Just Starting

[cynthialee]

brass range rod is good advice

 

[Carl Fowler III]

I use .530 ball and .020 patch lubed with Hoppes #9 BP plus and a brass rod...tight in my .54 cal, but that brass rod makes it easy....get yourself a brass range rod it will help! Also agree that ye may need to use a thinner patch, but do check the size of the balls ye be using! Good luck and have some fun! :v

 

[Billnpatti]

I'd go to a good .010 patch. That will make it easier to load. Also, you may need to swab between shots to remove any fouling from your bore. A damp patch, one stroke down, pause for about 10 seconds and one stroke out. No pumping. Follow with a dry patch. One stoke down and one stroke out. If you have any trouble with burning through your patch, you could use a lightly lubed felt OP wad or, lacking that, you could pour a volume of something like grits, corn meal, or Cream of Wheat equal to about 10 to 20 grains of powder (depending on your caliber) on top of the powder to act as a buffer. It's an old and proven method and does no harm to your rifle. If you use a buffer, you may notice a slight increase in recoil due to the increased mass going out the muzzle.

 

[BrownBear]

The rifle is a TC Hawken I purchased from this Forum.

A .490/.015 combo isn't usually too tight for a TC50, so it makes me wonder what else might be going on. I'm using .490/.018 in a couple of my TC50's, and I don't experience anything like the difficulties you describe.

I'm suspicious of your prelubed patches. Could be that the patches are old and the lube is failing. The times I've worked with Hodgdon Triple 7, it sure seemed happier with a grease lube or a wet patch, which further makes me suspicious.

I keep looking at the lube as an explanation, in order to keep you from resorting to a thinner patch if possible. I've tried assorted .010 patches and my TCs were awfully good at shredding them, and as a result they didn't shoot worth poop.

I'd take Strawstalker/NM up on his generous offer to shoot with you. The best solution for any load problem is to experiment with the various components. That's hard to do (and expensive) if you have to buy whole packages but only use a few before discovering something is no good for you.

 

[cynthialee]

I have used cornmeal as a buffer to save thin patches and it works pretty good.

 

[Col. Batguano]

If you are using one of the wooden ball short starters, you might drill a hole or two in it that makes the ramrod fit in to it. One deep one to hold the rod until the ball nears it's destination, and a shallower one to send it all the way home. but a chunk of scrap wood would work just as well. That way you at least won't put a hole in your hand with the field rod.

At the range, get yourself a good stout range rod with a good sized wooden handle.

 

[bpd303]

Called a palm saver. I made mine out of a piece of antler that I couldn't use for anything else.