Newbie Question: Which side of the patch do I grease?

[ahcollier]

New BP/ML shooter here. I have a .50 cal Hawken & intend to shoot .490 balls with patches.

Which side of the patch do I grease? Outer/barrel side? Inner/ball side? Both?

Thanks, Andy in Virginia

 

[AlexB]

Barrel side

 

[ahcollier]

Barrel side

Thank you.

 

[Boomerang]

The outside.

 

[ahcollier]

The outside.

The outside.

Thank you!

 

[Boomerang]

In all reality it won't matter much, because your grease will soak through.

 

[ahcollier]

In all reality it won't matter much, because your grease will soak through.

Do you grease the patches before you go out in the field?

 

[Boomerang]

Do you grease the patches before you go out in the field?

Yes I do. I then put them in a little sandwich bag to keep them clean and keep the grease from soaking through to something else.

 

[ahcollier]

Yes I do. I then put them in a little sandwich bag to keep them clean and keep the grease from soaking through to something else.

Thank you.

 

[ETipp]

I’ve been lubing both sides for years. Easier, no misfires, no problems. Keeps the bore good and lubed.

As what has already been said, they are going to soak through anyway.

 

[snakebit]

I only lube the barrel side. I keep the patches in the mink oil tin. Pluck them out as needed, give them a wipe across the MO on the way out.

 

[tenngun]

I only lube outside, and lube before I load. However, I’ve pre lubed and that made both side lubed and shot a lot from a bullet board and I can’t see it makes any difference

 

[TransYank]

Yes I do. I then put them in a little sandwich bag to keep them clean and keep the grease from soaking through to something else.

I would suggest a loading block. Preloaded with patch and ball

 

[Johnny Too-Tall]

I lube the flat side HAHA

 

[stubshaft]

I soak my patches so both sides are lubed. On those rare occasions I use store bought dry patches I usually rub them so that the entire patch is coated with lube.

 

[N.Y. Yankee]

I melt the lube into liquid form and dunk the patches in it with small tongs. On a plate or a pan, I lay down a piece of waxed paper and a dry patch. Dip a second patch, let it drip off and lay it on the first patch. Alternate dry/wet and lightly squeeze the dry one onto the wet one so the lube soaks through. Do this until you have the desired number of patches or the lube is gone. I just keep a can full of lube and keep a lid on it stored away. Bring it out, melt it slowly and lube a couple dozen patches or so. Patches do not need to be sloppy with lube, just enough so you can see and feel it.

 

[Grenadier1758]

New BP/ML shooter here. I have a .50 cal Hawken & intend to shoot .490 balls with patches.

Which side of the patch do I grease? Outer/barrel side? Inner/ball side? Both?

Thanks, Andy in Virginia

Which side of the patch to lube?

Actually, it doesn't matter. A liquid lubricant will soak through and a greased patch will have the grease pressed through. I think that greasing the side of the patch that faces the barrel is a good practice as being consistent in the loading procedure is always part of the best practices when shooting a muzzle loading rifle.

 

[bpd303]

I usually cut patches at the muzzle and they are lubed with spit. Strip of patch material carried in my mouth, put the strip over the muzzle, thumb start the ball, cut the excess patch strip off, ram it & ball home. What could be simpler. My grandfather taught me that.

 

[westrayer]

I buy them pre-cut and pre-lubed. I guess it shows I am lazier than others.

 

[westrayer]

Also, try different patch thicknesses. My Thompson Hawken flint likes a .495 ball and .015 patch. For many years I shot .54 with .530 ball and .020 patch.
Have not yet been able to shoot my .50 Deerstalker cap, but we will have to see what it likes