Black powder substitutes in a flintlock

bat119

bat119

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On the border
Black powder does not exist in my part of Canada shipping one pound is $70 + the cost of powder, I do have about a 1/3 pound of FFFG left for priming asking what works best, choices are Pryodex RS, Pyrodex select or triple 7?

I read some shooters put a 9mm brass of holy black down first before the sub powder for better ignition
 
Triple 7 is not a good choice for a flintlock. Generally, the substitutes need percussion caps to ignite reliably.

For a flintlock, use real black. 4f in the pan and 3f in the barrel, unless it's a musket, then you can use 2f.
 
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Substitute powder will have a bad fuse effect ''IF'' ever it fires... Substitutes are ok for caplocks but not for flintlocks.
 
Check with your BP clubs and groups in your area as there was a very large shipment of black powder distributed a couple of weeks ago. some one in your area may now have a pound or two for you to buy. What part of the nation are you in?
 
no groups close in Sask or AB , the local stores only stock inline products and very slim selection at that. I've tried every gun shop within 2 1/2 hours even put out ad's came to the conclusion there is none to be had I'll try the sub's tried some Pyrodex P this morning worked better than I expected in my Pietta 44 going to try some in the flinter tomorrow.

BTW I have never used 4F for priming I crush 3F or 2F 1/2 Tsp.at a time on a piece of glass with a wooden dowel into dust gives quicker ignition a tip I learned from Sam Fadala's book about 40 years ago.
 
bat119 said:
no groups close in Sask or AB , the local stores only stock inline products and very slim selection at that. I've tried every gun shop within 2 1/2 hours even put out ad's came to the conclusion there is none to be had I'll try the sub's tried some Pyrodex P this morning worked better than I expected in my Pietta 44 going to try some in the flinter tomorrow.
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Try to locate a black powder club in your area or someone who shoots muzzle loaders and goes to out of province rendezvous. Black powder is available through Alberta Native Guide Services in Edmonton. You can find their webpage on the net and email the owner from there

cheers mooncoon
 
Good to hear,
I tried a few shots with 10 grs. FFFG, 70 grs Pyrodex P, it worked good enough to get me through until gunshow season somebody should have some black powder by then.
I have a LB. of Pyrodex select coming see how that works out.
 
I heard that the old Hodgdon GOEX factory in the USA was bought by someone else in 2021 and they are making black powder for sale again, or was that just a rumour?
 
Yes Goex is getting back into production with a new owner Estes . US Government even invested in the company to secure a black powder supply for the US Armed Forces artillery ammo supply.

ht tps://thegunbulletin.com/2022/02/02/estes-yes-the-rocket-folks-bought-the-goex-black-powder-plant-and-is-turning-it-back-on/
 
JP said:
Yes Goex is getting back into production with a new owner Estes . US Government even invested in the company to secure a black powder supply for the US Armed Forces artillery ammo supply.

ht tps://thegunbulletin.com/2022/02/02/estes-yes-the-rocket-folks-bought-the-goex-black-powder-plant-and-is-turning-it-back-on/
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So they bought the going GOEX factory in 2021 and this above link from February 2022 says they will restart production but all the big distributors and sellers in the USA have been out of stock for over year and some are showing it as discontinued? What gives?

Sounds more like a rumour to me that we will see any new GOEX black powder for sale in stores at any time in the future.
 
The plant was shut down and workers fired. Plant has to be modernized and workers re-hired and trained, not something that can be done quickly.
 
Proline Shooters in Calgary has GOEX and Scheutzen powder in stock. AFAIK this is new production GOEX.

Make it worth the trip and buy a whole bunch. It doesn't go bad and can always be sold off in the future if you find you don't need it.
 
I tried Pyrodex RS in my flinter and it is ####ing terrifying experience. You can hear the powder fizzing and pressure rushing out the touch hole for what feels like 5 seconds before the thing goes BANG. Not doing that again.
 
I use Pyrodex RS in my flinter without any issues.The only thing that I have noticed is that the powder in the pan (FFFFg) needs to be right over to the edge of the pan near the flash hole. Mine is a left hand flintlock but it shouldn't make any difference.
 
Odinson said:
I use Pyrodex RS in my flinter without any issues.The only thing that I have noticed is that the powder in the pan (FFFFg) needs to be right over to the edge of the pan near the flash hole. Mine is a left hand flintlock but it shouldn't make any difference.
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Well, never saw that on Youtube nor in front of me. Locktime must be awful...
 
8ball said:
Well, never saw that on Youtube nor in front of me. Locktime must be awful...
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I found that if I load it properly and make sure the powder is close to the flash hole, it works very well. Obviously not as fast as a cap or a primer but I'm thinking it is still in thr millisecond range.
 
Odinson said:
I use Pyrodex RS in my flinter without any issues.The only thing that I have noticed is that the powder in the pan (FFFFg) needs to be right over to the edge of the pan near the flash hole. Mine is a left hand flintlock but it shouldn't make any difference.
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I also have a left hand flintlock. My only left handed firearm ... because having a pan flash off right in front of my face is not a super fun experience.

SOP w a flintlock is to have the powder clustered on the outside of the pan so the flame can dart straight into the touch hole. Having it over the flash hole means the powder has to burn down to access the touch hole. Hence 8ball's comment about slow lock time


8ball said:
Well, never saw that on Youtube nor in front of me. Locktime must be awful...
Click to expand...

No chit.
 
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