Fiberglass Ramrod ruining a barrel?

[MDK_WV]

I have read some of the previous threads concerning the use of fiberglass ramrods and how their use will ruin a barrel. I don't understand how their use ruins a barrel. Where is the damage? Does a rifled barrel look different than a smoothbore that has been ruined by a fiberglass rod? Is it possible to see this damage when looking at a barrel? If the barrel has been "coned" will this prevent damage by the rod? Without knowing the history of a muzzleloader will a bore light reveal the use of fiberglass rod?

Please provide any pictures or drawings that will explain this to me. Thanks in advance for any information provided.

 

[Zonie]

A number of people feel that the glass fibers in a fiberglass ramrod will cause wear to the muzzle.

It is believed that the hard glass, which is much harder than steel, coupled with using a unpiloted rod which will inevitably rub more on one side of the muzzle than the other will cause the damage.

Bevel Up and Bevel Down, the National Muzzleloading Rifle Associations two authors who write for Muzzle Blasts magazine did a test of this a while back.

They made a machine that would move a ramrod in and out of the muzzle of a barrel, thousands of times and tested several different materials.
Fiber glass was just one of them.

Although I didn't agree with some of their test methods, I agree that the basic idea was sound and the results can be believed.

The bottom line of their testing is that Fiberglass ramrods do not produce any more wear than metal ramrods and do considerably less damage than wood contaminated with some oil and dirt.

 

[ozark57]

The bottom line of their testing is that Fiberglass ramrods do not produce any more wear than metal ramrods and do considerably less damage than wood contaminated with some oil and dirt.


This makes perfect since. Use a bore guide and worry not!

 

[Chilidog]

The bottom line of their testing is that Fiberglass ramrods do not produce any more wear than metal ramrods and do considerably less damage than wood contaminated with some oil and dirt.

Thanks for the intel Zonie, I was wondering about that. :hatsoff:

 

[MDK_WV]

So can I assume this is not a big issue for someone who shoots maybe 100 to 200 rounds a year? I was concerned about a used gun and if this was a problem I should be looking for when I inspect it.

 

[zimmerstutzen]

I had a fibreglass ram rod once. when it started to wear, i was picking glass splinters out of my fingers constantly. Shooting became a painful experience. I can't figure out why anyone would want one.

 

[Dave Rosenthal]

:thumbsup: I'm with you! Same thing started to happen to me when a friend asked me to help him pull a dry-ball. I got the short flaky end of the crappy stick, and it started to disintegrate. To prevent further damage to my hands, we switched to my steel range rod and got the job done!

I haven't touched a fiberglass rod since! Fiberglass is good for antennas and boats, not shootin rods!

Dave

 

[Zonie]

Now, I admit I don't have a fiberglass ramrod and I haven't really inspected one of them but, IMO folks who would make a fiberglass ramrod obviously believe in modern materials.

That makes me guess that they would attach the metal ramrod tip onto the fiberglass rod using some form of epoxy.
I doubt that they would go to the trouble of installing a metal cross pin thru the tip and the body of the rod.

While epoxy is good stuff, it has its limits.
Any ramrod that does not have a cross-pinned tip is asking for trouble.

I've seen unpinned tips pull off of the rods when the shooter was just trying to pull a tight patched jag back up the bore not to mention folks who have gotten their brush stuck down in the bore.

That also includes some who tried pulling a stuck patched ball with a ball screw.

Anyone who buys a fiberglass ramrod needs to look carefully to make sure it has a cross pin that extends completely thru the metal at the rear of the metal tip.
That goes for wood rods too.

 

[Dave Rosenthal]

Old or improperly stored fiberglass rods tend to fracture at the worst of times. I've been around radio antennas almost my whole life. Fiberglass is great when it's new, but it gets micro-fractures from wind & weather as it ages, just like an old CB antenna. That's when the flakes start to be noticed. Stored in the cold, then in a hot summer car trunk, then back and forth again. Every time that you give the rod a really good push to seat a stubborn PRB (and it starts to bend) is just like an antenna whipping around in the wind. And you're right about the pins needing to be in the rod near the tip too!

No fiberglass in my hands any more!

Dave

 

[Toomuch_36]

Used only occasionaly as a hunting rifle, use of a fiberglass rod will not have a marked effect on a barrel.

As the rods "Bevel Up" and "Bevel Down" used in their test were new and in pristine condition, I would not dissagree with their findings.

The damage comes when the rod starts to wear and shread as experienced by "zimmerstutzen" and "Smokin 50". Remember glass is much harder than steel and to use such a rod in your rifle would be much akin to washing your wife's good china with a diamond scouring pad.

In regards to rifle vs smoothbore: This would have a much more adverse effect on rifle accuracy than it would with a smoothbore. If such had happened with the rifle in question, by using a bore light in a realy clean barrel you will be able to see linear scarrs where the bare rod wiped over the inside of the barrel.


Toomuch
............
Shoot Flint

 

[roundball]

In terms of lightweight strength and bore protection without needing to bother with a muzzle guide, an excellent range rod was T/C's "Polymer Covered Fiberglass" rod.

Like a lot of T/C products, they made a large one-time production run of them and they were gone in a couple years...33" long with a permanently attached 2" wooden ball and a soft non-abrading polymer coating over a stiff fiberglass core. Years ago I did manage to find a small private business closing down and bought the last several he had in stock at a clearance sale of only $10 apiece.

I recently got a few 48" fiberglass blanks from Dixie to make up a few "cut to length" rods for the .62cal smoothbore I'm waiting for...stiff as a piece of 3/8" steel rebar and there is no flexing in their 48" length, and they'll be even stiffer in their final shorter cut 39" length.
Planning to cut/epoxy/pin ends on a couple for underbarrel rods, and make up a few range rods with different attachments and threaded wooden balls on their other ends.

I'll watch for the beginnings of any fibers appearing but if the rods never touch the bore or muzzle, I'm assuming I won't see any wear in my remaining few years with the hobby...if I do, the blanks are almost free at only $2 each so it wouldn't be any big loss.