Why a patch?

[Pork Chop]

Why did the old timers originally start using a patch? It seems to me that perhaps the original weapons were made to be shot with just the ball rammed down the hole, and perhaps wear, freshing out the barrel, etc, gave rise to the use of the patch. I do NOT know the history, this just struck me the other day, so I thought I would ask this esteemed crowd...

 

[bnail]

That's an interesting question. I'd imagine the first balls were rammed without patching. The most logical guess I can offer is that the patch offers a gas check to keep the gasses behind the ball as long as possible. I was talking with Ray from Rapine bullet mould when I ordered my bag mould, and he suggested I get the larger mould and shoot an unpatched dimpled roundball. I opted for the smaller diameter so I can patch.

 

[SAJones]

Right, the first rifles were loaded w/ a bare ball, which was literally hammered down the barrel. However, some genius in Germany had the idea to make the ball smaller & wrap it around something to make it easier to load. Somewhere in may vast collection of books, I have a reference to about when, but not able to find it now. Seems to me it was in the 1500's. The use of a patch as an obturating device made it possible to load much faster w/ no loss of accuracy.

 

[Pork Chop]

Well whadya know, I noodled out the right chain of events! (sort of) I was thinking a bit later in history. I figured that although cloth costs money, a new ball mold costs more. It seemed logical that if Joe Hunter had his tired old gun freshed out, then he just used the old ball mold and filled the new found gap with cloth.

 

[Craig]

You might want to do a bit more research on the patch. When I was a kid, I was taught American colonial riflemen came up with the patch-smaller caliber ball idea to speed loading. The patch would help as a gas stop to the smaller ball and easy loading.

Over the past few years, I read in various places that patches do little if anything to seal the gas but I can't remember the rest of the physics. Sam Fadala talks about it in one of his books that I have.

I don't know the answer. I just pretend I am Daniel Boone patch loading my Kentucky rifle and the heck with the why of it all, anymore.

 

[Pork Chop]

Not to worry, I will not loose a single moment of sleep worrying about it. It is just one of those random thoughts that pops into mind. INteresting though....

 

[jim gray]

Actually there are several benefits to patches. They provide lube to the barrel to help reduce fouling. They hold the ball in place in the barrel so it doesn't roll out or worse shift away from the powder charge. They are much faster and easier to load than a bore sized projectile would be. They keep the projectile from leading the barrel.

As for a gas seal, in the 4th Edition of The Complete Blackpowder Handbook . Sam Fadala says the patch does not provide a gas seal. It seems to me that a well lubed patch should act as a seal, but I'll believe Mr. Fadala, unless I see some pretty solid evidence to refute what he says.

 

[gordy]

The patch has been around for many years.The first patching seems to have been leather.And contrary to what We may want to think,it was used first across the ocean before here.As with many other aspects of muzzleloading,You'll find much dissagreement.Sam Fadala certainly did some extensive testing,of materials, ball size Etc.It makes loading a much faster and simpler system than ramming home an oversize chunk of lead.It also elimanates leading of the bore,this ,to me,is a big bonus.With proper lube it makes several shots possible without scrubbing the bore.