best ramrod

[jbwilliams3]

Straight-grained hickory.

 

[Larry (Omaha)]

I'd like to know what you folks think is the best quality ramrod. Thought I had a good one but I actually bent it trying to push the last two RBs down the barrel.

Hickory for me for all usage except when submerging a barrel in water, then aluminum or steel. I still am using my first hickory RR I made in the early 70's.
Flintlocklar

 

[mooman76]

It's thin stainless. I think bob is right--too much rod between my hand and the muzzle. I do use a bullet starter so this happened as I was pushing it the rest of the way down. wondering if after 8 or 9 rounds there was a buildup of soot that held the ball and patch too tightly making it even harder to push the RB all the way down.

Could be. If you don't reload right off, fouling can turn hard and make it difficult if not impossible to get and load down the bore. I usually don't swab but I reload right off.

 

[stink koat]

I like fiberglass a lot.

I read years before NOT TO USE FIBERGLASS RODS they WILL wear down you rifling!

 

[mooman76]

You should have a guide for the RR. A RR that gets some dirt on it can also wear. They did a test in Muzzleloader mag years back and fiberglass showed no appreciable wear after thousands of loads.

 

[longcruise]

I have a bunch of range rods. A couple store bought but mostly self made of stainless, brass, plain steel, and nickel plated steel. All with bore guides and they all work great. It's important to keep rod diameter large enough in relation to bore size.

 

[SDSmlf]

Show us your scar.

Split wooden ram rod went through the side of my thumb. Took a lot of digging to get all the wood chips and crud out, then around a dozen stitches to close things up. Happened over 35 years ago and it still tells me when the weather is changing. As you are an expert on the topic, what have you witnessed and/or experienced?

 

[lenl349]

Are you talking about a ramrod carried under the barrel or a ‘range rod’? Also, what type of gun is this for?

it's a range rod in a thin stainless. using it on my .50 cal. hawken

 

[Relic shooter]

Over the past 30 years I've used black poly carbonate for ramrods in all of my rifles & pistols that I shoot allot, it resembles the high quality ebony R/R found in English firearms.
Poly carbonate has several excellent qualities, the surface provides a good grip when roughened, it's slightly flexible, difficult to break & heavier than wood, will not wear the muzzle & has self-lubricating qualities. It can be purchased in standard ramrod diameters from suppliers that sell plastics & other synthetics, this link provides it's qualities Plastic Sheets, Rod, Tube & Fabrication Services Since 1914 | ePlastics®
The only downside is that it's self-lubricating qualities makes it more difficult to machine than wood, but if you want a ramrod that will last a lifetime & not damage the bore it's an excellent choice.

 

[SDSmlf]

it's a range rod in a thin stainless. using it on my .50 cal. hawken

A good source for stainless range rods is Rice Barrel. Go to the bottom of the page. RICE MUZZLE LOADING BARREL COMPANY. I use a 1/4” SS range rod for 32 and 36 caliber, 3/8” for 40 and larger. Rice gets $20 for theirs, 36” or 48” long.

 

[SDSmlf]

Wood used right won’t break

Quite the number of replacement ram rods made and sold. Wonder why there is a market for them?

 

[Dibbuk]

Just my opinion. The ramrod that comes with most commercially made muzzle-loaders, is like the spare tire kit that you find in most automobiles: Barely adequate.

I prefer a solid brass rod the length of the barrel. With a loading jag on one end, and a "T" handle on the other, they work great for loading and cleaning. The "T" handle helps pull tight patches, and the rod stores inside the barrel during transport

 

[firestick]

Found a used Buffalo Hunter which is .58 cal. Ramrod is 5/16 hickory. Just not enough rod to push a big ball down the barrel. Ordered a 5'16 brass rod from October Country. Excellent rod and they were supreme to deal with.

 

[FishDFly]

I have several of their brass ram rods, do like them.

 

[tenngun]

Quite the number of replacement ram rods made and sold. Wonder why there is a market for them?

I’ve got several extras, a whipping stick for each of my guns one plain untipped but tapered rod in my smoothies and one fitted with a shot gun tip for my smoothies.
And over the years since I don’t use a guide I’ve shaved a bit of wood off rods and needed replacement
And I’ve bought extras because three is easer to ship then one, and I can find jobs for extra rod wood
Then we have folks that bought over the counter rods that are not made of the best wood, and folks that have yet to learn how to use a rod and broke it.
I keep three shooters in my stable (harem?) at any one time. But I bet I have fifteen rods total

 

[Bob McBride]

Quite the number of replacement ram rods made and sold. Wonder why there is a market for them?

Just as many folks raring up on the rod back then as today...not to mention getting distracted by their hunting buddy whispering, "You missed! Hurry up! Shoot him again before he runs oft!" and shooting their rod into another dimension....

 

[Half-Cocked]

I have 2 that I made and one that I bought for cleanin only.

I made a fiberglass one out of a road side marker. Attached a plastic ball on the end and used electric tape as an indicator line showing when the ml was empty. The road maker itself is orange so if there is a charge you would see the orange part of the rod.

My other creation is far simpler. I use an oak dowel about an 1/8 or so of inch smaller than the bore. I sealed the oak with mineral oil.

The cleaning rod is a stainless steel one.

Best thing to do is use common sense. If it's to tight don't force it. If you're cleaning don't force it. If you have to use that much pressure to put a jag or patch down it you are doing something wrong. Soak the bore in hot water and soap and try again.

When loading use a ball starter. When using a wooden rod hold it no more than a few inches over the muzzle. Alternate hands and push gently but firmly. Again don't force it wood will break that's a duh!

Also, I have found out if the number of products that I have wasted my money including hoppe's nothing and I mean nothing works as efficiently as hot water and dish soap.

Remember hand over hand near the muzzle don't force it and you'll be just fine.

 

[Carbon 6]

As you are an expert on the topic, what have you witnessed and/or experienced?

Well, I've broken a lot of ramrods but never impaled my hand, never heard nor seen anyone who impaled their hand and still haven't (a thumb don't count.). I think it's just one of those things that people get worked up about for no reason.

Out of curiosity, how did you manage to injure your thumb on the outside ? I would think the inside of your thumb is where you would injure it .

 

[SDSmlf]

Well, I've broken a lot of ramrods but never impaled my hand, never heard nor seen anyone who impaled their hand and still haven't (a thumb don't count.). I think it's just one of those things that people get worked up about for no reason.

Out of curiosity, how did you manage to injure your thumb on the outside ? I would think the inside of your thumb is where you would injure it .

Well I guess if you haven’t seen it, it doesn’t happen, although there have been posts and photographs on this forum in the past of folks injuring themselves, but probably before you joining, so that doesn’t count, so no point linking to them......

As far as the location of my injury, I wasn’t planning the incident and didn’t know any better about the proper place to impale myself (internet wasn’t yet invented). It was a long time ago, but as I remember it, as the grain split and the sharp point caught the skin on my thumb and sliced through it like a knife as my hand moved down the ramrod protruding from the muzzle. It broke only few inches above the muzzle, just below my hand, with my fingers gripping the ramrod and my thumb likely under the ramrod. Didn’t film it and don’t have pictures, just have the scar you asked to see. Sorry to disappoint with no hand impalement and only a thumb impalement.

 

[Zonie]

OMG! Not scar photos!

I learned long ago, while sitting in a bar, never show or talk about an old scar. If you do, within less than a few second, half a dozen men will be rolling up their pant's legs and their sleeves and they will all start telling anyone within earshot how they got it and how it took months for it to heal.
This can go on for hours and if you started it, you better not leave until they are done.
If you do leave and then venture back into the bar several months later, the same group of men will proceed to roll up their trousers and their sleeves and start telling you about it, all over again.