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Wad punch?

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I bought a 50cal punch from Buffalo Arms several years ago. Guess I’ve punched 20,000 or more milk carton wads with it & it’s still goin’ strong. I use a piece of heavy black plastic liner from a foundry auto parts basket as a pad.
 
9 piece hollow punch set from Harbor Freight.Pittsburgh brand, item # 3838. The 7/16s. Harbor Freight doesn't sell the best quality products on the market but they do work.
 
I too use a Harbor Freight 7/16s from the set. I used a dremel to open up the inside diameter a bit. I punch felt using a piece of wood stump end to punch on. Works well enough for me.
 
My experience with Harbor Freight punches left a lot to be desired. Even cheap as they are they ain’t worth the money. Your mileage may vary.

My opinion and yer welcome to it.
 
I don't make .44 wads, but I also have 2 sets from harbor freight. Makes me everything from 12 gauge to .410.
 
There used to be a member here who would make punches at the size desired by the user for other members Don't know what he charged. Worse, don't remember who the member was/is, but hopefully someone here can remind us.
 
I got my punches from Track of the Wolf, one for 45 cap and ball pistols (also works great for 45 Colt and 45-70 BP cartridges) and one for 36 caliber C&B (and 38 caliber BP cartridges). They've punched out thousands of heavy felt wads and are still going strong. Don't remember the exact cost but they have more than paid for themselves.

Jeff
 
So far I have not used a metal headed hammer on my punch. I use a length (about 16 inches) of hickory shovel handle. Fairly stout piece of wood ! But I dont see why a regular hammer wouldn't work, I'm sure the punches were made for that sort of treatment. I got a small ball pean hammer which should work just fine. Carol probably wouldn't like the clanging noise though.
 
Smokey, just sharpen it up and it'll work allright I think. A dowel inside wrapped with emery cloth and twisted will take burrs out, and rubbing outside with a fine file and then emery will sharpen it up.

Good arch punches can be found on flea-bay as well.

Use the end -grain of a fine -grained log to cut against, and use a regular hammer or a mallet, (tent mallet works) a good smack is what you need for a nice cut.
 
I haven't tried it (yet) but I've heard some people use a piece of cedar as their log or stump on the bottom. Each whack emits a "cedary" smell. And by all means sharpen the punch with either emory cloth or a dremel. It does help.
 
So far I have not used a metal headed hammer on my punch. I use a length (about 16 inches) of hickory shovel handle. Fairly stout piece of wood ! But I dont see why a regular hammer wouldn't work, I'm sure the punches were made for that sort of treatment. I got a small ball pean hammer which should work just fine. Carol probably wouldn't like the clanging noise though.
I've been using a rawhide mallet on the leather punches I bought in the early '80s, and they're all still in good shape.

During that time I've seen other leather workers replace punches because they use hammers on them, mushrooming the shafts down to nothing.
 
I found a nylon headed mallet at Harbor Freight, cheap, the face was somewhat convex so I ground it flat. I use it on leather punches and it works great, should be good for wad punching too.
 
...I use a length (about 16 inches) of hickory shovel handle...
The safe way to cut lines on a rolling ship's deck is to hold a knife or axe (depending on the thickness of the line) against the deck, edge up, lay the line over that , and whack it with a wooden billet. Saves fingers in the inevitable event of a wave, and if a cable or hawser doesn't go all of the way through on the first blow, the blade stays in the cut for the next, making it cleaner.
 
9 piece hollow punch set from Harbor Freight.Pittsburgh brand, item # 3838. The 7/16s. Harbor Freight doesn't sell the best quality products on the market but they do work.

I use the little set from Harbor Freight
#67030. They fit in my drill press chuck and before you know it, you will be covered up in revolver wads.
 
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I gave up the hammering bit a long time ago and cut my patches using my drill press with hole cutters modified for cutting patches why make a job out of it. The track punches are grossly over priced and seemingly difficult to modify to use in a drill press. I also know most folks don't own a drill press and use what they have and that's good. I hope your having a good day.
 
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