Mallet...Leather, wood, rubber????

[Dakota Dick]

Gents and Ladies
Still putting together my range accessories and I'd say I was 95% there. In my younger years...and that is qute awhile ago...when I was loading my TC Hawken, I could slap my short starter with the palm of my hand with little or no side effect...but that was before age and arthritis forced me to seek an alternate, less painful solution.
So I am thinking a good 2" face leather mallet in the 8-10oz range would be the best choice for wacking a short starter...Wood on Wood it seems to me would eventually lead to damage of the short starter ball and mallet face...rubber would work and may be a better option since it can be weighted easily and is more available and more than likely less costly...but a good leather mallet just seems a better choice.
What say you all...what works best and why?

 

[bcprewitt75]

What about nylon? You may also look around for a small mallet with replaceable faces that simply screw on and off. I have seen these somewhere and you can get the different type of materials that you speak of.

 

[necchi]

I don't think any hammer is going to work "better" than any other, a hammer is a hammer.

That said I have a Rawhide mallet and a small Brass mallet that's used around my guns, just because both are softer than the steel and won't mar anything.

In this case I'd look for something inexpensive, it doesn't have to be very heavy because once the first 1 1/2-2"s of the PRB is down the bore the rest goes easy.
I'd look for a Wood Gavel and use rubber cement to glue a piece of leather to the striking face.
(sole of an old shoe?)
Even a small one would work, if too light I could drill a hole(s) in it and fill it with lead or lead shot to bring the weight up a bit.

Just throwin out ideas,, :wink:

 

[cynthialee]

a rubber mallet

 

[Sunkmanitu Tanka]

I also have a rubber mallet .. I like the bit of "give" it has when I 'whack' it on my short starter... I believe it helps avoiding damage to the wrist area of the gun. Also the 'shaped' end of the short starter together with the rubber mallet helps to preserve the shape of the round ball... it's all in the details...

 

[Leatherbark]

A 2x2 works perfect. You dont have to line anything up like a hammerhead just grag the 2x2 and strike the short starter. Cut the 2x2 about a foot long and stain it. Grab either end and use it.

Bob

 

[curator]

A heavy rubber mallet will seat the ball with less deformation particularly if your short starter/ball set faces are contoured to match the caliber ball. Its all about inertia. Several raps with a light hammer are more likely to cause the ball to obturate then requiring more force to seat it all the way down on top of the powder charge.

 

[Rifleman1776]

In my shooting box is a small brass hammer I have been pounding a maple short starter with since 1970. The hammer is showing quite a bit of wear. The maple looks almost new.
Really, not an issue. Use watcha got.

 

[ohio ramrod]

I usually face wooden mallets with a rawhide face to protect wooden parts, usually wooden chisel handles. But I think it would work to protect a short starter as well.

 

[Sperit de bois]

I'd look at a thinner patch or a smaller ball,,easier loading.I figure if it is that hard to load,make it easier on the shooter!!!Just my twisted way of thinking..Unless I was using a false barrel and shooting chunk gun matches....

 

[Rifleman1776]

I'd look at a thinner patch or a smaller ball,,easier loading.I figure if it is that hard to load,make it easier on the shooter!!!Just my twisted way of thinking..Unless I was using a false barrel and shooting chunk gun matches....

You aren't wrong. But, in this game each does it his way. Tight ball/patch combos are generally the most accurate. On the range I need a pounder and short starter. At ronny or in the woods my fit is loose enough to seat without the pounder.
But, that's me.

 

[don hepler]

I've faced similar problems, with my hands and have experimented with different materials.

I have one starter that is turned on a lathe,that is 3" is diameter, and made out of white nylon material. The large dia. spreads the force out making it easier to use.

I also made a mallet out of apple wood and put an oak handle in. It looks antique, and works very well. I copied a mallet sold at Wood Crafters that is used for working with a wood chisel.

Make your own, and you'll be better satisfied, I think.

 

[Chris Hayes]

I use a rawhide mallet from Tandy.

 

[CrackStock]

Years ago, I went to Auto Zoo and bought a 3 mallet set for about 5 dollars. Wood handles with a metal head which have screw in faces. Each had a rubber face on one side and a yellow neoprene face opposite. These worked very well for me - the medium size was especially good for loading.

CS

 

[Stumpkiller]

I say leather or wood (if pine) as that will be lighter to carry when hunting. And, as target shooting is just hunting practice . . .

Sorry, won't re-open that old can of worms.

If I had a load that required a mallet I would call it impractical and continue load development.

 

[Semisane]

How about a section of limb from a Live Oak tree (dipped in Polyurethane to lock the bark on), and the end from an old mop handle.

This is my range mallet. My target and hunting loads are pretty tight. I can smack the short starter with my palm a few times on a hunt with no problem. But doing the same thing thirty or forty times at the range becomes downright painful.


.

 

[aeatwood]

Heh. I just use the same hickory hammer handle that I use to whack my mould sprue plate.

 

[Rifleman1776]

Sorry, won't re-open that old can of worms.

You won't do what?? :stir:

 

[AllenHawken]

I used a rubber mallet that I had in the garage. Used it to close the lids on paint cans. Needed it every time to pound a .535 ball with a .015 patch down my 54 caliber Hawken. Switched to smaller ball (.530) and thicker patch (.018) and no longer need the mallet, although I keep it in my range bag just in case.

 

[Dakota Dick]

Thanks to all for replies and pictures :bow:
Had some left over materials in the shop so I decided to give it a shot and make one. A piece of thick oak timmed from a buther block project, a leftover 3/4" piece of oak dowel, some epoxy, nylon cord, a thick piece of leather left over from another project and some left over stock finish.
Ended up with a 10" long 12oz mallet that should do the job nicely when needed. One side leather faced and and the other wood. Drilled 3/4" hole all the way through the block, wrapped the dowel at the neck for extra support and mixed up the epoxy and spread it in the hole and on the dowel. Used some 3M Super Adhesive to mount the leather pad and once all was setup and dry, ran it all on the belt sander and finshed up with a couple coats of gun stock tru oil. Not bad for a couple hours work and there's not another one like it! Thanks again for the time and inputs.