. Congratulations on your new purchase and welcome to the forum. Keep us all posted on how things are going.

[hanshi]

Welcome to the forum, Mike.  Deepcreekdale's advice is spot on and shooting is the only way to get to know your rifle.  Just remember that with flintlocks there is a learning curve; don't get frustrated.

[Mike in Oz]

Cheers gents,

I've been shooting percussion for a couple of years now but am looking forward to getting the flintlock going!

[John SMOthermon]

You'll do fine Mike , Welcome to the dark side.

[Mike in Oz]

LOL thanks guys! 

[trentOH]

I'll suggest you purchase a copy of Eric Bye's book "Flintlocks-A Practical Guide For Their Use And Appreciation". Read it cover to cover, then read it again. Then put it under your pillow at night.

[sghart3578]

Mike,

I just bought my first flintlock also, a Pedersoli Frontier in .54 caliber.  I cleaned the bore with regular solvent and it worked great.  Water after that.

I can't help much with advice but after shooting mine I can tell you how fun they are.  Don't forget to pack a vent hole pick.

Best of luck,

Steve in N CA

[Mike from OK]

I will second what Dale said.

I used to use all the potions on the market for cleaning and treating my barrel... No more. I went to plain tepid tap water. Afterwards I swab the bore dry and then swab a lightly oiled patch for rust prevention.

Before I leave the house on my next shooting excursion I swab the oil out of the bore with an alcohol soaked patch or two.

Cheap. Simple. Effective.

Mike

[heelerau]

Gents, I am a mate of Mikes,  just curious what region does this rifle sort of try to represent? ie say a Tennessee  style?  We did some work on the rifle yesterday, 90 grains of FFFg, 10 thou patch and pregreased patches, 2 1/2 inches at 50. Got the rifle shooting poi, also needed a bit more priming in the pan for reliable ignition. It does seem to smack you in the cheekbone when shooting off the bench. I imagine it will take a little while to break in the bore.

cheers

Heeler

[Standing Bear]

70 gr FFg should be plenty.  Open the touch hole to 1/16”.  I’ve not had a Pedersoli or seen a breech plug for one but I understand they have an ante chamber in the breech plug something like .30”.  It needs to be cleaned well. A regular tool for cleaning a flat breech won’t do any good. I’ve seen proper cleaning tools for these but can’t recall where.

[Old Ford2]

Hi, and welcome to this great forum.
A few points to consider when going out the first time with a new klatch lock, a screw driver to tighten the screw that holds the flint, these screw slots are often very fine ( narrow ), fire a blank ( no ball needed ) to dry out the bore and to lightly soil the barrel, if not your first ball will most always be off center to the rest of the group.
Spit patches are ok, if you shoot immediately after loading, but 15 minutes later, they are dry, and afford little help in keeping your bore crud soft between shots, so, a lightly oiled patch will work wonders and give constant results between shots.
When shooting from a regular shooting position ( not on a woods walk ) a small bottle of soapy water really helps in keeping the smokepole ready for the next shot.
In reality, there is only so much junk, that you can carry when going for a shoot.
What I have found really handy for the shooting bench ( not on a woods walk ) is a small tool box with all your shooting needs. ( I will try and name a few: spare vent prick, flints, screw driver, cleaning patches, even a spare collapsible cleaning rod, small bottle of soapy water, a few spare balls, also a check list)
Your shooting bag will often carry most of what you need, but it really spoils your day, when you travel a good distance ( 1/2 hour drive ) get there and realize you forgot something, and have to return home to get what you need.
Now remember, you are getting this valuable advice from a 70 year old who travels at least 10 miles a day back and forth to get something he left at the back door, that he needed. I WROTE THE BOOK ON BEING ABSENT MINDED
More than once, I got to the range without my ramrod.
If you need any tips on how to recover what you left behind, you can contact me.
You DO have a copy of Dutch Shoultz paper on successful shooting the black powder rifle??? Get it!
Have a great day!
Fred