I bought my first flinter in 1977, a .45 caliber from Bob Watts, used it until 1990 when bears got plentiful in eastern NC...I had built a .54 by that time so I converted the .45 to a .40 for squirrels...

I killed plenty of deer with the .45 and 75grs of FFF Goex the only reason I switched to a
.54 was in case I had a run in with a bear...I've killed about 50 deer with the .54 and 80grs FFF Goex...

Why do I use a flintlock and roundballs??? Well, how are you going to learn about history and the use of flintlocks unless you gain experience?? For over 30 years I have given talks to schools and Boy Scouts here in NC...I carry them through the times of the Lost Colony to Jamestown to Kings Mountain, Cowpens and Guilford Courthouse...I let them know about a local fellow from Pennsylvania named Daniel Boone who crossed the Smokey Mountains to hunt over into Kentucky...It's been very rewarding as my daughter decided to be a history teacher and I have a former student that built a flintlock for his Senior project, was a sniper in the Marines and is now a Game Warden...

I don't think talking about history with an inline in my hands would have been very effective....