tom604 wrote:whats it all used for?, powder measure i get and maybe the pan brush but the pricker? bullet board?
The pricker is used to make sure the vent is clear. If the vent is full of gunpowder it acts as a fuse & slows ignition. Ignition is instant when a flintlock is in good working order, as fast as a percussion.
The bullet board is another way of speeding up loading, you simply place the ball over the muzzle & ram it out of the board & down the barrel. Originally smoothbores did not use patched round ball, neither did the rifle. A patched ball is more accurate though in a smoothbore.
The vent quills can be used when loading by inserting the quill in the vent to stop it getting blocked with gunpowder, the vent quill is also used to signal that the gun is still loaded. If for any reason you lay the gun aside loaded but remove the priming, the vent quill in the vent is a reminder that the gun is still loaded.
You can see the vent/touch hole in the barrel at the back of the pan.
Keith.