My father shot at 1 doe three times with a flintlock in PA back in early 90's. He was in a tree stand and the doe stood at 40 yards in a field. She just watched him go through the whole loading process and fire, he was using actual black powder too so the smoke cloud was thick. There was hardly any wind so it just lingered there. After he fired the 3rd shot and she was still there he just sat down and watched her slowly feed off into the hedgerow. He had no idea what happened other than he missed every shot. 🤣🤣🤣
Great video!! I was out with my CVA 32 cal and just not seeing the squirrel. It just like when your hunting deer you see a ton of squirrel and when your hunting squirrel you see a ton of deer. glad you got a couple.
@@SpiritoftheOutdoors I want a 36 cal flinter and a smooth bore but that will have to wait! I have been shooting smoke poles for a while and I am still learning.
You seriously crack me up. I'm with ya brother, I know there are some squirrels that have flipped me off a time or two. I was out deer hunting this morning and I know those deer were giggling at me cause I never saw not one. Keep smiling my friend, CC
Digging all your videos brother got a lot in common and congrats on quitting drinking I’ve had the same struggle and been clean and sober 28 years come February
I'm just getting back into traditional shooting and I'm loving these videos. I subscribed after watching just a few minutes. Keep up the good old country boy traditions and live life the way it's supposed to be.
@@SpiritoftheOutdoors after watching a few more of your videos I'm seriously thinking building myself a nice flintlock. I used to hunt in PA flintlock patch and ball way back and it was a blast.
I bagged a squirrel the other day with my Pedersoli Indian Trade gun .62 I have loaded with #7 1/2 shot. I carry that this time of year in case I run into a grouse which is now in season. Love small game hunting with a muzzleloader, nothing like it.
Watched your video building your flintlock and you mentioned that the ramrod fits tighter than you would like. If this is still a problem I've done the following. Take a dowel that is just a little smaller than your ramrod then cut a slot in one end about an inch or so long, then take a strip of fine to medium sandpaper the same width of the slot length, and long enough to stick out about an inch or so on either side. Roll this up so it is tight enough to fit down the ramrod channel and hole then chuck it up in a hand drill and turn it while moving it it and out. This will open that hole up some. It's just something that has worked for me. Love your videos. God bless you and yours. Stew.
Man that is a great idea. However as your see in this video im hard on a ramrod and no dowel will hold up to my handling so i cut this privet shoot that i make arrows with and ran it down with a small hand plane and sanded it smooth and it will handle my abuse. Thank you for the idea tho i will use that before im done. I feel like i will build a 54 smoothbore next year
I really like your rifle, it’s pretty nice. You probably no this but all of my open sight guns, I adjust the sights bench resting the gun. I set them at about twenty five yards, with cardboard and a one inch orange target sticker. I adjust by filling the back notch up level with the front sight, aiming at the bottom of the sticker. And I want the bullet to hit one inch high. That way you aim at the bottom of a squirrels head or chest and lights out. Your not covering your target up in this manner, you have a plain view of your target. God bless you and your family!
The journey to accuracy is a long road if you try to figure it all out on your own. Let me offer up a few pointers. First pick up your fired patches and look closely at them. If they are burned through around the ball or torn and ragged around the edges then that shot won't fly straight. Most any load will shoot ok at 25 yards it's the 50 yard group that will tell the tale. The best thing every black powder shooter can do is polish their bores. Buy a red 3m metal finishing pad and cut patches to fit in a patch loop for cleaning shotguns. For small bores you might have to file out a handgun patch loop to take those thick patches. Run about four patches 50 strokes each in and out your bore until it shines like new money. Even new barrels often have tiny machining marks and burrs in the rifling. Older bores usually have a few rusty, rough spots in them. When your bore is polished it will load easier and go more shots between swabbing. Most importantly a polished bore won't burn up or tear up your patches so easily. It may also allow you to load a little bit thicker patch or use a tiny bit larger ball and that tends to give tighter 50 yard groups. But you can think about that later. Pressure and friction will cause every patch and lube combination to fail at some point. A rough bore only makes things worse faster. When you learn to read your patches you are on your way to accuracy. Start your load development with your chosen patch material and lube and start low shooting at least three shots and gather up your patches and look at them. Increase your powder charge 5 grains at a time and watch your patches. Keep increasing the charge until the patches start to burn through. When you start getting burn through Back off five grains. That's your maximum charge with that patch and lube combination. That's enough info to get you further down the road. I won't bore you with what I do to get ready to shoot a match. I have been shooting offhand muzzleloading matches for more than 40 years. I like to have my squirrel rifles to hit about an inch high at 25 yards. I hold on the bottom of his jaw and the ball lands just behind his eye. As you can see they are a lot lighter to carry when their heads are gone. Thanks for the videos. John Davis
Im not sure where youve been but weve already been through all this with this rifle and it stacks round ball about an inch and a half at 50 yrds. Im kinda lost on why your giving me all these instructions when ive covered all this in videos.
I've not seen those videos yet. I keep liking your videos and more keep on showing up in my feed but not those yet. Anyway, I write things for the benefit of the many people who read the comments. Thanks for the videos.
That's a fun day even if you don't bag anything. I don't know much about using flintlocks, is it not firing properly sometimes because how high it's aimed is causing the powder in the frizzen to move away from the touch hole?
My brother, nephew and I took to the woods with our black powder rifles a few weeks ago, Brother and I only got one shot each and both missed, Nephew shot 4 times, killed w squirrels with a 36 cal flinter, he said that was 21 for him this fall! I did some target shooting since, rifle is shooting pretty good, but I am 70 plus! might have to switch to a scatter gun,
you need a left sided flintlock, your accuracy will never get better because the flash from the pan is twice as bad if you're firing it from the left shoulder. You'll flinch literally every time. Teach yourself to shoot with your non dominant eye/hand, and you'll actually have a better time. You'd be surprised how easily the body can adapt to shooting guns and bows with your non dominant side.
@@SpiritoftheOutdoors I suggest you learn, flints have a habit of randomly chipping and even full on exploding when they near the end of their lifespan, can be anywhere between 10 and 200 shots depending on the individual flint, but you definitely dont want to have your head on the same side when they do. I was letting my friend fire my brown bess, and I was standing to the right hand side tossing clays for him, standing maybe 5 feet away, and I got hit in the side of the face by flint shards hard enough to draw blood. Either way good job on the squirrels, I friggen love them. The ones I get from my local pheasant release area literally taste like turkey. Managed to convince the gf to try some and even she agreed, squirrel has the exact same taste and texture as dark meat turkey. Made an absolutely amazing squirrel noodle soup.
Brother, you are shooting left handed with a right handed Lancaster. I know you work with what you have, but that cheek piece is on the wrong side for you. I'm right handed, so you should just autograph that rifle and give it to me.
Haha yes sir and he ask if i wanted a lefty kit and i said no. I built this with full intention of handing it off to one of my kids later in life and i want it to fit them more than me. Both my kids are right handed
Outstanding! I remember the deer I shot at with a flint lock missed she watched me reload and I missed again.
Its nothing like hunting with a scoped rifle for sure.
My father shot at 1 doe three times with a flintlock in PA back in early 90's. He was in a tree stand and the doe stood at 40 yards in a field. She just watched him go through the whole loading process and fire, he was using actual black powder too so the smoke cloud was thick. There was hardly any wind so it just lingered there. After he fired the 3rd shot and she was still there he just sat down and watched her slowly feed off into the hedgerow. He had no idea what happened other than he missed every shot. 🤣🤣🤣
Enjoyed the video! I have a 32 cal I'm gonna breakout this season
Great video!! I was out with my CVA 32 cal and just not seeing the squirrel. It just like when your hunting deer you see a ton of squirrel and when your hunting squirrel you see a ton of deer. glad you got a couple.
thank you. ive still got some learning to do with the flintlock but im getting better with it. been shooting some this week
@@SpiritoftheOutdoors I want a 36 cal flinter and a smooth bore but that will have to wait! I have been shooting smoke poles for a while and I am still learning.
You seriously crack me up. I'm with ya brother, I know there are some squirrels that have flipped me off a time or two. I was out deer hunting this morning and I know those deer were giggling at me cause I never saw not one. Keep smiling my friend, CC
Im gonna do my best. Hopefully we film some good adventures over this winter.
Digging all your videos brother got a lot in common and congrats on quitting drinking I’ve had the same struggle and been clean and sober 28 years come February
I'm just getting back into traditional shooting and I'm loving these videos. I subscribed after watching just a few minutes. Keep up the good old country boy traditions and live life the way it's supposed to be.
Thank you. I create a lot of content here you dont have to watch it all but i sure you’ll find some you like
@@SpiritoftheOutdoors after watching a few more of your videos I'm seriously thinking building myself a nice flintlock. I used to hunt in PA flintlock patch and ball way back and it was a blast.
@@adksport4023 build one. I had never done it but i just knew i could and knew it would mean more than any rifle i have.
Good job! Just remember, with a flintlock, don't stop aiming til you feel the gun push you.
very true. thank you sir for checking out my channel , much respect for you
I bagged a squirrel the other day with my Pedersoli Indian Trade gun .62 I have loaded with #7 1/2 shot. I carry that this time of year in case I run into a grouse which is now in season. Love small game hunting with a muzzleloader, nothing like it.
Keep after it, you'll get that rocklock dialed in and it'll surprise you how deadly accurate it can be.
Thanks for taking us along on the hunt.
Watched your video building your flintlock and you mentioned that the ramrod fits tighter than you would like. If this is still a problem I've done the following. Take a dowel that is just a little smaller than your ramrod then cut a slot in one end about an inch or so long, then take a strip of fine to medium sandpaper the same width of the slot length, and long enough to stick out about an inch or so on either side. Roll this up so it is tight enough to fit down the ramrod channel and hole then chuck it up in a hand drill and turn it while moving it it and out. This will open that hole up some. It's just something that has worked for me. Love your videos. God bless you and yours. Stew.
Man that is a great idea. However as your see in this video im hard on a ramrod and no dowel will hold up to my handling so i cut this privet shoot that i make arrows with and ran it down with a small hand plane and sanded it smooth and it will handle my abuse. Thank you for the idea tho i will use that before im done. I feel like i will build a 54 smoothbore next year
I really like your rifle, it’s pretty nice. You probably no this but all of my open sight guns, I adjust the sights bench resting the gun. I set them at about twenty five yards, with cardboard and a one inch orange target sticker. I adjust by filling the back notch up level with the front sight, aiming at the bottom of the sticker. And I want the bullet to hit one inch high. That way you aim at the bottom of a squirrels head or chest and lights out. Your not covering your target up in this manner, you have a plain view of your target. God bless you and your family!
Good advice
The journey to accuracy is a long road if you try to figure it all out on your own.
Let me offer up a few pointers.
First pick up your fired patches and look closely at them. If they are burned through around the ball or torn and ragged around the edges then that shot won't fly straight.
Most any load will shoot ok at 25 yards it's the 50 yard group that will tell the tale.
The best thing every black powder shooter can do is polish their bores.
Buy a red 3m metal finishing pad and cut patches to fit in a patch loop
for cleaning shotguns. For small bores you might have to file out a handgun patch loop to take those thick patches.
Run about four patches 50 strokes each in and out your bore until it shines like new money.
Even new barrels often have tiny machining marks and burrs in the rifling. Older bores usually have a few rusty, rough spots in them.
When your bore is polished it will load easier and go more shots between swabbing.
Most importantly a polished bore won't burn up or tear up your patches so easily.
It may also allow you to load a little bit thicker patch or use a tiny bit larger ball and that tends to give tighter 50 yard groups. But you can think about that later.
Pressure and friction will cause every patch and lube combination to fail at some point. A rough bore only makes things worse faster.
When you learn to read your patches you are on your way to accuracy.
Start your load development with your chosen patch material and lube and start low shooting at least three shots and gather up your patches and look at them. Increase your powder charge 5 grains at a time and watch your patches. Keep increasing the charge until the patches start to burn through.
When you start getting burn through
Back off five grains. That's your maximum charge with that patch and lube combination.
That's enough info to get you further down the road.
I won't bore you with what I do to get ready to shoot a match. I have been shooting offhand muzzleloading matches for more than 40 years.
I like to have my squirrel rifles to hit about an inch high at 25 yards.
I hold on the bottom of his jaw and the ball lands just behind his eye.
As you can see they are a lot lighter to carry when their heads are gone.
Thanks for the videos.
John Davis
Im not sure where youve been but weve already been through all this with this rifle and it stacks round ball about an inch and a half at 50 yrds. Im kinda lost on why your giving me all these instructions when ive covered all this in videos.
I've not seen those videos yet.
I keep liking your videos and more keep on showing up in my feed but not those yet.
Anyway, I write things for the benefit of the many people who read the comments.
Thanks for the videos.
Very cool!!!
Thank you
Very enjoyable video keep them coming.
*_Love this video. Very entertaining, Thank You._* 👍
Congrats, on your squirrels, good job
thank you
Great Video! I’ve never seen somebody squirrel hunt with a flintlock
Thank you
Looks like you're getting her dialed in. Enjoy the meal.
Try a smooth bore musket , or fowler . I used to hunt them with a charleville musket 69 caliber . But keep trying , you get down .
Installing a vent liner or coning the vent (touch hole) yourself would make that ignition more reliable and faster.
I had someone else tell me to do that. I may do it before this fall
That's a fun day even if you don't bag anything. I don't know much about using flintlocks, is it not firing properly sometimes because how high it's aimed is causing the powder in the frizzen to move away from the touch hole?
My brother, nephew and I took to the woods with our black powder rifles a few weeks ago, Brother and I only got one shot each and both missed, Nephew shot 4 times, killed w squirrels with a 36 cal flinter, he said that was 21 for him this fall! I did some target shooting since, rifle is shooting pretty good, but I am 70 plus! might have to switch to a scatter gun,
I am a lefty too, and wondered if you ever have trouble with your flinter blowing back stuff in your eye?
Not at all yet. Ive only shot about 30 balls through it yet though
Enjoyed your video, what state you in ?
I am in central Mississippi
What brand of rifle is that I just built a 36 cal with that same stock
Its a Tennessee valley manufacturing kit from Jack Garner
@@SpiritoftheOutdoors I haven't even got to load mine yet I'm excited
Nice 😎👍
you need a left sided flintlock, your accuracy will never get better because the flash from the pan is twice as bad if you're firing it from the left shoulder. You'll flinch literally every time. Teach yourself to shoot with your non dominant eye/hand, and you'll actually have a better time. You'd be surprised how easily the body can adapt to shooting guns and bows with your non dominant side.
I can shoot my rifles easily with my other eye just not as comfortable. I havnt tried shooting this one right handed
@@SpiritoftheOutdoors I suggest you learn, flints have a habit of randomly chipping and even full on exploding when they near the end of their lifespan, can be anywhere between 10 and 200 shots depending on the individual flint, but you definitely dont want to have your head on the same side when they do. I was letting my friend fire my brown bess, and I was standing to the right hand side tossing clays for him, standing maybe 5 feet away, and I got hit in the side of the face by flint shards hard enough to draw blood. Either way good job on the squirrels, I friggen love them. The ones I get from my local pheasant release area literally taste like turkey. Managed to convince the gf to try some and even she agreed, squirrel has the exact same taste and texture as dark meat turkey. Made an absolutely amazing squirrel noodle soup.
good video and shootn !
I got a 50 built by Mr. Jack himself, it's sure enough a beautiful thing.
I am hooked, think ima build a 54 smoothbore
You can't go wrong with a smoothbore gun deer to squirrel rabbit and turkey 😋
Brother, you are shooting left handed with a right handed Lancaster. I know you work with what you have, but that cheek piece is on the wrong side for you. I'm right handed, so you should just autograph that rifle and give it to me.
Haha yes sir and he ask if i wanted a lefty kit and i said no. I built this with full intention of handing it off to one of my kids later in life and i want it to fit them more than me. Both my kids are right handed
Shooting left-handed with a right-handed rifle and no eye protection? Probably not your best decision!
😂