Patches too big for .54 cal?

[JohnShuster]

I picked up a few ML accessories from a gun shop junk box for a very small amount of money. Among my finds was a bag of good .018 pillow ticking patches. They are round patches labeled for .60 to .69 caliber and measure exactly 1 1/2 inches. Would they be too large (unsafe) to use in my .54 Hawken?

John :hmm:

 

[Wes/Tex]

Shouldn't be a problem if they're the right thickness for your bore. If you like 'neat', trim any excess material when top of ball aligns with muzzle face, though additional material won't hurt accuracy. Good luck.

 

[ohio ramrod]

As long as the extra cloth above the ball does't cause your ramrod( or short starter) to bind they should work just fine! :idunno:

 

[Zonie]

To say a little more about this "ramrod binding" thing, when the patched ball enters the bore, a oversized patch can do one of two things.

It can fold over the top of the ball where it will do no harm. If this happens, it won't even harm the accuracy of the shot because the patch will fly off of the ball as soon as it leaves the muzzle.

It can also form itself into the shape of the bore and if the ramrod tip (or jag) is resting right on top of the ball, the folded patch will grab the outside of the rod or jag.

If this happens and the patched ball is rammed down on top of the powder load, when you start to remove the ramrod it can drag the patch and the ball that's in it back up the bore.

The patch may lose its grip at any time, leaving the ball somewhere above the powder charge.

This effectively creates an obstructed barrel. If the gun is fired with this obstruction the barrel could be severely damaged.
I haven't heard of a muzzleloader blowing up from this happening but it could.

 

[JohnShuster]

I took my .54 1996 vintage Cabelas Hawken to the range today and the larger patches worked perfectly. No need to trim, no hang-up on the short starter or ramrod, and a nice 3" group at 100 yards with my Lee home cast .530 ball and 80 grains of Pyrodex RS. Thanks for your help.

 

[tenngun]

something to think about have not heard of it happening.One might not feel the ball drag up on a clean gun for an inch or so. I have always lifted the rod off the ball an let it fall by its own wt 3 or 4 inchs.When i started Ml I was told that such a bounce would only happen if the ball was seated.If the ball wasn't all the way down there would be less boynce or none at all as the ball would move slightly farther down the bore.I doubt thats true but it one of those magic I items I do when loading that serves no real purpose.If you did dra a ball with an oversized patch up the bore this would show you right off.Please note I am not talking about "throwing" the rod down the bore here as I've seen some foalks do,just a gentle bounce

 

[JohnShuster]

The final bounce check and ramrod truth mark check are the final steps in my loading protocol before removing the ramrod from the barrel then capping the nipple just before I shoot.