Patch material

[M. De Land]

I don't care for pillow ticking for patch material and wanted to try some fabfric that I think I remember being called Drill 50. Have I got that name right to ask for at the fabric store?

 

[FishDFly]

Might call JoAnn's fabrics and ask there.

 

[Tom Compton]

Pocket drill I’ve heard of and was used by a champion shooter. Haven’t heard of drill 50. Ask for either or both. Nomenclature is sometimes critical like in an online search.

 

[Ranger94]

Probably cannot go wrong with natural Denim from Joannes. The 10 oz stuff is about .026, the 7 oz stuff is about .020. Most of my guns, the 10oz is a little to thick. the 7 oz stuff is about right on. Wash it a couple of time before using.

 

[M. De Land]

Thanks guys I'm going to take my 1 inch mic and head over to Joann's a pic up a yard or two of something they have in stock. I have a muzzle loading match tomorrow and am going to shoot the flint SMR I built last year. I will ask for the cotton felt as well to give a try. I like my felt shirts when I can get it around .020 but some of it lately is not that thick and I'm out of the material that worked really well for me.

 

[1sgt]

I like a tight weave cotton canvas. 50 yard bench. .36 cal. green Mtn. barrel. Lyman Peep sights.

 

[smo]

Good shooting 1 Sgt.

 

[Grenadier1758]

I've been a big promoter of JoAnn's Fabrics #40 Drill Cloth. Its a tightly woven 100% cotton cloth used in places wear it would be subject to hard abuse, such as in pocket lining. One of the other names is Pocket Drill. It is found in the utility cloth section which may or may not be in the section with the tickings. Denim, canvas and duck may be found scattered throughout their various fabrics. What's good about JoAnn's is that there will usually be a 50% off coupon available on their web site.

 

[dkasprzak]

@Grenadier1758 Do you recall the thickness of this Drill Cloth?

 

[Grenadier1758]

@dkasprzak, The thickness is 0.017 to 0.018 uncompressed and about 0.011" compressed.

 

[Musketeer]

Probably cannot go wrong with natural Denim from Joannes. The 10 oz stuff is about .026, the 7 oz stuff is about .020. Most of my guns, the 10oz is a little to thick. the 7 oz stuff is about right on. Wash it a couple of time before using.

Interesting. I've been experimenting with cotton duck canvas I picked up from ebay. I got some 7 oz and some 10 oz. In this case, the 7 oz runs about .017 and the 10 oz about .026.

 

[hanshi]

I used a lot of pillow ticking in the past and still use it in one gun. Pillow ticking I've bought typically runs around .014" to .015". Then I tried mattress ticking which runs about .016" to .018", all measured compressed with a caliper squeezed tight. I liked it better and use it from time to time. When I came across cotton canvas duck at Joanne's I was even more pleased with the shooting results. It seemed to compress to around 0.18", give or take. Patches were often reusable. It still gets used a fair amount. But the best patching material I've come across so far is heavy, unbleached canvas from a supply I've had for several years. It's tough and compresses to about .023" to .024". I like it especially in my radius-groove barrels which measure .016". But it works like a champ in the square cut .012" bores as well. Denim is excellent and I've used it some. But for some reason it seems harder to seat than the canvas, even the cotton canvas duck, though thinner, seats harder too. I really like that canvas.

 

[Woody Morgan]

I wonder if Pellon would be an option for patches? It's the stuff you see backing embroidery. It doesn't fray.

wm

 

[LongWalker]

I wonder if Pellon would be an option for patches? It's the stuff you see backing embroidery. It doesn't fray.

wm

The fusible interfacing is likely what keeps it from fraying. That same interfacing would make it problematic for use as patching: it would stick to the ball if loaded interfacing to the ball, or gum up your bore if loaded so the interfacing touches the barrel.

 

[Woody Morgan]

The fusible interfacing is likely what keeps it from fraying. That same interfacing would make it problematic for use as patching: it would stick to the ball if loaded interfacing to the ball, or gum up your bore if loaded so the interfacing touches the barrel.

True. I was wondering what "fusible interface" was so that makes sense. Recommendation retracted.
The stuff isn't "woven" per se is what made me consider it.

wm

 

[Grenadier1758]

What makes that fabric fusible is a treatment in the fabric that will melt and bind the fabric fibers together. This not something we want happening when the heat of firing a muzzle loader is pushing a patched ball up the barrel. I see nothing good here.

 

[stewart.leach]

I buy patching material from JoAnne's. Most used is called Bottomweights cotton twill, comes in many colors. Second in line is pillow ticking, like it for 54 and 58 calibers. Third is called #40 pocket drill, a light weight cotton canvas of very tight weave, gives best accuracy when shooting ball in 62cal/20 gauge smoothie.

Fabrics are washed in hottest water on machine, then dried at highest setting on dryer.

Have been experimenting with castor oil as patch lubricant. Oil is diluted with four parts denatured alcohol, strips soaked and wrung out, then set to dry on a level plastic panel. Strips are rolled and stored in old pill bottles. Like the results so far, easy seating and cleaning.

 

[Rock Home Isle]

I buy patching material from JoAnne's. Most used is called Bottomweights cotton twill, comes in many colors. Second in line is pillow ticking, like it for 54 and 58 calibers. Third is called #40 pocket drill, a light weight cotton canvas of very tight weave, gives best accuracy when shooting ball in 62cal/20 gauge smoothie.

Fabrics are washed in hottest water on machine, then dried at highest setting on dryer.

Have been experimenting with castor oil as patch lubricant. Oil is diluted with four parts denatured alcohol, strips soaked and wrung out, then set to dry on a level plastic panel. Strips are rolled and stored in old pill bottles. Like the results so far, easy seating and cleaning.

I shop at the same place...pillow Ticking is my primary choice.

Have to look into BottomWeights Cotton Twill...#40 Pocket Drill, Awesome, I've never had much accuracy with my smothies and shootin ball. Thank you for this post.

 

[Grenadier1758]

#40 cotton drill is my favorite patching material.

 

[Don Steele]

JoAnn's "Drill 40" is the go to material for my Rice "square-bottom rifled" barrel. I use a "light canvas" material for my Green Mountain barrels ( also square bottom rifling) that are loaded with VERY tight combinations for table and Chunk shooting. I use minimum 10 oz denim, sometimes 12 oz for my Colerain "radius rifled" barrel.