Flint Leather

[Ohio Joe]

I thought I would share this with all of you (some may already be familiar with it).

I ran across this in my book "Guns On The Early Frontiers" by Carl P. Russell



So the picture at the top right of the page 'c' (we'll call it a "T" Flint Leather  for lack of a better name),,, anyway it just caught my fancy, and so I made one for the rifle's lock below...

I really, really, like this!!!

Have not tested it as yet, but I just feel it just gives this particular L&R Lock better "Flint Geometry" to the Frizzen...

I folded my left and right leather tabs up and over on the top of this Flint. And it's snug and tight!!! At times with some flints I've been "shimming" the leather, with leather - (which can be done, but is more time consuming in my opinion), so this is going to get a field test as soon as the weather (and time) permits...

It just seems to me it locks the flint into the Jaw way better. 

Is anyone else using this type of leather setup?

[Hank in WV]

Can't say as I've ever seen that done Joe.

[Ohio Joe]

Can't say as I've ever seen that done Joe.

I did some reading on it Hank, and from what I gather, it was a British, French, and US, way of installing their flints in their Military firearms. They called them "flint caps" - rather interesting... They also said you don't see it very often in Museums where Military Arms are displayed (that's how I took the reading of it)...

They're not hard to make once you get your first one done as a pattern.

I might just end up going this route from now on with my leathers. 

[rollingb]

I've never seen leathers cut that way before either,....looks interesting. 

[Ohio Joe]

Here we go. I found some info (same as in my book). Interesting stuff.

http://www.mman.us/flintcaps.htm

Records indicate that large numbers of flint caps were ordered for the military. Procurement records for the Springfield Armory indicate that a total of 280,000 flint caps were acquired in the period 1829-1844 for this facility alone.  After  1844 there are no records indicating additional purchases by the military of flint caps.  (Russell, 1957 page 240)

The above would make sense - since the Army started to convert to Percussion in 1840.

They must have thought there was some advantage to the flint caps to have made so many in a 15 year span (which also makes me wonder if they were used earlier then that with no records to show it, (or they've been lost / misplaced or destroyed over time).

[Winter Hawk]

So we have two tabs in picture "c" and one tab in picture "f".  Does Russell say anything more about which is used where & how?

I may have to find that book and make another purchase, you enabler you! 

~Kees~

[Ohio Joe]

I think the bottom two are just a different style where you would stick one on the bottom plate of the Jaw, then your flint, then your top cap on top the flint... It appears to me that one would push those back in the Jaw and use the "U" notch to go on the sides of the Jaw Screw when pushed back.

They say those were "stamped" out of leather, and what the tab is for, I don't know, other then it may have something to do with installing that particular style from one of the manufactures?

Kind of funny isn't it that no one today has cornered the market on them like back in the 1800's,,, especially when  muzzle loading hit its hey day back in the 60's & 70's, as this book was published in 1957...

 

One final thought; I doubt there's a lot of info out there about these "Flint Caps" as I expect folks have 99.9% of the time just folded a piece of leather (like we do today) cupping our flint in place.

[Oldetexian]

This looks interesting, Joe. I look forward to what your testing discovers. Please keep us updated.

[Ohio Joe]

This looks interesting, Joe. I look forward to what your testing discovers. Please keep us updated.

I will do that Ray.

However, don't look for anything to soon as we have 8 to 10 inches of snow on the ground and it's still snowing lightly, so it's probably going to be a while - but I will let you all know what I think of them. 

[Hanshi]

I've never seen that before!  Learn something new nearly every day. 

[Doc Nock]

That's swell on the cut leather, but the link mentioned (Or my eyes deceive me) that they can be poured... which means I recall reading of thin LEAD wraps for flints

[Uncle Russ]

I've never seen that before!  Learn something new nearly every day. 

 

Yep, kinda reckon we do.

[Ohio Joe]

That's swell on the cut leather, but the link mentioned (Or my eyes deceive me) that they can be poured... which means I recall reading of thin LEAD wraps for flints

Doc, I rechecked and you are correct,,, they are lead... I flat out missed that! 

I'm still going to test my leather since I made three out of leather... But I do plan (now) on doing a lead test as well. 

[RobD]

no matter made of what material, i see no real purpose of those flint holder "ears" ,,, ?

maybe if the cock jaws/screw wasn't up to par for tightly holding the wrapped flint?   

lots might also depend on the flint's width, where a bit wider flint would need to get laterally and asymmetrically moved a skosh to the right in order to clear the stock on a right hand mounted lock.

a notched piece of rather thin leather still works fine for me.  i don't like flattened lead for the wrap - moves too much as firings increase and always seems to need cock jaws retightening.

but as the flint's edge wears or gets knapped, and the flint is moved forward in the cock jaws to best align with the hammer steel, sometimes a piece of match stick or twig set behind the flint wrap insures it won't get set back upon hitting said hammer steel.

[Ohio Joe]

I can see from a Military point of view a "pre - lead wrapped flint" for quick change out of the flint during an on going battle, so the "ears" of the lead wrap would serve its purpose there.