Patch & ball sizings.......Best & Why

[Mad Mucus]

G'day,

For .54cal, I've read that .530"ball + .020"patch or .535"ball + .010"patch.

For target shooting which combination would be better? I understand that the larger ball is heavier, it's the patch thickness I'm wondering about, thick or thin, does it effect performance?

Also, how do wonder-lube patches perform and do they help with clean up?

Thanks

Mucus

 

[Stumpkiller]

For target shooting which combination would be better?

The more accurate of the two. :crackup:

Seriously, all rifles are unique unto themselves as to what they prefer. As a general rule, the larger diameter ball will be most accurate. But not always. Some patch/ball/lube/powder combinations are more accurate than others. Only range testing will tell you.

You'll also need to fire about 200 rounds before the bore "wears in" and you know for sure how youe patches are goint to hold up. Thinner patches may tear or be shredded by the bore and give less accuracy.

I'm always amazed to recover a ball that shows the fiber weave pressed into the lead. That's got to mean that cotton is less compressable than lead!

 

[Uncle Jed]

For target shooting which combination would be better?

The way I understood it is that you want a tight patch and ball for target shootin, the looser combination will be better for quick loading in the field while varmit shootin.

 

[dhbow]

I use a .535 ball and .020 patch in my Lyman .54 GPR for hunting and target shooting, shoots well for me. Try different combo's until you find the best for you.

Doug

 

[bulletman]

In my GPR 54 cal...I tried all combinations, and ended up with a tight fit, 535 and .020-.23 dry lube patch,,very accurate but have to use a starter or mallet to start the ball and a range rod...its great for target, but would not be a great setup for hunting. the loose fitting combo is good for hunting though.

 

[Harddog]

Whatever patch thickness you use, the patch has to be thick enough to fill up the rifling grooves. A .010" patch does not fill up the rifling in most deep cut rifled barrels although they seem to work fine in shallow buton rifled barrels. On most cut rifled barrels you need at least .015-.016" thick patching.

Harddog

 

[Mad Mucus]

OK, seems the larger ball & thicker patches to start.

:hmm: Still interested in comments concerning Wonder-Lube patches.

Thanks

Mucus

 

[Stumpkiller]

Wonder Lube/Bore Butter/Naturel Lube 1000 Plus all work well from the tube or jar. Never tried the pre-lubed patches.

 

[Rocky Johnson]

Mad M They sure are easy to use I like them but then I don't think much of my 54 GPR :winking: Rocky

 

[ffffg]

tc lube can be great stuff if it likes your gun or vica versa...(i use it in shotguns alot) i used thier lubed patches and was really getting somewhere with some old dried out ones. when i ran out and got some new ones my accuracy suffered.. i like neats foot oil in summer best... when it gets really cold and things freeze up things get alot more complicated.. i like tc lube for below freezing and you must keep it in a shirt pocket or it gets like a rock. bear oil if you can get it, (illegal to sell bear parts) works very well in all weather situations.. ive heard sperm oil was the best, never had any.. but tc lube will work, if you work out a load properly, except ove found that in hot weather then it gets real slippery beocuse its probably a wax base..velocites tended to jump in this situation and didnt give me sufficient back pressure on the load to my thinking... so its properties changees from very cold, to normal, to hot.. it compounds the velocity problems asoociated with heat variations in black powder.. but as i said when it gets cold we dont have alot of options.. dave.