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Thread: flintlock kits

  1. #1
    Boolit Master
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    flintlock kits

    ive been looking around at primer less rifles and pistols and there are quite available even in this time of shortages and gun related items out of stock.
    it seems there are about 3 major makers of flintlock gun kits
    does anyone have experiences with these , which is best?

  2. #2
    Boolit Master
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    This is my first time building a Flintlock from a Kit.
    I am building a .75 cal Blunderbuss kit from Pecatonica.
    So far I am happy with what came with the kit.
    When the time comes and I get finished with this build , I will probably be going back the them for my next kit build.
    I heard that they have a Blunderbuss kit in 4 bore

  3. #3
    Boolit Buddy freakonaleash's Avatar
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    Kibler

  4. #4
    Boolit Master RU shooter's Avatar
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    How much work do you want to do or are confident doing ? Do you want to inlet parts like the lock ect or just bolt/screw it together and finish the stock and brown the barrel ? There's options for both
    If you find yourself in a fair fight, your tactics suck!

  5. #5
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    I’ve built several cap n ball revolver kits but no rifles yet.

  6. #6
    Boolit Grand Master Nobade's Avatar
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    Kibler, TVM, and Chambers are generally considered top notch but there are plenty more good ones out there depending on what you want and how involved you want to be.

  7. #7
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    Kibler!
    Old enough to know better, young enough to do it anyway!

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  8. #8
    Boolit Master
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    I was thinking more along the lines of traditions, pedroselli, track of wolf or dixie gun works, not something that will break the bank account and have to wait months for their custom specialized pieces and parts.

  9. #9
    Boolit Buddy freakonaleash's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by farmbif View Post
    I was thinking more along the lines of traditions, pedroselli, track of wolf or dixie gun works, not something that will break the bank account and have to wait months for their custom specialized pieces and parts.
    Kibler is 1K and no wait usually. You'll have something that will be 100% historically correct and won't be a turd in the end. Or if that's not important you can just get an inline thing for a couple hundred bucks in any pawn shop.

  10. #10
    Boolit Grand Master


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    You can pay for a quality kit now or buy a cheapo kit and get frustrated by the poor performance of their locks.
    Old enough to know better, young enough to do it anyway!

    Men who don't understand women fall into two categories: bachelors and husbands!

  11. #11
    Boolit Master
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    Caveat Emptor.
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  12. #12
    Boolit Man godzilla's Avatar
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    Used TC off gunbroker?

  13. #13
    Boolit Grand Master
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    My buddy just did a Kibler rock lock in .58. Fantastic. The Kibler CNC's the stock to a point where fit is virtually done. Just beautiful.

  14. #14
    Boolit Grand Master


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    Quote Originally Posted by farmbif View Post
    I was thinking more along the lines of traditions, pedroselli, track of wolf or dixie gun works, not something that will break the bank account and have to wait months for their custom specialized pieces and parts.
    Some really like Pedersoli. Im not as impressed. They are on par with TC quality, but I'm not crazy about their designs. I would not recommend a Traditions or CVA or anything like that. I have heard good things about Lyman, and they are the only low cost kit I would consider. Dixie sells Pedersoli and Lyman kits.

    Those are all more bolt together sets, nearly "in the white". Kibler makes kits like that, and are a great option.

    TOTW sells parts kits. There is some work done, but most you do yourself. Every piece needs to be fitted to the stock and polished. There is no bolting together. Others like this would be Sitting Fox, Chambers, Pecatonica, and more.

    There are also plenty of old stock TC Hawken kits. I would highly recommend TC for a low cost, bolt together kit, with a caveat. TC has 2 generations of locks. The earlier version had poor geometry. The later locks are considered great, better than most except maybe the most high end locks. You can see pictures of both on Google. They are easy enough to tell apart. The other option is to buy the L&R drop-in lock from TOTW. They are expensive at about $180, but if the kit was cheap enough, you would never regret it.

  15. #15
    Boolit Master Hanshi's Avatar
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    If I could afford just one more rifle/kit it would be: 1. Kibler .45 SMR kit. or 2. TVM standard kit. Both are excellent plus, and the Kibler is dead on authentic! The TVM takes a shade more more work, generically authentic and a great rifle. The TVM is a bit less expensive but the Kibler is easier although neither even approaches "difficult".
    Young guys should hang out with old guys; old guys know stuff.

  16. #16
    Boolit Mold rodinal220's Avatar
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    I'm a fan of the Jim Chambers "kits". Think of them more of a collection of really nice parts that a craftsman can assemble into a really nice long-gun. I have taken classes from Mr. Chambers and learned quite a bit, I previously had only done T/C and CVA kits which are no comparison. JC makes a lot of the parts you see in TOTW catalog/web page, so you are getting high quality components.

    Buying a JC "kit" isn't a weekend project. My first rifle took 100 hours to complete, that's without any fancy engraving or carving. Take your time, go slow. ask questions and you can have a really high quality rifle/pistol or smoothbore.

    https://www.flintlocks.com/
    Last edited by rodinal220; 12-14-2020 at 03:21 PM.

  17. #17
    Boolit Bub Nit Wit's Avatar
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    Kibler for sure, especially for the novas... Look at a .40 cal, sweet!

    Nit Wit

  18. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by rodinal220 View Post
    I'm a fan of the Jim Chambers "kits". Think of them more of a collection of really nice parts that a craftsman can assemble into a really nice long-gun. I have taken classes from Mr. Chambers and learned quite a bit, I previously had only done T/C and CVA kits which are no comparison. JC makes a lot of the parts you see in TOTW catalog/web page, so you are getting high quality components.

    Buying a JC "kit" isn't a weekend project. My first rifle took 100 hours to complete, that's without any fancy engraving or carving. Take your time, go slow. ask question and you can have a really high quality rifle/pistol or smoothbore.

    https://www.flintlocks.com/
    Agreed, you need to be a gun builder to do a good job with their kits. I've built a lot of guns, and it still takes me 40 hours to do one of the Chambers.
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  19. #19
    Boolit Bub
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    I'm saving my coin for my first Kibler! It will be a .45 for sure!

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check