New member from Utah

I'm a new member to this forum, but not new to muzzle loading. I got my 1st muzzleloader as a 16th birthday gift in 1973, a T/C Renegade .54. Shot it for several years, then foolishly sold it to help pay college tuition. For the past 30 or so years, I've been shooting a .50 Renegade that someone else made from a kit. It killed my Utah Monroe Mountain bull elk in 2006 that scored 362". I usually shoot No Excuses 420 grain conicals and 3F Swiss. I'm retiring on 4/28/2022 after a 40 year law enforcement career and moving to the Warm River area of eastern Idaho just outside of Ashton. As a retirement gift, my wife ordered a TVM 54 caliber flintlock for me that should be completed sometime this summer. A flintlock will be a whole new adventure and I'm excited to shoot it when it arrives.

Welcome Mantihuter. You're like me. I've been shooting muzzys also since the early 70s - even before there was a specific season for them. You'll have a blast with your new flintlock. Let us know if you need any tips.
I think you'll enjoy this forum. Lots of information here and a bunch of good guys. I haven't found anyone here (yet) that has been rude or obnoxious like on some other forums.
Again welcome and we relish you're input.

Bronko22000, thanks for the welcome. I've been on The Muzzleloader forum and ALR forum a little. You're right, several rude and obnoxious guys, especially on The Muzzleloader forum. That's where I first became aware of IdahoLewis. Lots of good information to be had here and I'm really looking forward to my flintlock journey.

Welcome to the brotherhood

A couple quick tips right off the bat for your flinter when you get it. Don't use the agite flints (those pretty pre cut ones). Use english or french flints and keep them sharp. Experiment with your pan powder to see how much you need for reliable ignition. Don't fill your pan and cover the flash hole. This will give you a fuse effect. That is why you'll hear some flintlock guns going pfffft, boom instead of ka boom! Sorry but that's the easiest way to say it. LOL

Great way to describe it. Thanks for the tips. TVM will send a couple of flints with the rifle so I know what size to get. They use a large Siler lock, so I think the 3/4" size is what I need. I'll order more from TOTW once I know the exact size I need, based on TVM's recommendation. From what I've been reading, there's no discernable difference between English black and French amber flints. And I'm convinced I'll just use 3F Swiss to both prime and charge rather than 4f for priming. We don't have whitetails in Utah so I'm really excited to hunt them in Idaho. I have a friend in Fort Wayne Indiana who I've hunted with a couple of times. Killed a whitetail on both trips. One with my Renegade and the other with my recurve. They're a fun animal to hunt and so much better tasting than our mule deer here. I only have 4 1/2 more days at the office, then I'm outta here.