So I’ve never had a ramrod so stuck I couldn’t get it out. Today I was shooting my SMR, it was a little above zero temp wise. I shot it for a couple hours with a range rod mostly but did take the rod out for a couple rounds and all was good . The ramrod has always been a little tight and I meant to go back and sand her down a little. Well after cleaning the gun I could not withdraw the ramrod. I used pliers and had my wife hold the gun and literally pulled her around the room with it. So I gave it a twist and all that did was shatter the end of the rod. Then I took it outside and let it cold soak till it was nice and frozen, still didn’t come out. Then I took it completely apart and the barrel off , I still can’t get it out. Now I have it sitting over the heat vent overnight in hopes the hot dry air will dry the rod or stock some so I can extract it. If that doesn’t work, what do I do?
Ramrod stuck in stock
- Thread starter Texcl2
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Clamp the end lengthwise in a bench vise and pull the gun away from the ram rod. I sand mine until they’re pretty much just snug. Then I induce a slight bend to keep it in the gun.
This ramrod is exactly like you described, it was bent on the end making it tight when oriented one way but it was just a little too snug after applying stain and finish, I wish I could go back and kick myself in the pants lol. this is next level stuck, I can’t believe it. I have a large bench vise attached to a table weighing over 500# in my barn. I will try that, it’s an excellent idea. Thanks
So it came right out this morning. So come to find out all I really needed was patience.
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Finished building my Kolonial in the month of March. Shot the rifle all spring, summer, and fall...Then late in October, while hunting, my rifle and I spent several days in the rain and snow. My ramrod got stuck (fused?) into my stock.
It took several days to get it out! After I finally got it to move, I left it stick out for remainder of my hunt. This sure made it seem vulnerable, and silly, sticking out that far.
Here I am toasting it over the coals of my lunchtime campfire that year... Not just to get the ramrod out, but also to make the metal warm enough that I could touch the rifle. Lol
It took several days to get it out! After I finally got it to move, I left it stick out for remainder of my hunt. This sure made it seem vulnerable, and silly, sticking out that far.
Here I am toasting it over the coals of my lunchtime campfire that year... Not just to get the ramrod out, but also to make the metal warm enough that I could touch the rifle. Lol
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On every build I have done, when I'm "finished" with the RR, I put a few coats of renaissance gun wax on the RR. That helps it slide in and out, and helps the RR hole to get very smooth where it needs to.
I think I’m going to finish sand the inside of the channel very lightly and the next rod will be looser, lol. You always walk that line between too loose and too tight with ram rods. The sub zero weather here exacerbates wood movement unfortunately. If you get a rod stuck when it’s sub zero then you bring it in not only does the wood expand do to temps but it attracts moisture in the warm house. The double whammy. In the end it was my laziness in not getting the rod tension perfect followed by being in a rush that caused this. Lesson learned.
When fitting a ramrod, always take it down to where it goes in and out easily. I've even gone to the extent of wetting the rod, and checking it goes in easily.
Once it is fit and finished, if it wants to slide out of the thimbles, heat the ramrod and put a slight bend in it.
A damp day can end your shooting fast with a stuck ramrod.
Once it is fit and finished, if it wants to slide out of the thimbles, heat the ramrod and put a slight bend in it.
A damp day can end your shooting fast with a stuck ramrod.
Mgbruch
40 Cal
My advice is to leave your gun alone! Your ramrod hole is probably drilled exactly like it's supposed to be... and is not the problem. The problem is a ramrod not properly fitted to the gun.
The choice between working a ramrod, and messing with a properly built gun, should be a no brainer. One is pretty inexpensive, while the other is not.
I always taper my rods until they fit just a bit looser than snug. And I leave the part of the rod that goes into the stock straight. If I need a bend in the rod to hold it, I put in a slight, gradual bend above the entry point. Once in the thimbles and stock, it will stay put, and not bind in fowl weather.
This is my indestructible ramrod. As you can see from carrying in the fall for hunting the wood has swollen and you see bare wood.
I leave it in and use a range rod to load with.
I leave it in and use a range rod to load with.
Onojutta
45 Cal.
I don’t know if it helps but I treat the inside of the ramrod hole with a low viscosity sealer like LMF Permalyn Sealer. I apply it liberally with a modern cleaning swab and let it soak in. The stock and ramrod will both still expand as a whole, but the thinking is that any bit of moisture I can prevent from being absorbed into the wood fibers will help. Maybe not. I also figure it helps protect against any rain that might get in there without opportunity to dry out in a short enough duration so as not be harmful.
And definitely do not try to enlarge the ramrod hole or channel. Just make the ramrod smaller. You’d much prefer to screw up a ramrod than your stock.
And definitely do not try to enlarge the ramrod hole or channel. Just make the ramrod smaller. You’d much prefer to screw up a ramrod than your stock.
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Hah!! Tell me about patience. But I never learn. I think it's a personality trait. To be patient wouldn't be me.
I inspected the ram rod channel and found it to be pretty smooth so I didn’t sand it. I was expecting loose fibers or roughness, but none here. I’ll just make sure my ram rod is looser this go around and if it gets stuck I’ll be patient and let it dry out lol.
I let my ramrods soak in a mixture of half turpentine and half linseed after I've gotten them to fit fairly loosely. I leave them in a piece of 3/4" PVC pipe for a few weeks. It seems to keep them from swelling in wet weather.
If you have to sand the hole for some reason slot a dowel and make sure that you glue a piece of sandpaper into the slot. You don't want the paper coming off the dowel inside the hole. As mentioned, better to follow the old rule of working on the cheapest piece and leave the stock alone.
If you have to sand the hole for some reason slot a dowel and make sure that you glue a piece of sandpaper into the slot. You don't want the paper coming off the dowel inside the hole. As mentioned, better to follow the old rule of working on the cheapest piece and leave the stock alone.
I wasn’t talking about sanding enough to alter the hole dimensions more like a deburring getting any loose fibers ect. This Channel is smooth though. I’ve had guns over the years that had a pretty rough surface in there. I agree you always alter the cheapest/easiest part to replace. I don’t want folks thinking it’s a good idea to alter a ramrod channel, that is almost always a really bad idea. Surprisingly you see guys asking about redrilling all the time, drilling a ramrod channel correctly is not a feat for the novice.
I had the same thing happen to my SMR during the building process despite opening up the ram rod channel and sanding/scraping the snot out of the rod itself. When mine got stuck, NOTHING I could do with my hands would budge it at all. I ended up clamping a set of vice grips perpendicular) to the muzzle end of the rod ( Clamped firmly but not enough to crush the hickory) I then hit the grips from behind with a dead blow mallet to drive the rod /grips out past the muzzle.. The firm grip and shock was what was needed to free it up. Then I went back and took yet another 10 though off the length of the rod. FWIW, I found that any spot on the rod that had a diameter of more than 0.395" has a tendency to stick inside the stock.
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I taper my rods to a smooth fit into the stock channel. Then finish the rod. once the stain sets and is dry, I heat the rod and gob on Rennaissance wax. while it is coated heavy with the wax, I work it in and out of the stock channel. this needs to be done after the stock is finished, staining and finishing etc.
don't ask why a add that caution.
the waxed rod deposits wax in the channel and the stroking the rod in and out polishes the channel.
Learned long, long ago that you don't want to break a rod off inside that channel.
don't ask why a add that caution.
the waxed rod deposits wax in the channel and the stroking the rod in and out polishes the channel.
Learned long, long ago that you don't want to break a rod off inside that channel.
Yeah, that was my big fear. The new rod I built is much looser and so far has been fine.
In regards to opening up the stock, I've always been taught to work on the least expensive piece in case something goes wrong. I don't suggest it but my stock had a lot of residual fuzzies/burrs hanging on in the ram rod channel when I first got it. Soo after a 1/2 day of working to thin the rod, ...I decided a little cleaning/reaming of the hole in the stock would be a good thing.
To start, I got a 4' section of 3/16" flexible fiberglass rod ( from a wire snake kit) and then edge taped and wound a 3" square of 220 grit sand paper onto it a couple of inches from its end. . When wound onto the shaft tightly, the paper would slide into the hole in the stock nicely. Then when attached to a low speed cordless drill, centrifugal force, expanded the paper to make contact with walls of the rr channel. From there I used one hand to guide the fiberglass rod centered down the RR channel while working/moving the cordless drill with the other. I was VERY carful to keep the tool moving in and out SLOWLY and never paused at the very mouth of the hole where it could effect fit of the RR barrel fit. Worked for me in my hour of need but as I recall, Jim Kibler ( rightfully) cautions against it. There is potential for damage to the stock if not super careful.
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