RobertSubnet

Greetings all. As a flintlock shooter I have to keep my flints sharp in order tofor them to spark properly.

Not wantingto get in to the whole flint knapping thing, Ijustwant to sharpen up the flints with the least amount of trouble.

I have read here (from Cayugad perhaps) that a mizzy wheel can be used for this purpose. Since I do not have any handy, I tried a plain ol' "grinding stone" attachement on my Dremel. However the flint just seemed to laugh at this and not sharpen up in the least bit. In fact I probably made them worse!

Is there something special about a mizzy wheel that makes them more suitable for sharpening flints? Or will a "grinding stone" attachment work and I just need to learn how to use it properly?

Once again, thank you.
~Robert

roundball

Robert, to be honest, knapping the flint edge right in the rifle is by far the easiest, fastest way to sharpen aflint's edge.

I useMizzy wheels to reshape the 'tops' of some flints that have a high hump back shape...grind them down so there's a flat spot for a bettergrip by the jaws and abetter angleinto the frizzen...also results in longer flint life.

Regular grinding wheels don't do anything but heat up a flint rock...the Mizzy wheels are what jewelers and dentists use to grind hard things and they don't generate heat.

But before buying any Mizzys,Dremel now makes a tip that I think is called a "blue diamond grinding wheel"...it's larger than a Mizzy wheel and subsequently works faster...costs about $3.

But again, during my typical50 shot range sessions on Saturday mornings I might get a dull spot on a flint and if so, I justlay the rifle down on the bench pointing downrange, cock the hammer, pick up my steel shafted short starter, and very lightly/gently tap-tap-tap-tap-tap down from the top across the edge...takes10 seconds, good to go for another couple dozen shots

RobertSubnet

Round:

Thank you for your comments, I'll give that a try. However some of my flints have developed chips in them. Are those still usable and just require more tapping?

Thanks,
~Robert

roundball

Well, just remember, all we're trying to do is shave enough pieces ofsteel off the frizzento hit the primeand give ignition.

"ideally"...the front edge of a knapped flint would look sort of like the edge of a serated bread knife...viewed from one side (the tope of the flint) it would apopear to be fairly straight across, and viewed from underneath it would look like the "scalloped" side of a serated bread knife....."ideally".

However, as they wear from use they'll get an occasional chip or corner broken out but as long as they're still shaving steel off the frizzen and igniting the prime, that's all you rreally care about.

Knapping is mainly intended to get rid of a dull flat spot that develops as a flint begin wearing down from hitting the frizzen...sooner or later, a dull flat spot will occur, then it"holds off" the rest of the sharp flint edge from touching the frizzen...knapping is really simply to get rid of the flat spot so the flint's sharp edgecan impact the frizzen andwork again.

RobertSubnet

Round:

Should I just be tapping over the dull part of the flint?

Thanks again,
~Robert

roundball

Theoretically, that's all that should be requiredl, but in practical terms, as far as I'm concerned, I go ahead and do a little tap dance across the width of the flints edge while I'm doing it at all...for me personally it isn't worth the time it takes to search for and find that precise tiny flat spot and then try and knapp it out...I just do the whole edge when I knapp one.

Another good trick I've learned, is that when I stop shooting to clean the lock off with an alcohol rag (about every 10 shots) I loosen the jaws and flip the flint over...from bevel up to down (or vise versa) and adjust/tighten it back in place.

This alternating practice almost seems to let the flints "self-knapp" themselves...wear more evenly, don't seem to develop flsat spots, etc....and it's particularlygood if you're usiung a reasonably flat flint, so when you flip it over it still has the slightest downward shaving angle at frizen impact time, and isn'tlining up too straight/square into the face of the frizzen.

PS:
By the way...my whole conversation here is based upon using Black English Flints...if you're using those "sawed" agate flints that look like a grade schoiol pencil erasure, this knapping discussion does not apply to them...they do need to be resharped with a diamond file or diamond grinding wheel, Mizzy wheel, etc

cayugad

The Mizzy wheels do work until the cheap piece of junk dremel tool I purchased burned the motor out. I have to get a new one. I tried everyone's idea of knapping. I think I am hitting to hard, and too far back on the flint. I will give Roundball's idea a try.

I have also turned my flint every so often and it does seem to add a lot of life to the flint life. Good thing I buy my black english flints in bulk. I sure waste a lot of them...

RobertSubnet

ahh...this is becoming clearer all the time.

The flints I am using are the Traditions flints:
http://www.shootnhunt.com/catalog/JM/black_powder/flints/0518438.html

Let me guess, these need a mizzy?

By any chance do you have a link for a supplier of the Black English flints?

Thanks again,
~Robert

cayugad

http://www.octobercountry.com/products3.php?productid=95 Tom Fuller Black English Flints are the best. If you buy them in bulk .. like 50 or 100 of them they cut you a better price. 50 flints last me a long time.

RobertSubnet

Thanks Cayugad! I actually bought a powder horn from them and some other things. They have nice stuff.

Amazing to thinkthe same source for flints is still being used 2 centuries later.

~Robert