Pillow ticking patch material?

[1BadDart]

Wash or not to wash?

I picked up half a yard today, my muzzleloader mentor says not to wash it, says washing loosens up the threads. Most of what I've read says to wash and dry it, that it will wash the sizing out and tighten the threads. Maybe I'll do half and half and check the results.

Thanks, Justin

 

[Brazos John]

That's a good idea.
Let us know what you find.

 

[Walkingeagle]

I too will be interested with your findings. Mine were not washed and I find them loose. This inventory came years ago from a fellow getting out of the game. Next batch will be washed and dried on high heat.
Walk

 

[BallBoy]

Justin,
Report back on Your 1/2 n 1/2 trial.
I Wash mine twice with minimum detergent HOT water dry HOT NO FABRIC SOFTENER during wash/dry cycles
The sizing will wash out and drying it will tighten up the threads as mentioned above.
There are Many threads about washing and drying patching material, some even mention ironing.
Derek

 

[Tasbay]

Used to wash my Ticking. Don`t bother now & just lube with olive oil.

 

[Rock Home Isle]

Pure cotton pillow ticking…wash twice in hot, dry in hot, nice dense weave…great patching material.

For shooting undersized balls, thick denim patching, or pure cotton canvas…canvas grips the ball better.

 

[Rifleman1776]

Wash or not to wash?

I picked up half a yard today, my muzzleloader mentor says not to wash it, says washing loosens up the threads. Most of what I've read says to wash and dry it, that it will wash the sizing out and tighten the threads. Maybe I'll do half and half and check the results.

Thanks, Justin

I wash my ticking but do not use any soap and it gets a second rinse. Does not seem to loosen or tighten the weave. But, does make it softer with the sizing gone. The edges do get fuzzy, jut ignore or cut off. BTW, I used to use denim a lot but found it too thick for consistent loading.

 

[hanshi]

I've used plenty of ticking over the years and still have a couple barrels that prefer ticking patches. I wash it all to get out the starch and it seems to make better patches that way. Your project should be sort of the final word on wash or no wash.

 

[Grenadier1758]

Wash or not to wash?

I picked up half a yard today, my muzzleloader mentor says not to wash it, says washing loosens up the threads. Most of what I've read says to wash and dry it, that it will wash the sizing out and tighten the threads. Maybe I'll do half and half and check the results.

Thanks, Justin

I'm not one to agree with your mentor. He may have had acceptable results, but I find that I have better results when the ticking (or in my case, cotton drill cloth) are washed.

Material when just off the bolt will have sizing that prevents the proper distribution of lubrication. Washing removes the sizing and while the threads may be loosened at the edges, drying will make the threads expand and actually become tighter while having a softer weave for the spread of the lubrication and improved compressibility. It will be interesting to see the results of your test.

 

[Sidney Smith]

I've shot washed and unwashed pillow ticking over the years. Have not noticed a difference in accuracy.

 

[stewart.leach]

Wash or not to wash?

I picked up half a yard today, my muzzleloader mentor says not to wash it, says washing loosens up the threads. Most of what I've read says to wash and dry it, that it will wash the sizing out and tighten the threads. Maybe I'll do half and half and check the results.

Thanks, Justin

Pillow ticking from Wally Mart is my first choice for testing with a new gun. It gets washed and dried on hottest machine settings, then ironed to make it easier to cut into strips.

Other fabrics I find good for patching are Bottomweights Twill on the thinner side, and #40 cotton pocket drill on the heavier side. The #40 is especially good for shooting balls in my Caywood Chief's Gun.

Washing and drying fabrics to tighten the weave is an ancient practice. Called "fulling", it was done by boiling the fabric in a solution including urine, then multiple rinsings. If you know someone with the surname Fuller, odds are good they have and ancestor who ran a fulling mill.

 

[1BadDart]

I washed a piece twice in hot water, then dried on high heat. About the only difference I see is that the washed is about .00015” thicker than unwashed. I can’t really tell if the weave is tighter or looser. I have a strip of each soaking in a 6-1 mix of water/ballistol.

 

[1BadDart]

I went to the shop this AM and removed the strips from the water/Ballistol mix and rolled them out on the expanded metal floor of my little trailer to dry in the sun. I checked them a few hours later and the piece that was unwashed was dry, the washed piece not so much. I checked again a few hours later and the washed piece was dry, to me it feels like there is more lube on it than the unwashed piece. It seems that the washed piece absorbed more lube, maybe that's why it took longer to dry?

I'm thinking about repeating the test, only this time weighing both pieces before they go in the same jar of solution to soak. Then weighing them again after they dry in the sun to see how much Ballistol they actually absorbed after the water is dried off. This will tell if there is any difference in the amount of lube absorbed between the washed and unwashed pieces.

In the big scheme of things, does it matter? Maybe not, but who knows.

 

[Rifleman1776]

I've shot washed and unwashed pillow ticking over the years. Have not noticed a difference in accuracy.

Always lousy?? Sorry, I couldn't resist.

 

[maillemaker]

I am nearly finished reading The Muzzleloading Rifle Then and Now by the late Walter M. Cline and I believe he mentioned washing the fabric to remove sizing.

 

[1BadDart]

I did the absorption test on the ticking, twice. The washed/unwashed pieces were weighed before being soaked in the water/ballistol mix, then dried and weighed again. Interestingly enough the unwashed material retained more of the Ballistol than the washed material. 10% more averaged on two tests. I'd say it would take 10 tests to get a good number, but I'm not going to that much trouble. If my gun shoots the unwashed well, that's the way I'm going.

In all honesty I don't know that it means anything. Does 10% more lube by weigh on a patch make it better? It appears to be a rabbit hole to me.

 

[garypl]

I have always washed and dried pillow ticking to take the stiffness out. Follow up with ironing to remove wrinkles and then I cut in strips using pinking shears. These create a jagged edge that prevent threads from unraveling all over the place!

 

[Timber Wolf]

In all honesty I don't know that it means anything. Does 10% more lube by weigh on a patch make it better? It appears to be a rabbit hole to me.

Heck yes, at least 10% better. : )

 

[Grenadier1758]

If you are intending to reduce the amount of wiping between shots by using a damp to nearly wet patch to remove the fouling from the bore while loading, then the ability to have the patch hold more lubricant and solvent to remove more fouling means that washing the patch material will get more shots off before the fouling builds up so much that it becomes difficult to load. Its really not all that difficult to wash patch material.

 

[Rob M.]

Always

Wash or not to wash?

I picked up half a yard today, my muzzleloader mentor says not to wash it, says washing loosens up the threads. Most of what I've read says to wash and dry it, that it will wash the sizing out and tighten the threads. Maybe I'll do half and half and check the results.

Thanks, Justin

Always wash !! Its then soft ,pliable and will soak in spit or grease lube ..
That sizing on itvsucks , wash it out and off ....cut long strips and cut the patch at your muzzle . You can tie the strips to yer bag . Easy to get to