Don't use wood ramrods!

[cynthialee]

Out doing some shooting today and I broke the issue ramrod that came with my T/C Hawken. How it didn't impale me I have no idea, guess that god was looking out for me.
So I am getting a new one soonish. Going to get a nice synthetic one I guess. Won't look pretty on the rifle, but I don't care after todays scare!

 

[azmntman]

Glad you were OK :shocked2: . God was likely protecting you fer sure :thumbsup: . I have broken only one in my 43 years and now use a range rod (aluminum) in all situations other than a quick reload in the field! It was spooky as it did actually scratch my wrist to forearm (or forearm to wrist) badly, AND THE BREAK WAS SHARP!!

 

[George]

I wonder why God would want to break her ramrod.

Spence

 

[larryp]

There's a guy on ebay who makes custom brass ramrods with cleaning jags on the end for muzzleloaders. His name is ramblinman211. I bought one last year for my T/C Hawken and it's nice high quality. It does add a fair amount of weight but that helps hold it steady.

 

[rodwha]

Good to hear you didn't impale yourself!

Ohio Ramrod here makes synthetic ramrods to order. I bought one and like it. Inexpensive too, and a good guy to deal with here (bought an antler short starter and a couple of punches too). Made to order...

 

[longcruise]

Don't know about yours, but mine (1974) was 5/16th and not very tough. I eventually went to a 3/8" and now the last few years, a brass rod. One of my other guns (GPR) is fitted with a steel rod.

 

[Zonie]

The only wooden TC ramrods I've ever seen that did not have any grain runout were replacements, built or bought by the guns owner after he broke or threw away the factory ramrod.



I don't think RC intentionally installed these crummy ramrods. Rather, I think they just did not understand the dangers so they used machined dowels rather than split wood.

CVA and Traditions aren't any better when it comes to using wood with grain runout.

I've even seen a number of ramrod blanks offered by some of the better suppliers that had grain runout.

 

[necchi]

How it didn't impale me I have no idea, guess that god was looking out for me.

You'll start getting folks saying there's no problem if a wood rod is used properly,,
I don't care! I have a scar in my palm to this day from a nasty wound because of a broken wood rod from 25yrs ago!
Yes, I used it improperly (obviously),, but it ain't gonna happen again.

 

[coloradoclyde]

I've broke more than a dozen wood ramrods....never been impaled (knock on wood) :grin:
Zonie is right, factory ramrods are junk!

Seems to me that wooden ramrods kind of have a shelf life, and are doomed to break over time...
Best to replace them every five or ten years...

Bad barrels, bad locks, bad ramrods......I'm starting to see why T/C got out of the business.

Glad no one was injured.......except for the tree that gave its life to make the ramrod... :hmm:

 

[tenngun]

Glad you came through ok. I have never had that happen to me. Is it a 3/8 rod in your gun?You might replace it with a good wood rod for looks, and to reload when hunting, then carry a larger wood tike 7/16 or brass, aluminnum or one of the modren synthitics for general loading.

 

[LRB]

Here you go.

IN:



OUT:



Some what painful for a short while. The skin and flesh at the exit stood a good half inch high for hours. I thought there was a piece of wood inside, but there was not. That night and the next day, I soaked it in Epsom salts, and the day after that, no pain at all, and was able to use it as if it never happened. I am now VERY careful about choosing ramrod blanks.

 

[zimmerstutzen]

Nothing wrong from a proper wood rod. Metal rods add weight and usually rattle when carried in the ferrules. Grain run out is the chief culprit. Old timers who grew up with cedar arrows in archery knew that arrows bend under force going past the bow on launch and grain run out was a sure way to an impaled wrist. Arrow shafts were specially selected to avoid run out for that reason. We knew about the danger of grain run out already when we made the transition to muzzle loaders. Another cause of problems is some folks bending wooden ramrod when putting too much pressure on an overly tight prb for the bore. Or jamming with too much force to make sure the ball is seated. I have seen folks bounce metal rods off a seated ball with such force that it looked like they were trying to hammer through the breech.
Most synthetic roads are Delrin. Very strong in length but very flexible in narrow diameters. I started making Delrin rods back around 1983. Easy to fasten standard ends to as well.

Always check the rods on a new gun for run out. When getting a new wooden road check the grain. Don't buy it if it has run out.
Btw, grain run out is also why some pistol stocks break on loading with a too tight prb.

 

Well knock on wood (no pun intended), but I have been shooting muzzleloaders for a little over 47 years now and I have never broken one while loading. I didn't even break that one unloading - the one I forgot to remove before I shot. I found it and used it the rest of the weekend.But that is another story. If you choke up on the rod and make short thrusts I would think it pretty hard to break one.
Back in the day when all my rifles had the ramrod sticking out a few inches past the muzzle I broke a few snagging something. I have also been known to use steel ramrods in .32s or even .36s. I realize it's just my personal feelings, but a synthetic ramrod on a good traditional rifle (or smooth bore)borders on blasphemy.

 

[Alden]

I'm guessing you were loading Left handed...

Did the same on mine -- rod broke loading the last shot ever fired on the busiest range in the Mid-Atlantic states as it closed forever. Replaced it with a brown whatever-they-call-that-plasticky-stuff one made specifically as a replacement for those from Dixon's. It's a T/C Hawken, and a capgun at that, after all.

 

[Dewey]

I'm glad you weren't hurt !!!

Why not make a nice run-out-free wooden rod, but also get a metal range rod ???

That way your rifle would look better, you would have a quality wooden rod for hunting, and the safety of the metal rod at your range.

 

[jamesthomas]

I'm Glad you came out O.K. I never use the rod under the barrel when target shooting, I have a 3/8ths inch Hickory (no runout) range rod for it with a antler "T" handle. I only use the rod under the barrel when hunting.

 

[hthomso]

I agree with aramakiller. I always use a range rod. I never use the under-barrel rod except in the field.:thumbsup:

 

[Okie Hog]

Glad you are OK. Broken ramrods very often injure the loader.

In the early 1960s i saw two shooters badly injured from broken ramrods. One ramrod went through the mans hand tearing, up ligaments and blood vessels. It protruded about 10" from the back of his hand. Another shooter and myself pulled the ramrod from the shooters hand.

 

[USMA65]

Here you go.

IN:



OUT:



Some what painful for a short while. The skin and flesh at the exit stood a good half inch high for hours. I thought there was a piece of wood inside, but there was not. That night and the next day, I soaked it in Epsom salts, and the day after that, no pain at all, and was able to use it as if it never happened. I am now VERY careful about choosing ramrod blanks.

Wick, have you developed any symptoms of Dutch Elm Disease yet? :wink:

 

[Vaino]

When I used my TC Hawkwen for hunting and the sometimes "fast" loading, the original RR broke w/ no injury to me....so bought 2 TC simulated wood RRs of which one was a longer than bore range rod and the other a replacement for the broken RR. These 2 RRs have worked out well and the color is the same as the original wooden RR.

Shooting LRs probably has more chance of breaking a wooden RR because of the greater length and w/the 46" BBls on my BC LRs, care has to be taken to snub up on the RR and not seat the PRB w/ long strokes.

Using a metal range RR eliminates the chance of a broken RR, but when hunting w/ a wooden RR, does a metal range RR form a bad habit of long loading strokes w/ the wooden RR and the greater possibility of breaking it?

All my builds have genuine hickory RRs w/ no grain runout and are made to fit RR pipes w/ slightly oversized IDs......Fred