Ball/Bullet board question

Quick question for those who use them.... If you have a loading combination that is difficult to load normally in the field. Would carrying them in a bullet, thereby pushing them through the board, and into the barrel make them easier to load. :hmm:
Reason I ask is I want to shoot a .535 ball with .015 patch and it a pain to load when in the field.

No. Have you tried .530 balls? Try them with pillow ticking if you don't get the accuracy you require. The ticking is a tad thicker than .015, so you should have a slightly easier combo to load.

I have one for each caliber of rifle.

I personally find it makes it easier to load in the field from a board. I don't have to dig around for a ball and patch, everything is in one place and ready to go. It's also easier to load when it's cold.

I use teflon patches, thus the board stays ready to go all of deer season.

I also use them for matches, it's easier to keep count of the number of shots.

RDE

Wick Ellerbe said:

No. Have you tried .530 balls?

Click to expand...

yeah, the groups opened up. Good enough to kill deer but want something a little tighter group Wise.

Richard Eames said:

I personally find it makes it easier to load in the field from a board. I don't have to dig around for a ball and patch, everything is in one place and ready to go.

Click to expand...

Richard, what do you think about the ball size, you think it elongates, shrinking the diameter, and therefore making it easier to load. Or do you like it because you don't have to dig around for stuff.

Not to hijack, but how thick should a bullet board be? My new .54 is coming today, and I'd like to make one.

slowpoke

There was a chart recently posted on what size drill bit to use to make boards.

I use the recommended drill bit size. After drilling the hole, I bevel the opening to a 45 degree opening. Then I use a round file to finish opening the hole.

I open the hole up to the point that I can push a teflon patch and ball through the hole with my finger, but there is enough resistance to hold the ball and patch. The ball is not deformed or marred in any way and drives easily into the muzzle with a short starter.

I don’t like digging around to find stuff. Another reason to carry a board is that there are fewer items in my bag. With the board I have either 5 or 6 shots, more than enough. Before using the board I had too many balls and patches in my bag.

I just made some in the shape of a heart and stained them red. They do look nice.

RDE

I go to Lowes and buy oak.

The board is nominally called 1”x3”x1/2” which actually measures 2 ½”x 7/16”. My rectangular boards are 5” long by 2 ½” wide and have 6 holes.

The ones made in shape of a heart are made from 1”x4” and have 5 holes.

RDE

You could make a bullet block that the hole was slightly undersized and required a wack of the short starter to load it. That should "pre-deform" the patch-ball combination for easier loading into the gun.

I make mine from stock that that is just a hair thicker than 3/8s, almost 7/16. I to bevel the leading edge. This gives a nice appearence to the block. I typicly will oil it once and thenfinish with a bees wax rub after putting it in the micro for about 25-30 seconds. This heats the wood and allows the wax to fill pores and seal.
I have made a buch of these as they dont stay on the trade blanket very long.

The block WILL absorb the lube from your patch if you leave them for a while. Dry lube or a dab of bore butter prior to the hunt might be needed.

There is a drill chart here on the forum and also some nice pics of various designs as well.

Brett

Richard Eames said:

slowpoke
I just made some in the shape of a heart and stained them red. They do look nice.

RDE

Click to expand...

Could you post some pictures of them?

Richard Eames said:

The ball is not deformed or marred in any way and drives easily into the muzzle with a short starter.

Click to expand...

Yeah, my problem is the load I want to shoot doesn't load easily. I think what I'm going to do it make the holes exactly bore size and when I wrap a patch around the ball and put it into the block, it should deform a little and make loading easier. Coning one side does make a lot of sense though.

Slowpoke: You will have to use some very hard, tough wood to cause any deformation of the ball loading it in the block. Probably something like Ebony, or Ironwood. I can't think of an American hardwood that would take the kind of pressure needed to deform a lead ball without risking splitting the board itself. If you made the board out of some syntheic material, you can get stuff hard enough to do what you want. But you would not have something that looked period correct. If you can live with that, look for something in fiberglass, or thick lexane.

For a .54 cal. bullet board, you want it at least 1/2 inch thick, and you will probably like it better if no part of the ball is sticking up out of one side or another. So, go to a 5/8 thick board. I would try using Ash, if I had to choose an American Hardwood, simply because this is the wood used to make baseball bats. Hickory would be my second choice. I would be looking for tight grain on both woods for this kind of project, the closer the growth rings, the better.

I think you would be better off using that slightly small diameter RB, and thicker patching, as suggested above.

Basicly any thickness that is thinner than the patched ball. You need the botom of the ball to protrude from the board to assist in lining the board up with the bore of your gun.

...block of aluminium??? that would size for you, but, a thinner patch or tad smaller ball might be your answer.

block as thick as your ball and lining up... you can counter bore a 1 inch relief with a forstner bit. I do this and people seem to like them. gives a nice appearence, tends to keep a little less lube from staining your cloths and definetly lines up over the bore!

Brett

Here is my .54 collection:



Making a block too tight will squeeze out the lube and you'll end up either deforming the ball or squishing the patch so you're back to the "problems" of a smaller ball.

I use a "stub-starter" with about 1-1/2" of dowel (actually, it's whitled from a single block of maple) and I smack that with my palm for tight fits. Usually it is tucked in the bag and serves as an anchor for the long single-row purpleheart block that I carry in the rear sheath on my bag.

As far as thickness, I have some that are as thick as the patched ball, some 1/4" thicker beyond that and some that are so thin the ball rises above the face of them. Each has advantges and disadvantages. The thickest ones keep any lube off your clothing and crud off the patch. The ones with the balls proud are easiest to line up over the muzzle. I like them to be just a hair thicker then the patched ball. I can still ease one down with my thumb whenplacing it over the muzzle.

A 9/16" drill bit will be a good bit for a block with a combo of .545 or greater.

paco97
Here is one I made for a 20 gauge smoothbore.
Made from mahogany sanded to 5/8" thickness to match the ball dia. fairly close, and drilled with a 5/8" bit for the holes.


Regards, Dave