Knapping A Sharp Edge On A Flint To Make Fire.

The author demonstrates how he sharpens the edge of a flint chard for making fire with flint & steel. He also demonstrates how he sharpens the edge of a gun flint on a flintlock fusil.
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Category:

Education

Tags:

• flint & steel fire lighting
• flint knapping
• steel
• fusil
• bushcraft
• woods lore
• woodscraft
• survival
• living history
• 18th century
• historical trekking
• guns

[Wad12br]

Better to use a Bronze or Brass tool for knapping the flint in the jaws of the cock , otherwise a stray spark from your knapping , could set off the powder charge through the touch hole .Flintlock guns are techy at the best of times , also brass alloys because they are that much softer than the flint , can make a sharper point quicker , try to keep the frizzen away from the pan during these operations.Or use a Copper pin to block the touch hole if steel is only avialible at the time of knapping.

[historicaltrekking]

@Wad12br Very good advice, thank you for your input. Much appreciated. I was of course working on an unloaded gun, but your point is well taken. I don't knap with a loaded gun, I just replace the flint with a new one, I should have made that clear.

Regards, Keith.

[badger4590]

Need to be more aware of where camera is pointing and field of view. Also,need to use correct terms. Part that the flint hits for rifle ignition is the frizzen, the part you show to knap flint and call the hammer.

[historicaltrekking]

@badger4590 Well actually Badger I realise this about the camera, but I was working alone. Sorry to say you are wrong about the parts of the lock, this is a flintlock, not a percussion. You are using modern terminology. The correct name for what you call a frizzen is "hammer" It retains this name from the earlier type lock where the steel was shaped a little like a workshop hammer. The part that secures the flint is the cock.

Regards.

[MTNMANTIM]

more great info. ! thank you

Tim

[historicaltrekking]

@MTNMANTIM  Thank you Tim, & you are most welcome.

Keith.

[Wad12br]

@historicaltrekking Well the only problems I had with non-sparking was with loaded weapons , and you could imagine the swearing if in competition.

[entmage]

I've seen all sorts of ways to do that.

I have one of those 3 in 1 tools that I use on the flint.

[historicaltrekking]

@TomsBackwoods Not sure if I have answered this or not, but just in case! Yes you can, but some quartz can be very fractured making it harder to knap a straight edge. However, when it fractures it tends to leave a sharp edge anyway.

[historicaltrekking]

@TheFirearmEnthusiast You are most welcome.

Regards. A Woodsrunner's Diary. (blog).