How many....

[Sun City]

ram an overpowder patch down atop your charge and then seat the patched RB atop it?

 

[jrweis1997]

I have never heard of this very interesting, do you see different results with accuracy?

 

[Sun City]

I've never done it either but recently I watched a guy do it because he believed this procedure was less harmful to the patch holding the RB!

 

[jrweis1997]

pretty neat may have to give that a try almost sounds like a shotgun wad

 

[snakebit]

I use an unlubed over powder wad when I shoot PA Connicals in my TC WMC. Can't say for sure it makes a huge difference in that rifle as it really shoots those well.

 

[Grenadier1758]

You will find many recurring threads that talk of using a wad or folded patch between powder and ball. Especially when using a thin path around the ball to minimize gas cutting. Also useful for those who don't wipe the bore between shots to push fouling out of the grooves and leave it between the powder charge and the patched ball. There are cases where accuracy is improved or that more shots can be fired before wiping the bore to remove fouling.

 

[hanshi]

Using a dry, over powder patch or felt wad, etc, is a practice to protect the prb patch from getting burn holes. If your fired patches are in good shape with no holes burned through then you don't need an op patch/wad.

I've done this extensively trying felt/leather/wasp nest/toilet paper/tow and more. All appeared to work well in protecting the patch. Some shooters use wadding to prevent contaminating the powder with lube. Sometimes there is a slight improvement in accuracy but not always. Velocity often shows an increase in FPS and very frequently the loads are more consistent. By that I mean the velocity spread is less with a lower sd.

If patches are not burned an op wad is probably not needed. But on the other hand I've never seen an instance where it caused any problem either.

 

[tenngun]

I’ve tried double patch but I swab between shots and never noticed an advantage

 

[smo]

My rifle is loaded right now with a pinch of wasp nest over the powder & a patched ball seated on top.

I do this when leaving my gun loaded during hunting season using a olive oil wet patch ..

I feel like it helps seal the bore much more than just a patch does and it also protects the powder charge from being contaminated by the patch lube.

 

[longcruise]

I've never done it either but recently I watched a guy do it because he believed this procedure was less harmful to the patch holding the RB!

I've heard of this but never saw a point to it. If a barrel is cutting or burning patches then i think it's like a band aid on a severed arm. Lots of reasons why a barrel may be wrecking patches but that's not the topic.

Now those who are patching over the powder to keep the powder dry are a whole different idea and probably a good one.

 

[French Colonial]

I tried this a few times with a greased wad under the patched ball and accuracy was worsened.

I found some of the remnants down range and in some instances the wad was stuck to the patch and my theory is that it steered the ball like a badminton bird.

If I ever try it again it will be with dry wads.

Mike from Florida has had good luck with this, maybe he will chime in.

 

[Rancocas]

I've tried it. It didn't seem to make any difference, so I generally don't bother with it.

 

[andy52]

I only have one rifle I do that with, it's a .75 jaeger and due to the large powder charge it helps with the patch not burning through.

 

[Pete G]

Not needed if your patch and ball is properly sized for the barrel.

 

[garypl]

I use a felt wad soaked in olive oil over the powder to keep a crud ring from forming especially in smaller calibers (32-40). I can use a really wet patch which also keeps the barrel clean allowing 20-30 shots without wiping the bore. Works for me - do whatever works for you

 

[bldtrailer]

 

[wiscoaster]

ram an overpowder patch down atop your charge and then seat the patched RB atop it?

I could see a case for a wad over powder but not an extra patch.

 

[reddogge]

I've been shooting these things since the '60s and found no reason to shoot an over power patch.

 

[Larry (Omaha)]

ram an overpowder patch down atop your charge and then seat the patched RB atop it?

Not me. Why would one do that?
Larry

 

[Spikebuck]

I had a rifle that I was having a terrible time finding a load to give me the accuracy I wanted. It was the first rifle I ever owned with deep round bottom grooves. I finally tried a wad over powder and bingo! accuracy achieved.

I posted my results here and someone just gave me their honest opinion that I should go back to load workup instead of adding an extra unneeded component to the load chain. After a moment of resentment and really thinking about the validity of the comment, I took it to heart and went back to square one. Turns out that there was a plain old powder/patch/lube/ball combo that actually out performed the one with the wad! I was thrilled because simpler is better, IMO.

So, will it work? Yes. Is it absolutely necessary? Unlikely.