Round ball patch size and accuracy

[ColonialRifleSmith]

I’m talking diameter not thickness here. I’ve read where the accepted view is that patch size doesn’t affect accuracy. What say you guys? I got out to do some shooting a few days ago: tc hawken 50 cal, 80gr by weight homemade black powder, .490 round ball, spit lubed pillow ticking. I cut some new patches that were much smaller and accuracy improved greatly. In fact previously at 75 yards I was lucky to get on paper. Now the gun is grouping very nicely shooting off hand.

We have an old saying in the Marine Corps, "It's not the dope on the gun, It's the dope behind it." I've personally found as long as all variables remain the same, powder, patch, ball, I've had no issue with accuracy. Semper Fi.

 

[ColonialRifleSmith]

I cut at the muzzle so there is not much in the way of excess patching. The muzzle looks the same for pistols and rifles.

View attachment 145069

Super nice loading stand ya' have there. Semper Fi.

 

[Grenadier1758]

And @ColonialRifleSmith, the loading stand fits in my range box. But then, the range box is really too big. A tight patch that I would recommend is one that is the thickness of the depth of the grooves plus the difference between the ball diameter and the land-to-land diameter. An easy loading patch would be the depth of the grooves plus a couple of thousandths to compress between the ball and the lands when the patching is not compressed.

Note that a tight load must be using a soft lead ball. The patch will be forced into 0.005" of windage. Those extra thousandths of an in inch are taken up by the force of starting and the ball being compressed slightly by the patch to ensure a tight fit between the lands and the impressing the patch on the ball. If the ball is pulled on a tight patch, there will be differing markings on the ball where the ball is on the lands and a lesser mark on the ball where the grooves are. You also want to watch for excessive tightness where the patch is cut by the top corners of the lands.