Just thought I'd pass along this discovery as I thought it was interesting.
I was getting some ML stuff reorganized today, putting a couple bags of .60-.70cal Oxyoke Originals pill-tick patches into the .62cal box with some I already had and I noticed the latest couple bags of patches were a dark orange color compared to the others I had on hand, which were a light pale blue pillow ticking color.
Opened the new bags and they felt thicker and stiffer...got out the calipers and the ones I had on hand measured .017"-018"...the dark orange ones measured .019"-020"-021".
BUT...get this...about 50% of them measured OK at .017"-.018" OK...but about half of them were noticably thicker at .019"-.020"-.021"...and were randomly interspersed...no pattern to them.
So I went through both new bags of 100 with the calipers and separated them into two piles and marked them accordingly.
It's amazing what a difference there is between the way a .018" and a .020" patch fits if the .018" patch is already just about too tight to begin with...the .020"s are very difficult to start and to seat even with a solid brass ramrod...then when I pulled the ball back out every bit of lube was squeezed out of the patch where it was pinched against the lands so tight...I mean the cloth was blanched white at those points.
I can use the .020"-.021" with the .54 or .58 at the range as they can take that thickness but the .62cal is just too tight.
I was getting some ML stuff reorganized today, putting a couple bags of .60-.70cal Oxyoke Originals pill-tick patches into the .62cal box with some I already had and I noticed the latest couple bags of patches were a dark orange color compared to the others I had on hand, which were a light pale blue pillow ticking color.
Opened the new bags and they felt thicker and stiffer...got out the calipers and the ones I had on hand measured .017"-018"...the dark orange ones measured .019"-020"-021".
BUT...get this...about 50% of them measured OK at .017"-.018" OK...but about half of them were noticably thicker at .019"-.020"-.021"...and were randomly interspersed...no pattern to them.
So I went through both new bags of 100 with the calipers and separated them into two piles and marked them accordingly.
It's amazing what a difference there is between the way a .018" and a .020" patch fits if the .018" patch is already just about too tight to begin with...the .020"s are very difficult to start and to seat even with a solid brass ramrod...then when I pulled the ball back out every bit of lube was squeezed out of the patch where it was pinched against the lands so tight...I mean the cloth was blanched white at those points.
I can use the .020"-.021" with the .54 or .58 at the range as they can take that thickness but the .62cal is just too tight.
