A rifle that needs swabbed after every shot on a woodswalk??

[ColonialRifleSmith]

What to do with all the patches??

So my new .45 rifle needs swabbed after every shot to remove a nasty crud ring or seating pressure varies and fliers occur. Swab after every shot and it is accurate. Powder does not matter. Shuetzen fffg, Goex fffg, or Pyrodex P. Powder amount does not matter. 30grs to 80grs. Lube does not matter. Spit, TOTW mink tallow, Wonderlube, 1970's formula FFG lube, Crisco, etc. A crud ring developes after every shot making seating the next patched ball very hard. I get a max of 3 shots then wild fliers develope. If I use a spit patch cut at muzzle and if I swab with spit after every shot, no fliers. Great accuracy, both off a rest and offhand. I've found that 1 spit soaked patch then 1 dry patch run up and down and flipped and run up and down again work well. This is duplicatable every time vs shooting more than 3 times with no swabbing with any powder, any lube.

This is strictly a target rifle to be used at the longrifle club I belong to, and to attend woodwalks at other clubs. I shoot this rifle VERY well offhand and will be competitive next year compared to what I'm shooting now. My current woodswalk rifle is gaining weight and getting bit heavy to hold steady after 15 or so shots. Soooooo......what to do with 40 cleaning patches, give or take???? 18 to 25 targets, let's round to 20, that's 40 dirty patches to do something with. If it was a matter of cleaning with 3-4 patches halfway in the round, I'd say throw 'em on the ground. Everyone else does for that matter. But not everyone swabs EVERY shot. They will rot in. But I'm not throwing on average 40 patches on the ground! This is not ecologically driven. Cotton patches will rot away. This is a litter problem. I've never been to a woodswalk that has a trash can at every target. What would you do? I'm sure there is an easy solution.

Personally, I've never run into a rifle of any caliber that needs swabbing after every shot. We Marines have an old saying, "It's not the dope on the rife, it's the dope behind it". Semper Fi.

 

[Juice Jaws]

There are things called pockets....

what a great idea, sometimes the answer is right there and we don't see it

 

[Juice Jaws]

What to do with all the patches??

So my new .45 rifle needs swabbed after every shot to remove a nasty crud ring or seating pressure varies and fliers occur. Swab after every shot and it is accurate. Powder does not matter. Shuetzen fffg, Goex fffg, or Pyrodex P. Powder amount does not matter. 30grs to 80grs. Lube does not matter. Spit, TOTW mink tallow, Wonderlube, 1970's formula FFG lube, Crisco, etc. A crud ring developes after every shot making seating the next patched ball very hard. I get a max of 3 shots then wild fliers develope. If I use a spit patch cut at muzzle and if I swab with spit after every shot, no fliers. Great accuracy, both off a rest and offhand. I've found that 1 spit soaked patch then 1 dry patch run up and down and flipped and run up and down again work well. This is duplicatable every time vs shooting more than 3 times with no swabbing with any powder, any lube.

This is strictly a target rifle to be used at the longrifle club I belong to, and to attend woodwalks at other clubs. I shoot this rifle VERY well offhand and will be competitive next year compared to what I'm shooting now. My current woodswalk rifle is gaining weight and getting bit heavy to hold steady after 15 or so shots. Soooooo......what to do with 40 cleaning patches, give or take???? 18 to 25 targets, let's round to 20, that's 40 dirty patches to do something with. If it was a matter of cleaning with 3-4 patches halfway in the round, I'd say throw 'em on the ground. Everyone else does for that matter. But not everyone swabs EVERY shot. They will rot in. But I'm not throwing on average 40 patches on the ground! This is not ecologically driven. Cotton patches will rot away. This is a litter problem. I've never been to a woodswalk that has a trash can at every target. What would you do? I'm sure there is an easy solution.

What to do with all the patches??

So my new .45 rifle needs swabbed after every shot to remove a nasty crud ring or seating pressure varies and fliers occur. Swab after every shot and it is accurate. Powder does not matter. Shuetzen fffg, Goex fffg, or Pyrodex P. Powder amount does not matter. 30grs to 80grs. Lube does not matter. Spit, TOTW mink tallow, Wonderlube, 1970's formula FFG lube, Crisco, etc. A crud ring developes after every shot making seating the next patched ball very hard. I get a max of 3 shots then wild fliers develope. If I use a spit patch cut at muzzle and if I swab with spit after every shot, no fliers. Great accuracy, both off a rest and offhand. I've found that 1 spit soaked patch then 1 dry patch run up and down and flipped and run up and down again work well. This is duplicatable every time vs shooting more than 3 times with no swabbing with any powder, any lube.

This is strictly a target rifle to be used at the longrifle club I belong to, and to attend woodwalks at other clubs. I shoot this rifle VERY well offhand and will be competitive next year compared to what I'm shooting now. My current woodswalk rifle is gaining weight and getting bit heavy to hold steady after 15 or so shots. Soooooo......what to do with 40 cleaning patches, give or take???? 18 to 25 targets, let's round to 20, that's 40 dirty patches to do something with. If it was a matter of cleaning with 3-4 patches halfway in the round, I'd say throw 'em on the ground. Everyone else does for that matter. But not everyone swabs EVERY shot. They will rot in. But I'm not throwing on average 40 patches on the ground! This is not ecologically driven. Cotton patches will rot away. This is a litter problem. I've never been to a woodswalk that has a trash can at every target. What would you do? I'm sure there is an easy solution.

Most of the time I can shoot a whole match without swabing, if I do swab I just use the same patch over and over

 

[Terrier]

@NorthFork

I don’t go through as many cleaning patches as you do on a woods walk, but I agree with not wanting to leave them littering the trail.

If you can’t find a solution to the crud ring and still want to use that particular gun, take that thin(ish) leather you mentioned and sew up a small, elongated pouch.. in effect, a “drop pouch” about the size of a 12 oz beer bottle body…. Maybe make it a little narrower at the top. That should hold your 40 patches easy enough.

Either attach it to your possibles pouch strap or put a thong on it that you can tie around your waist to position it in a convenient spot.

 

[BadDaditood]

My .45s favorite load is a .440” ball with .022 denim patch (also from JoAnns)
You mentioned from .010” to .018”
Worth a try?
I’ve made it through a couple woodswalks with it. I think it’s a Green Mtn bbl (Kibler SMR) but then I use Swiss in flintlocks.
However I would give it a lick and a promise with Butch’s or some valve grinding compound.

 

[BadDaditood]

what a great idea, sometimes the answer is right there and we don't see it

Sometimes the OP states his period clothes have No pockets… and we don’t see it

 

[DW Trux]

I have an old sock that I stuff my used patches in. When through, I tie a knot in the sock and wash the whole thing to re-use the patches for the next time until they wear out.

 

[TC Tommy]

I don't think North Fork meant to really know what to do with all of the patches as much as, how do I
keep from having to swab the barrel so much. You're using two good powders but in fffg.
Have you tried ffg in either the Shuetzen or the Goex. That would be my next move. As far as what to
do with the patches, use the in your next shot and send them down range a little. You know like, recycle.

 

[Kentuckyjed]

Get a old T/C Hawken and shoot it , leave the TARGET rifle in its case. I've never had to swab after every shot if I did I would go crazy. I have shot at many woods walks and the only time I would swab the barrel was when I was finished and was cleaning it. Have fun and just shoot.

 

[ronaldrothb49]

overwhelmingly my shooting has been in competition so I have always wiped between shots even in primitive matches. I always save my cleaning patches. I use the mesh bags that onions come in and wash the patches and reuse them until they are tore up. Just not a member of this throw away society and doing this I can use the patches several times and that saves a little money.

 

[Ben Meyer]

I swab my barrel between every shot at the range. I use dry lubed patches, and I need to, for all the same reasons as the OP. But for woods walks, I use Mr Flintlocks patch lube. I'll pre prepare however many strips of patching that I think I'll need by getting them thoroughly wet with the lube. Not dripping wet, just "you'd have to pinch a rolled up strip really hard to squeeze liquid from it" wet. Put them in a zip lock bag.

I've expiramented recently. Dry lubed ballistol and water patching+no swabbing=3 shots before I think.my ramrod will break loading the gun. Mr Flintlocks? Same powder, same everything, 14 shots! I guess its cleaning fouling as you ram a new ball down. After 14 shots, that last 3-4" felt pretty cruddy, but hey, ill take it! No fliers, but my accuracy is slightly worse. Not enough to complain about at a woods walk.

All that as to say, OP, get your hands on some Mr Flintlocks patch lube and try it.

 

[sportster73hp]

Wasn’t there a thread on using Dawn dish soap as lube? Maybe this will clean your crud ring

 

[Mike in FL]

I've never done a woods walk but I always swab between shots. One wet, two dry. I would feel awfully silly asking what I should do with dirty patches. I must be in the minority on that because there certainly are a lot of responses.

 

[Comfortably_Numb]

You need to work with your load, something isn't right. Change amount of powder, or patch thickness or lube. I have never had a rifle I couldn't shoot all day without stabbing. Blowing down the barrel before you load will help too.

 

[NorthFork]

@NorthFork

I don’t go through as many cleaning patches as you do on a woods walk, but I agree with not wanting to leave them littering the trail.

If you can’t find a solution to the crud ring and still want to use that particular gun, take that thin(ish) leather you mentioned and sew up a small, elongated pouch.. in effect, a “drop pouch” about the size of a 12 oz beer bottle body…. Maybe make it a little narrower at the top. That should hold your 40 patches easy enough.

Either attach it to your possibles pouch strap or put a thong on it that you can tie around your waist to position it in a convenient spot.

Thank you, that's what I now plan on doing.

 

[NorthFork]

Sometimes the OP states his period clothes have No pockets… and we don’t see it

I'm glad someone noticed.

 

[NorthFork]

I don't think North Fork meant to really know what to do with all of the patches as much as, how do I
keep from having to swab the barrel so much. You're using two good powders but in fffg.
Have you tried ffg in either the Shuetzen or the Goex. That would be my next move. As far as what to
do with the patches, use the in your next shot and send them down range a little. You know like, recycle.

No I have not tried ffg. It is worth a try though. I have both Shuetzen and Goex in ffg.

 

[NorthFork]

overwhelmingly my shooting has been in competition so I have always wiped between shots even in primitive matches. I always save my cleaning patches. I use the mesh bags that onions come in and wash the patches and reuse them until they are tore up. Just not a member of this throw away society and doing this I can use the patches several times and that saves a little money.

That's a good idea as well!

 

[Juice Jaws]

Sometimes the OP states his period clothes have No pockets… and we don’t see it

I bet he has a shooting pouch with pockets or at least one big pocket

 

[flntlokr]

Try some moose milk, and leave your patches pretty wet. I think your lubes are the problem.

My guess as well. Never have to 'wipe'. Loading each shot cleans the bore as it goes down. The only era when I had such problems was the short period when I fell for the 'bore butter' BS.