I have just case hardened my frizzen and it all appears to spark fine now. Will see at Detling how it goes. I will bring the compound and blowlamps along to detling if any need doing.
James

All the depot muskets have been hardened this year, we'll check over the Detling weekend that they're firing well.

Keith

Does anyone know if this process goes into the body of the frizzen?

The reason I ask is that my fusil is not firing very well but the Albion arms guy told me that my frizzen was still pukka after he did a "drop test" on it and further hardening could cause problems.

Case hardening should only significantly effect the surface of the metal with the effect tapering off the deeper you penetrate into the substance.

However, the longer the metal is treated for so the hardening effect will pass deeper into the object.

For a frizzen, only the surface of the face needs to be hardened.After extensive use the flint will actually bite through the hardened surface into the softer body, thus no longer sparking and requiring the face to be hardened again. If the frizzen surface is still hard and it is treated again other areas of the frizzen can in effect be hardened incidently and i have been told the area around the hole for frizzen screw spring can be vulnerable to shattering when over hardened. Presumably this is what ASA is concerned with.

A couple of years ago my musket would only fire every other shot despite it being hardened. I just couldn't resolve the problem until i purchased a new set of flints and the problem stopped!

Im sure a veteran such as yourself will have tried this, but James O'Connel showed me how to tighten the frizzen spring screw to just get the correct tension so as not to interfere with the movement of the frizzen,too loose and it might drop out.

If you try the above and it still doesnt work ring Ron Curley as he is still doing some work and may be able to give you some advice of the phone.

Hope this helps.

Yeah Ive met R.C. A couple of times prior to going to Bavaria (I had a spring replaced in my lock) he also had Peter Flyns musket in his work shop at the time (where is P.F.By the way?!)A year later I sent my lock into Albion Arms from their stall at Dettling and that's where they told me that it was still "hard".

I have tried all the things you mention so I'm not sure were to go next.

Any way see you soon A.B.W.