Flintlock in firearms

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:46

Flintlock - a special design for igniting gunpowder in firearms (sparks in it are obtained by hitting flint on flint). This type of castle was invented at the beginning of the 14th century in the countries of the Middle East. Weapons that used this device became known as flintlocks.

Construct distribution

Despite the numerous advantages of the device compared to others, it completely replaced the matchlock and other types of locks only in the middle of the 17th century. The distribution of the flint device also depended on the characteristics of the region, the presence of deposits of silicon, iron ore and other materials on its territory. After 200 years, the flintlock was replaced by capsule systems.

Wheel lock

Gunsmiths tried to eliminate all the disadvantages of the wick design by developing a flintlock. The guns were equipped with a wide variety of mechanisms.

In the early 18th century, German craftsmen invented the combined flint wheel lock. The main part of the device was a finely knurled steel wheel connected to a spring. A sharply sharpened flint was pressed against the wheel, which was fixed in a clamp. When loadingweapons, the mainspring was wound up with a key. When the trigger was pressed, the wheel rotated, a sheaf of sparks cut out ignited the gunpowder on the shelf, and that ignited the main charge. The wheel lock was more reliable than other designs. It was used in the production of expensive pistols and hunting weapons. But its rapid spread was hindered by the complexity of the device.

Flintlock

The flint period is a whole era in the history of weapons. Its appearance allowed the creation of mass production of rifles and other weapons. Of the European countries, the flintlock was first used in Spain at the beginning of the 16th century. He got there from the Moors, who borrowed this design from the Arabs. These locks were characterized by compactness of massive parts.

Similar devices were developed at the same time by gunsmiths from different countries. They quickly spread throughout the continent. In different countries, their designs differed, but each of them had its own merits.

Appears in Europe

In Europe, the appearance of the flintlock was greeted with great suspicion. Louis XIV banned the use of the design in the French army under pain of death. His infantrymen used a matchlock, while his cavalrymen used wheeled weapons. To get around the ban, some gunsmiths created new combined types of locks. But such devices were used for a very short time.

Introduction to the design of a number of improvements madeflintlock weapons are relatively reliable. The main merit in this belongs to the gunsmiths from Germany. The German design has received recognition in many countries. Flintlock pistols were especially popular.

The principle of the lock

The principle of operation of a flintlock is as follows: gunpowder is ignited by sparks that occur when a flint strikes a flint and flint. The shock type of construction increased the load on the parts of the mechanism, as well as the requirements for the materials used.

During the development of the device, several problems had to be solved:

• choose the optimal shape of the steel;
• reduce the percentage of misfires;
• when descending, the flint had to meet with the steel at a certain point and cut the required number of sparks in one direction;
• the trigger was not supposed to hit the powder shelf.

This made it possible to get rid of the wick and simplify the design of the lock compared to the wheel lock. The kinematics of the percussion lock is much more complex than in other types of construction. The shock method of obtaining a spark required a stronger mainspring.

In 1610, French gunsmith Marin Le Bourgeois, having studied the properties of various samples, created a battery lock, which spread throughout the world for the next three centuries, as the main mechanism of firearms. A flintlock did not need to be wound - it was much simpler and cheaper than a wheeled one. The flint in it wore out much later. Increased weapon loading speed. This provided the opportunityequipping their troops. Prior to this, the flintlock was used only for hunting weapons.

• Disadvantages of flintlock weapons include:
• a lot of misfires;
• gunpowder on the shelf was often damp;
• at the same time, the soldiers covered it by eye and often made mistakes with the proportions;
• it took a long time from the moment the trigger was pulled to the moment the shot was fired.

Flintlock weapons were introduced into the armament of the Russian army by Peter I in 1700. They were used for 150 years.

Preparing to shoot

To prepare the flintlock device for a shot, the soldier had to (having previously hammered gunpowder and a bullet into the barrel):

• put the trigger on the safety;
• open shelf cover;
• clean seed hole;
• pour a small amount of gunpowder on the shelf;
• close lid;
• put the trigger on the combat platoon.

There is an opinion that the design of the flintlock did not undergo major changes until it finally became an obsolete device. Although improved flintlock guns, even at the beginning of the 20th century, could be found among hunters from around the world.

At the end of the 18th century, the flintlock was actively improved. For example, a small wheel was installed between the spring and the steel. When fired, the flint and flint moved away more smoothly; the spring was equipped with an earring, the seed shelf was made deep and streamlined, with edges tightly pressed against the lid - moisture did not get on it, and the powder remained dry. These improvements have been appliedand for hunting weapons.