Free cleaning patches are the best !

[roundball]

It too hot and humid to do anything outside so I got out my wife's quilting cutter board & rotary cutter to turn a stack of old T-shirts into about 1500 - 3" cleaning/wiping patches for the big bores.

Then I cut up some old blue jeans into 500 -.040" x 1+3/4" square shooting patches for the .62cal.

Hard to beat free...and just think, ONLY about 45 more days of this heat & humidity :shake:

 

[dlpowell]

You ought to be at home with Oklahoma weather. I put a small ac unit in my work shed so I don't burn up.

 

[Blizzard of '93]

good pastime. I use old bedsheets torn into strips and then cut into about 2" sqs for 'wipe between shots' patch for my .50's.

 

[jtmattison]

You reminded me I'm almost out of cleaning patches. I need to chop up some t-shirts.

I do mine on a rotary cutter also.

I like to do it while my kids are outside playing. I cut patches while they ride their scooters and bikes. Time passes fast and before I know it I have several hundred patches.

HD

 

[NHmsj]

Ok, whereas I am still using sissors to cut up old tee-shirts and alike to make cleaning patches, what exactly is a rotary cutter?

msj

 

[roundball]

Ok, whereas I am still using sissors to cut up old tee-shirts and alike to make cleaning patches, what exactly is a rotary cutter?

msj

In the world of arts & crafts, particularly for working with fabric, quilting, etc...a couple of tools often used are a cutting mat that you lay on a table or work bench and a rotary cutter...looks like a pizza wheel cutter, only the disk blade is a very sharp razor blade.

Lay a piece of fabric on the cut proof mat, usually several layers at a time, and roll the rotary cutter over the material and it slices right down through them all...the mat has ruler markings around the edges so you can line up the width of the strips you want to cut, then a t-square sort of a straight edge to hold the material down in place while rolling the cutter along side of it...you can cut hundreds of patches in precise sizes with these gizmos in no time...hope all that's clear

Google up:
Fiskars Self Healing Cutting Mat

 

[NHmsj]

Hey, got it. Thanks!

msj

 

[bebloomster]

Working at a hospital, 2x2 gauze sponges are readily available. They make fantastic cleaning patches. Been using them for well over 30 years now.

 

[LeMat1856]

sep 4 / 04:45

two quick questions:

how tightly do those 2 x 2 sponges fit on the jag ? (mine is .44)

can i get some ? ha!

~daniel~
ps. they actually do sound like a great material for cleaning.

 

[Tumblernotch]

That cutter would be nice! I use my wifes old flannel night gowns and pajamas and my old flannel shirts for cleaning patches. Problem is, I wear those old shirts until they're almost too far gone for patchin'. :grin:

 

[mykeal]

That cutter would be nice! I use my wifes old flannel night gowns and pajamas and my old flannel shirts for cleaning patches. Problem is, I wear those old shirts until they're almost too far gone for patchin'. :grin:

Ummm, I think you misunderstood...those shirts are not patching, they NEED patching. :shake:

That's OK, no need to thank me, just trying to help out a little. :rotf:

 

[brubincam]

-----if I cut up my wifes jammies for patches she would have to walk around naked before bed---AAAAAAHHHHHH my eyes I can't see-----think I'll buy my patches----- :surrender: :surrender: :surrender:

 

[bebloomster]

The 2x2 sponges are a bit thicker than what you are probably used to. I generally turn the jags down a bit so that they aren't quite so tight. Check with your local doctors office about getting a few unsterile ones to see what they are like. Make sure that they are the woven cotton ones rather than the man-made synthetic material.

 

[MikeChapin]

My wife works in a thrift store. She brings home fabric remnants, and flannel clothes that they can't sell. I whack them up into cleaning patches. I really like quilt batting and some fleece. They are thick enough to act like a bore mop.

 

[LeMat1856]

dog,

good advice. i have some leftover 4 x 4's and will try them first for thickness.

thanks.

 

[chuck-ia]

I use store bought white flannel, old flannel shirts, even been known to pick up cleaning patches at the range that are pretty clean. When cleaning the gun at home after shooting, I use new patches, but save them for swabbing at the range. I feel I don't need to use new flannel for swabbing at the range. I have heard some guys wash their cleaning patches in a nylon stocking, may give that a try allso. flinch