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Accountant guy sure hasn't logged into MSN for a while. Maybe he got bored of my passive and unassuming personality

You know that Nauru is basically an immigration detention island for the Australians.

Putting some money down on mah .45 Cal Kentucky Rifle (albeit Percussion instead of Flintlock) tomorrow.

Got a list of stuff I need to just get it up and running when I take possession of it (will have to get such over a period of time; not a wealthy person):

-Powder measure (allows you to accurately measure how much powder you pour down the smoke-pole; needs to be consistent between shots so the ball moves at a similar velocity each time)
-range ramrod (longer than standard; self-explanatory for what it is)
-patches (ball goes over such and then you ram it and the ball down on the powder; said patch kicks up the slightly undersized lead ball to .45 caliber)
-balls (.440 caliber; lead roundball)
-blackpowder substitute (tends to be cleaner and less corrosive; easier to clean)
-percussion caps (what you put on the nipple, which the hammer hits and sends the explosive force of the cap into the barrel, lighting off the blackpowder and sending the ball on its way; like a cap in a toy cap-gun (just with a little more explosive in it)

Not to mention the cleaning rod and solvents (already have those).

Compare that to a basic rifle and what you need to get it running:

-Ammo (:P)

I found this interesting. Was the percussion v flintlock thing a choice you made or was the choice made for you by circumstance? What is the accuracy/power of this thing going to be like compared to a modern rifle? How *safe* is it compared to a modern rifle i.e. is there even a slight chance it will blow up in your face? I know nothing about classic firearms, the only rifles I have ever fired have been relatively modern, the "oldest" type I've used was a bolt action .22 and if those are well maintained they are safe as houses.

Percussion was purely based on price for me in this instance. Percussion offers more reliable ignition, but you do need a cap to get it going; flintlock can be a little less reliable to set off, but you only need the flint and the same powder as you used in the actual gun to work. Plus, flintlock is a little harder to shoot due to the fact there's a slight delay between the flint igniting the small amount of powder in the pan (which then sends flame into the chamber of the gun and bang!), and said delay can be a little disconcerting, especially with a heap of flame and smoke covering your face -- if you flinch at the powder in the pan igniting, you'll miss when the full load in the gun ignites. Percussion is almost instant, like any other gun when the hammer hits the primer.

Accuracy and power are somewhat equivalent to modern rifles (especially if you use more modern projectiles); if it's specifically called a "rifle", it'll have rifling in the barrel that'll impart spin on the projectile like a modern one. The old roundballs though do lose a lot of velocity as they fly (hence, power); a lead ball isn't very aerodynamic. A .45 Cal roundball, starting at say 1800 feet per second, will go down to around 1000 at 100 yards. Said velocity loss equates to less penetration and greater bullet drop. So, decent at short range with the roundball (100 yards). The so called maxi-balls and whatnot are similar in shape to a normal bullet (long and heavier than roundballs), so they retain velocity a lot better. Sure, you could sling a .45 or .50 cal roundball out to 800 yards or so, but hitting won't be an expected thing most times; good if it happens. Whereas a...modern bolt gun in .308 Winchester will be expected to hit a man-sized target at 800 yards most times. A .45 cal muzzleloader is good for midsized deer (just giving an idea of the power), whereas the .50 and .54 cal ones are better for the larger species of deer and bear. You can buy modern SABOT rounds for them, which tend to require a faster twist barrel than the older reproduction designs; they effectively enter the range of powerful modern cartridges (kinda defeats the purpose of using a primitive weapon IMO. I'm just going to be shooting lead balls like they did in the 1700s in mine).

Safe as anything else. They're modern reproductions (there are antiques of course, but people don't shoot them for a hobby). You could fill the barrel entirely up with blackpowder and ram a ball on top and you won't harm it or yourself (you'll just get a lot of unburnt powder blown out of the barrel. The main thing is that the ball must be seated securely against the powder; no air-gap or anything (that's a pipe-bomb then with all the effects of that); so you just make sure you ram the ball down real good. O, and never use modern smokeless powder; too high pressures, and it will burst the barrel and potentially cause injury; that's an easy rule to follow though.

It's a fun hobby, if a little hard to get started. You generally aren't seen as a scary gun nut if you tote a gun design from the 1700s either.

I didn't, but the cones there are different to Australia (who also rated fairly highly on the Cone Index)

I think my next driving trip should be to Adelaide and back. Go inland on the way there (broken Hill and all) and the coast along the Great Ocean Road on the way back.

Cripes almighty, Coober Pedy is even worse than The Ridge. Soo many holes! It looks like someone shot a million holes through the Google map

Ten, congrats on your birthday even if this is late in stating such..

I'm glad that my WP alignments(friends) are solid at least I hope as such..

The NFL should consider relocating a team to Portland.

Sometime I just feel like rambling on and on and paying no attention to who is reading.

It's hard to think with a head full of rain.

I feel like I want to run away to a faraway land and meet people with totally different customs.

I still remember the camping trips I had in the olden days ... before fundamentalist Christianity stole my only father from me.

Someday I will escape from western civilization and what it expects of me.

I will meet simple farmers and they will be new allies.

I will replace all that was stolen from me and get all that I rightfully should have.

I will meet foreigners who are ignored by the media in the "developed" countries and I will listen to them.

How could any foreign culture be more complicated than this one?

fin

Given the choice I would choose a warm climate over a cold climate. In fact I would love to live right on the equator

This has been the longest I have been away.

This is the one I spoke of (though this one is a flintlock; no difference in appearance other than that):
[img][800:188]http://www.micksguns.com/images/bp%20flint%20b%20rif%201.jpg[/img]

It's .44 Cal rather than .45 Cal though (was mistaken); which doesn't make any difference to me (the ball is a little lighter at around 128 grains compared to 137 grains; not much in it).

I better find a Sony Walkman mp3 player sometime......