Patches

[ckckck]

First visit to the range of the Arkansas Muzzle Loaders Association was really wonderful. So many excellent people. I am still processing the things I noticed but forgot to ask about. Here's one: Everyone used patches--I take it that that's mandatory. But further, everyone used exactly the same kind of patching material. "Oh, that's just pillow batting." They didn't seem to think it was that important, but they were all on the same page. So I'm wondering: Can I use my old t-shirts? My old bed sheets? My old flat dish towels? Or are we really talking here about something that isn't really casual at all?

 

[Shooey]

Your patching material has to be 100% cotton. Any polyester or anything else will melt and be tough to clean.

The material also has to be tough to stand up to the heat and pressure generated by your rifle. Pillow ticking is very common, it has a tight weave and is 100% cotton. Some folks use drill cloth, canvas and denim too.

 

[Black Hand]

You need a tightly woven cloth of natural materials (cotton/linen/hemp). Denim, pillow ticking, heavy cotton and a variety of others are suitable. Loosely woven material such as t-shirts and towels are best used for cleaning. Bed sheets are usually too thin to use as patching.

 

[ckckck]

Denim...lots of old denim around here!

 

[George T.]

As you gain experience you will find the patch thickness that you and your rifle prefer. It will be a finding that results in a combination tight enough to meet your accuracy requirements yet load easy enough to keep you happy. It does need to be a tight woven material. You will hear some say that it needs to be washed first and others say that it doesn't matter. You can find Mattress or pillow case ticking in most fabric stores. A yard will last a long time. Geo. T.

 

[ohio ramrod]

You want a uniform thickness of cotton/linen etc. Synthetics burn or melt. While most believe the cloth must be woven, not knit which will stretch. I have seen shoots won by a man who uses only old t shirts for both cleaning and shooting patches. Pillow ticking, broadcloth, or even sheets will work. If using older sheets you want the edge of the sheets which will be stronger than the centers. For over ten years I used sheets from the neighbors bed and breakfast since they got new sheets every year and the old ones had been washed aproximately fifty times. I used the edges for shooting and the centers for cleaning. There was considerable difference in the strength from the center to the outside six inches. :idunno:

 

[buford87]

You will need to get a caliper or micrometer so you can accurately measure the thickness of your patching material. If you use a patch that is .012 thick for one shot and the next shot the patch is .022 then you will have no consistancecy, and therefore poor accuracy. No patch material is not casual at all...........................watch yer top knot..................

 

[necchi]

If you want true target accuracy, it's not a casual issue.

You don't really want to use "old clothing" at all, clothing wears differently in different areas.
The neck and sides of a T-shirt will be thicker than the back and belly of it,
Blue jeans butt and knees are thinner than the cuff below the knees,
Your fabric will vary in thickness and and so will your groups.
"Pillow Ticking" is not the Alpha and Omega of patch material.

 

[William O.]

To start with you can use prelubed, precut shooting patches from your local sporting goods store to get used to loading and shooting your muzzle loader, but for best accuracy most folks eventually switch to ticking material. Now, I've seen two types of "ticking" at the fabric store, one of which is called pillow ticking. It's not 100% cotton and has a looser weave, not something you want to use to contain hot gas and grip a RB bullet. The other is called mattress ticking and has a nice tight weave made from 100% cotton. You will want to always lube your shooting patches with something, even spit will work if you're cutting the patches ahead of time but for consistency it pays to learn how to cut the patch at the muzzle. I lube my patches with a 10-1 mix of olive or mineral oil and beeswax and cut at the muzzle. Straight olive oil works too but I like to have something that won't drip and get messy, thus the beeswax. Pre-cut/lubed patches come in .010, .015 and .020 thichkness, and sometimes .018. I suggest that you start with .015 and see how that loads as well as how well it holds up after being shot. The mattress ticking that I buy measures out to about .018 thickness and I get good accuracy using a .530 ball in my .54 rifle. The same goes for my .50 using a .490 RB and the same material lubed with the beeswax/olive oil mix. I cut strips of the ticking material about 1 3/4 inches wide, or 4-5 stripes, then lays them in the warm lube, after which I lay them out flat on old rags and press another rag on top to blot up the excess. When totally cool I just roll them up and store in old pill bottles until needed. Then when shooting I pour my powder charge in, lat the strip of material on the muzzle and center a ball on top. Using the little nub on my short started I press the ball down even with the muzzle and grab the excess material around the ball, take my patch knife and cut straight across the muzzle. This should give me a perfectly round piece of patching around by ball. Then I use my short starter to get the PRB down the bore about 5 inches and seat it the rest of the way with my range rod. Cap or prime, aim and shoot.

Consistency is the key here, you want to keep things the same way shot after shot. Good luck and have fun!

 

[jamesthomas]

Mattress ticking (blue stripe) is what I use, .24 I think, with a .490 home cast RB. It shoots great and clean up is easy.

 

[ckckck]

Great advice--thanks!

 

[buzz]

I had good luck useing those old cleaning cotton patches as patches just let them dry why toss them try
just remember natrual items
I even bare ball it if out and away