FLINTS: Bevel up or Bevel down?

[Badger]

At my nearby club a few old timers, and flintlock shooters, were giving me reasons why one is better than the other. I think the "English" version is bevel down with the larger locks. The Pedersoli locks usually prefer bevel up, or so I was told yesterday.

I use English knapped flints in my T/C flintlocks and the geometry of the individual flint and where it strikes the frizzen has resulted in some of my flints being one way and some the other: yet both hit about two-thirds to three-fourths up from the bottom of the frizzen. That is ok, right?

Badger

[Gil]

I would continue positioning the flints the same way and not worry about it. All the best...
Gil

[Rattus58]

I'm still learning about flints....

Aloha... Tom

[captchee]

As Gil said . If it works , don’t fix it .
Past that
You flint should strike between ½ and ¾ of the way up the frizzen as a norm .
Now for some locks , this isn’t the case if you go bevel down . They will strike ant near 7/8 face . Again , not any real issue as long as it throws a good shower of sparks and you don’t get frizzen slap .
that’s where the frizzen is struck so high , or so hard , that it tries to come back closed . But the flint is blocking it , thus the frizzen can shatter the flint .

With other locks if you go bevel up , you end up with the flint striking at less then ½ . Normally this produces less spark as the flint doesn’t have a big enough area to scrape against .

Myself I have never found that a given production companies rifles prefer the flint place one way or the other . That depends on the individual lock , which by the way are as unique and rifles . Each likes its own thing .
Now what I have found with companies like Pedersoli and TC is that they often times like aggets over flints, do to in many cases ,their overly hard frizzens . Where more custom aftermarket lines like flints or Ambers . Aggets seem to just destroy the frizzen on those locks . With their frizzen being of a softer more even hardness
This may be where they are getting the information they gave you .
See with aggets , they are cut to X thickness , with X bevel . As such they set in the jaws to the same plain . But flints are not that way . They are broke not cut . As such you can get different angles to your bevels and greatly different angles to the flats to include peaks .
So one has to learn what shape works best and then chose only those types of flints , when one can .
Myself I look for flints with even color , as flat a top and bottom as I can get .5/8 wide and ¾ long
When I can find th em I also chose the flints with a bevel on the back side as well .
When I set my flint , I normally go bevel down . Test it . If she throws good spark . Bobs your uncle .
If not , I role it over and try bevel up .

So again it all comes back to what Gil said . Do what works for you . Bevel up or down has no set rule . Its just what your lock likes for that given flint

[Badger]

I am constantly amazed at the volume of smarts generated by a question here on the Forum. Thanks captchee for your guidance. Be well.

Badger

[Dwayne]

I have used flints both ways. . .bevel down and bevel up. Both have worked equally well.

The main concern for reliability for me, has been one of two things.
1. Frizzen being coated with gun powder residue. . .either visible or not.
2. Flint being coated with gun powder resident. . .either visible or not.

I usually wipe off the frizzen after every shot, along with my flint, and that has solved my problems.

Just something as simple as a piece of cloth, your finger, a piece of leather rubbed against the frizzen will do wonders for putting the spark back into the spark.

And the same thing for the flint. Just rubbing the sharp edge of the flint with your finger, a piece of cloth, or leather after every shot would amaze you.

Dwayne

[DaveHawk]

I nap my own using Chert. So when I get a few pieces napped the right size I just test them for spark keeping a eye on the pan. If the pan get let up I don't care if it's up or down it's good to go. Chert is the best sparking rock I've ever used.