[Pancho]

Do you fellows have a trick or a drill you used to get over the "flintlock flinch". I don't have any problems with my percussion guns but that pan going off throws me off.

[4v50 Gary]

Concentrate on the front sight and its relation to the target. Forget everything else.

[RecoilRob]

You might be over-priming the pan. I just use half full..or to the touch-hole. Less is better. Ignition is almost instantaneous and flinch free.

[Starter52]

Wear glasses, and a biker bandana worn low to cover your eyebrows.

The glasses protect your eyes, the bandana keeps embers off your hair and forehead. A reversed baseball cap will work the same as the bandana.

Works for me.

[PTK]

I haven't noticed any flinching with my new flintlocks - but then again, I use very little prime in the pan, so they go off nigh-instantly.

[oneshooter]

It's simple, ignore it! Concentrate on the sight picture and you will never see it.
If you can shoot a flinchlock well then all other rifles are a breeze!!

Oneshooter
Livin in Texas

PS It does help if you don't overfill the pan. 5-10gr are enough.

[mykeal]

With the gun unloaded, prime the pan and cock the hammer. Place a penny on the end of the barrel in front of the front sight. Sight a distant target and fire the gun, concentrating on holding the gun still so the penny does not fall off the barrel. Practice this until the penny stays consistently. Then go back to firing a loaded gun, using the same concentration on the sights and the target. If the flinch isn't gone it will be significantly reduced. Continue practicing unloaded with the penny until the flinch is gone.

The suggestion to reduce your pan load is also an excellent way to reduce the distraction of the flash and thus the flinch.

[Pancho]

The penny trick is the next thing I'll try.

[PTK]

PS It does help if you don't overfill the pan. 5-10gr are enough.

Wow, I've been getting consistent ignition from 2-3gr of 4Fg!

[StrawHat]

I use enough powder in the pan to barely get to the bottom of the touch hole.

I make sure the hole is empty, no powder.

Ignition is nearly instantaneous.

With so little powder in the pan it is not so distracting.

Watch that front sight.

[Zeke/PA]

+1 on all the advice, especially the amount of powder that you use in the pan.
Zeke

[1911 guy]

Two things I'll second. First and most important is concentrating on that front sight. Follow through is as important in rifle shooting as bowling or archery. Secondly is dry fire, although I use a piece of wood in the jaws and no powder at all. Just let the hammer fall and train yourself to concentrate on that sight.

[sundance44s]

A good well tuned Flinter will only require a prime charge the size of the head of a kitchen match ( they still make those don`t they ? )
and it will not a any delay at all ..just as fast as a cap lock , some say faster .

[Mike OTDP]

OK, let me walk you through the drill...

You start with a sharp flint. If it's not sharp, knap it. Adjust so the flint scrapes the entire frizzen.

Prime with a small amount of powder...then spread it in a fine layer over the pan. Swiss Null B is by far the best.

Focus on the sights. A flintlock is a postgraduate education in shooting technique. But if you master it, you can shoot anything.

[4v50 Gary]

Mike OTDP said:
Focus on the sights. A flintlock is a postgraduate education in shooting technique. But if you master it, you can shoot anything.


Never thought of it that way, but isn't that the truth! In hindsight though, a bow is even better; but then again, a bow isn't a firearm.

[Mike OTDP]

Nah. A bow doesn't have as much going on. Even with a matchlock, if you have the management of the match down cold, the actual shooting is pretty straightforward. Flintlocks have a lot of ironmongery going in every direction.

[4v50 Gary]

A bow may be simple, but you need more follow-through with a bow than virtually any other weapon. It's the follow-through that's missing as our member has to learn to hold it steady after pressing the trigger.

[1911 guy]

As an archer, I'd have to say that form and follow through are what makes or breaks anyone attempting to put arrow A into spot B. As far as "not as much going on", there's the same stuff, energy release, harmonics and the launching of a projectile. With a bow, there's about a hundred times more time to mess it up.

[kentucky bucky]

The more you shoot the less it will bother you. Just remember that flint requires ages of "follow through". If you learn to shoot well with flint, other guns will seem too easy.

[Pancho]

As soon as the weather dries up I've got two things to work on FOLLOW THROUGH and minimize the charge in the flash pan. Thanks friends.

[4v50 Gary]

Pancho, when you're concentrating on that front sight, you won't notice the flash in the pan.

1911guy - I could shoot revolvers in the SA mode but never in the DA mode until after I mastered the bow. Archery improved my gunnery. :)

[hamourkiller]

I used the techniques I learned when shooting short barreld .357 and .44 Magnums.
Concentrate on sights and target and allow gun to do as it needs.
Concentration is the key.
Have fun.