k.jacobfrost
40 Cal.
OK. I hope you all will forgive me for asking such a simple question, but I am new to this whole bp thing. What is pillow tucking and how does it relate to other kinds of patches?
Thanks
Frost
Thanks
Frost
Stupid Question
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Frost said:
Don't ever worry about asking a simple question...none of us were born knowing anything...here's one attempt at an explanation:
Pillow ticking, mattress ticking, etc, is a stronger, tighter weave of cotton fabric that will withstand the fire of powder combustion better and not 'fail' as easily as a thinner, lower thread count plain cotton patch might.
You might have seen pillow covers (not pillow "cases") and mattress covers that had a blue and white stripe pattern to them..."pillow ticking"
You can usually get 100% cotton pillow ticking at a fabric store. Most folks wash the ticking before use. You would use this if you wanted to cut patches from a solid piece of cloth as you load, rather than using a pre-cut patch. Generally, I think you are better off buying ticking of known thickness for shooting(that is- from a purveyor of black powder shooting supplies) because patch thickness can make a big difference in preformance. I have a 50 caliber pistol that was getting 6" groups at twenty five yards with a .10 patch. I switched to a tighter patch.15 and the groups went down to about 1 1/2".
Lone Carabiner
40 Cal.
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I used some of the pre-lubed (bought them) patches and got not-to-good accuracy. Tight fitting patch and slightly damp with lube (I use GO-JO creme hand cleaner) gets better, just for me that is.
Frost said:
Pillow ticking looks like this in the bulk form:
You can then cut the material into patches of the correct size for you gun, either round or square, both shoot well:
Pillow ticking has a very tight weave and holds up very well to the blast and centrifugal force of the rifling as the ball is pushed out the barrel by the burning powder...
Blue jeans (Denim) also works well for patching roundballs...
k.jacobfrost
40 Cal.
Thanks! I think you guys have answered my question. I will be using a smooth bore 50cal so I don't have to worry about rifling. What size patch should be used for a 50cal?
Thanks
Frost
Thanks
Frost
Believe all the answers are right-on (just something for our younger posters who weren't used to the 60's jargon!). All seriousness aside, ticking can be picked up at fabric stores and even at your local Wallyworld. The best part is the looks you get from the ladies running these counters when they see you feeling bolts of fabric and measuring their thickness with a micrometer!! :haha:
Frost said:
An easy way to find the correct size would be to lay the ticking over the barrel and start a roundball (only deep enough to be flush with the muzzle, do not cut the cloth), using an ink pen or permanent marker, pull the cloth up and draw a line around the cloth where it touches the muzzle...
Now use the cloth to pull the ball out of the bore and unfold the cloth to reveal the mark you just drew, measure the size and then cut all the patches to that specification...
Frost said:
FWIW, I use two sizes precut/prelubed patches...both the Oxyoke and TC labels:
1+1/8" for .40/.45cals
1+3/8" for .50/.54/.58cals
A larger patch is easier and simpler for me to center and load, and additional material has no negative effects what so ever
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long ago and far away, when giants walked the earth, when men were men and paratroopers wore brown boots... pillows were bags of feathers. nice phots by Musketman... pillow ticking was (and still is) a very tight weave so that the feathers in the pillow didn't work their way out ... the quills of even a small feather are very sharp. the blue stripes (i guess) became a way of identifying it as pillow ticking, rather than plain old (and cheaper) muslin or cotton)
