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ball patch thickness
- Thread starter jessuwah
- Start date
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jessuwah said:
Kinda a newbie myself, but if I got a .450 barrel, I'll use a .440 ball (.010 under the barrel) with a .015 patch (.005 over the barrel)
Goes down the tube pretty easily, I'd like to try a .018 patch soon.
See what others more experienced than me tell ya. Best wishes.
A good place to start is .005 or .010 under the caliber size or land size for ball. Then .005 to .010 under the groove size. Take my 54 with a land size of .542 and a groove size of .558. If I use a 530 ball, thats .012 less than the land. The groove depth is .016 deeper than the land. So I need to fill the .012 plus the .016 but sticking with .005 or .010 less than land I come up with .018 or .023 for a patch. 530 plus the 018 is 548 or 010 less than groove depth. 530 plus 023 is 553 or 005 less than groove depth. I hope I didn't make that sound harder than it really is, I'm pretty new at this myself. Buuuutttt... this rifle shoots 1 1/4" groups at 100 yds with the .023 patch so something is working right. :grin:
To simplify, I get a ball 0.010 smaller than the stated caliber size, and then bought a bunch of different patches to try. I went with the patch that allowed the ball to be rammed down the barrel, with a low-moderate amount of tension.
ohio ramrod
75 Cal.
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- Aug 21, 2008
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Trail and practice is what determines your best fit. If just getting started you need to have a method of measuring the thickness. (micrometer or calipers ). Remember since cloth compresses what you are trying to measure is a comparason between patches. You can get different "thickness" of the patches by compressing the cloth. You simply want to compare one to another.. Start with a fairly easy fit patch, test and keep going to thicker patches until you get desired accuracy. Some people are willing to ""pound" over sized balls and thick patches down the barrel. Most want a patch/ball combination that loads easily. Most will use a combination that is helped starting with a "short starter" then fully seated with a ramrod. What you are trying to achieve is the best accuracy and realative ease of loading. :idunno:
Many Klatch
69 Cal.
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- May 19, 2006
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Like Ohio Ramrod says, the correct combination is what makes you happy. I don't like to use short starters so I use slightly undersized ball and thicker patching. In my .54 rifle I use a .526 ball and .012 patching. It loads easily all day long whether clean or dirty with just a ramrod. Most of my shooting is off hand so the accuracy is as good as I need.
Some people want single hole groups at 100 yards. Most of those shooters need a hammer to get their extremely tight patch ball combination started.
So, start out with an easy patch/ball combination and then experiment from there. I find that it takes me about a year of regular shooting before I can finally determine what the proper load is for any new blackpowder gun.
Many Klatch
Some people want single hole groups at 100 yards. Most of those shooters need a hammer to get their extremely tight patch ball combination started.
So, start out with an easy patch/ball combination and then experiment from there. I find that it takes me about a year of regular shooting before I can finally determine what the proper load is for any new blackpowder gun.
Many Klatch
AllenHawken
36 Cal.
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- May 27, 2012
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Correct answer: Trial and error.
I have a .54 Hawken.
Started with .530 ball and .015 wonder-lubed cotton patch. Easy to load but too loose. Got a lot of blow-by (determined by inspecting patches after firing) and poor accuracy.
Tried .535 ball with .018 wonder-lubed pillow ticking patch. Hard to load (had to use a hammer) but great accuracy and no blow-by.
Next tried .535 ball with .015 wonder-lubed cotton patch. Easy to load but got blow-by and poor accuracy.
Finally settled on .530 ball with .018 spit-lubed pillow ticking patch. Easy to load and good accuracy.
Your results may vary.
I have a .54 Hawken.
Started with .530 ball and .015 wonder-lubed cotton patch. Easy to load but too loose. Got a lot of blow-by (determined by inspecting patches after firing) and poor accuracy.
Tried .535 ball with .018 wonder-lubed pillow ticking patch. Hard to load (had to use a hammer) but great accuracy and no blow-by.
Next tried .535 ball with .015 wonder-lubed cotton patch. Easy to load but got blow-by and poor accuracy.
Finally settled on .530 ball with .018 spit-lubed pillow ticking patch. Easy to load and good accuracy.
Your results may vary.
nchawkeye
58 Cal.
I'd bet the majority of the shooters out there use either .015 or .018 patches...
Buy some of each and try them, unlubed patches aren't that expensive...
As you gain experience you can experiment with buying patch material and cut your own...
Buy some of each and try them, unlubed patches aren't that expensive...
As you gain experience you can experiment with buying patch material and cut your own...
ohio ramrod
75 Cal.
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- Aug 21, 2008
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I make my own leather
"wads" and they help blowby as well as patch burning. To see if it helps all ou have to do is fold over cleaning patch and use it as an over powder wad. :idunno:
"wads" and they help blowby as well as patch burning. To see if it helps all ou have to do is fold over cleaning patch and use it as an over powder wad. :idunno:
Greenjoytj
54 Cal.
I use cloth material thick enough to cause the cloth to emboss the weave pattern of the cloth into the soft lead of the ball.
This embossed pattern is lightly pressed into ball on the groove area and more deeply embossed where the rifling lands pressed it deep into the ball.
Its a compromise based on difficulty in loading vs desired group size. Want a long range one hole group be prepared to dead blow hammer to start the ball into the muzzle.
Satisfied with a 4 inch group at 50 yards then load a loose prb combo that you can start and seat with just you ramrod.
You might even use both, the tight combo for that first deadly shot and the loose combo for a quick reload that still gives reasonable (to you) accuracy.
This embossed pattern is lightly pressed into ball on the groove area and more deeply embossed where the rifling lands pressed it deep into the ball.
Its a compromise based on difficulty in loading vs desired group size. Want a long range one hole group be prepared to dead blow hammer to start the ball into the muzzle.
Satisfied with a 4 inch group at 50 yards then load a loose prb combo that you can start and seat with just you ramrod.
You might even use both, the tight combo for that first deadly shot and the loose combo for a quick reload that still gives reasonable (to you) accuracy.
