Optimum Pistol Barrel Length?

[Dancy]

Looking for some input from flint pistol shooters on best barrel length.

I have never owned or shot a flint pistol, so have no experience carrying one. Considering getting a 50 cal. to carry as a backup to my rifle for dispatching big game (deer) if the need arises. Of course I would be doing informal target shooting and plinking as well.

Would a 10" barrel be a suitable length that would carry easily, balance well and have a long enough sight radius for good short range shooting?

James

[SCLoyalist]

I can't see where flint-vs-percussion is a critical factor with respect to balance, sight radius, etc.  

I have two pistols with 10 inch barrels - the percussion .45 T/C Patriot has an 8 inch sight radius, the Kentucky style .36 flinter has a 6 inch sight radius.  Both have wide notches, and substantial, tall square front sights that you can see without using your imagination.  Both guns are  decent performers out to 50 yards for paper targets.  The flinter would probably be better with an 8" sight radius rather than the 6" it has.

Both guns have decent trigger pulls - T/C set trigger, flinter about a 2 or 3 lb pull simple trigger.   In contrast, years ago I had a Lyman Plains pistol with a pretty heavy single trigger and I could never get it to group even at 25 yards, much less 50.

So, a 10" barrel strikes me as about right,  and I'd give some thought to sights and ensuring I had a decent trigger pull on the gun, and for dispatching game, would limit range to 25 yards.  Flint would be a concern only in that like any flinter, you want a good sparker for fast ignition.   As to carrying in the field, take care that you have some way of ensuring the ramrod won't fall out of the thimbles and be lost.  It's happened to me.

SCL

[The other DWS]

I'd say a good well-balanced and tuned 10" barrel in 4 or 50 cal would work well,  you should be able to get 45 colt power and accuracy without too much difficulty and its plenty for the purposed you stated.   I've seen some historic late period flint pistols that had small bar locks that locked the hammer as well as pinning the frizzen closed.  I don't know if anyone makes a reproduction or what it'd take to modify one to that configuration but It'd make a good addition to an actual "carry" pistol.

about 20 years ago I built one to use mostly in the side matches our RevWar and F&I group had at our private annual live fire event.  I used a 10" Getz 45cal. barrel, patent breech, and a small well tuned Durs Egg lock. I had the barrel turned with a short oct section, wedding band then mildly swamped round to a sort of slightly flared cannon muzzle.  It hung real steady in a formal duelist stance.  I had a beadheaded pin front sight and a good sharp square notch rear.  lock and trigger were balanced and tuned.  It was very accurate and I won a bunch of matches with it.  I had been shooting a lot of IHMASSA pistol silhouette about that time too and was very comfortable shooting it out to 100 yrds just for fun.  wouldn't knock over the pigs but seldom missed ringing them good.   

Very sadly it was stolen in a break-in and never recovered.
One of these days I'll build myself another in about the same configuration---maybe a cased set

[Don Getz]

A suggestion on sight placement.    No matter how long you make the barrel, I would install the rear sight right in front
of the breech plug....1/4".....keep those sights as far apart as possible, will make you a better shooter........Don

[northmn]

A suggestion on sight placement.    No matter how long you make the barrel, I would install the rear sight right in front
of the breech plug....1/4".....keep those sights as far apart as possible, will make you a better shooter........Don

Those I made for target work in percussion were made with the sights that way as were those made by an individual that could really shoot pistols. The sights were placed right over the breech, infront of the tang.  I chopped a straight octagon 40 down to 9 inches as it held better for me.  Pistols are more work to build thatn one thinks.

DP

[Larry Pletcher]

I noticed that you mention carrying it while deer hunting.  Some, if not many, states have minimum requirements on barrel length.  Jim Chambers sells his pistol kits with a 13" barrel to solve this problem.  It might be worth your while to check with your state's deer hunting laws. 

As far as sights go, I like a long sight radius. 

Regards,
Pletch

[Daryl]

9 or 10" is a good length for a flint pistol.

[Dancy]

OK, from what you boys are telling me, a 10" barrel would be a good choice for my intended use and that I should have the rear sight back near the breech for a better sight radius. I will look into the local game laws to check min. requirements as well.

Daryl, that is a beauty, is that about 9 inches?

Thanks for all the posts and good advice!

James

[Daryl]

9 3/8" to the vent. A piece of tight .53 cal. rifle barrel, originally 1" octagonal, 66" twist square rifling. I use a .526" ball, 12 oz. denim and 55gr. 3F.  It barks a bit, but shoots into 2 1/2" at 50 yards with that load off bags.

[The other DWS]

Daryl,  whats a 52 cal RB weigh,  sounds like you are getting into maybe 41 mag velocities with that one  "barks a bit" indeed

[Daryl]

Smacks hard, too. I figured it was close to kin to my 4" M29 loaded with 220gr. I think those balls weighed 220gr.

[Daryl]

This one's a good form and shape to copy. Taylor made this pistol in .60 smoothbore, seems to me. Interesting I don't have a full length shot of it- maybe in this computer, not uploaded to photobucket.

[Dancy]

Oh yeah, that one just oozes class! Me like!

[The other DWS]

at one point one of my friends had a collection of original English French and early American flint pistols, somewhere between 3 and 4 dozen as I recall.
  I studied and handled all of them prior to creating my target pistol.  While those brass butted pistols are most attractive I found the grip angle to be too gentle for me to shoot well.   Some of the better dueling pistols had a more sharply angled grip which provided a more natural grip for a more instinctive "lift" to the firing position.  the heavy brass butts on military arms helped to offset the barrel weight of iron barreled horse-pistols or brass-barreled sea service pistols as well as serving as more effective clubs in hand to hand melee's.