• This community needs YOUR help today. We rely 100% on Supporting Memberships to fund our efforts. With the ever increasing fees of everything, we need help. We need more Supporting Members, today. Please invest back into this community. I will ship a few decals too in addition to all the account perks you get.



    Sign up here: https://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/account/upgrades

Leather wads in a cap and ball?

Muzzleloading Forum

Help Support Muzzleloading Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

brewer12345

40 Cal
Joined
Apr 22, 2019
Messages
463
Reaction score
264
I am seriously considering buying a 36 cal revolver to target shoot with. I have not shot a cap and ball before, but my understanding is that over powder wads are usually used to help avoid chain fires. Can I punch my own out of scrap leather?
 
Lubricated felt wads are used by some, but it's more about keeping the fouling soft than to prevent chain fires. If you are using an oversized ball that shaves a good ring of lead when you ram it down you shouldn't have to worry about chain fires. Making sure your caps are properly fitting is important to prevent the possibility of a chain fire though.
 
So as far as the leather goes, I don't think it would serve much of a purpose unless you're using light loads and need to fill some space. But then lubricated felt wads would probably be better and you can make your own, or like I do, use cream of wheat to fill the space between powder and ball.
 
I am seriously considering buying a 36 cal revolver to target shoot with. I have not shot a cap and ball before, but my understanding is that over powder wads are usually used to help avoid chain fires. Can I punch my own out of scrap leather?

Felt and corrugated cardboard wads hold more lubricant than leather could.
Wads have no effect in regard to chain-fires. None at all.
Don’t understand the terror that the idea of a chain fire holds for people.
Startling, yes.
Dangerous, no.
Damaging to the gun, almost never. Remember, those balls leaving the adjacent chambers only have a velocity of somewhere between 150 to 200 feet per second.
 
Last edited:
Felt and corrugated cardboard wads hold more lubricant than leather could.
Wads have no effect in regard to chain-fires. None at all.
Don’t understand the terror that the idea of a chain fire holds for people.
Startling, yes.
Dangerous, no.
Damaging to the gun, almost never. Remember, those balls from adjacent chambers only have a velocity of somewhere between 150 to 200 feet per second.

OK, then what purpose do the wads serve in a revolver?
 
Leather never makes decent wads, for the reason than when they get heated like in ignition, they get soft and shrink awful fast.
All the old wads for a revolver were either felt or cork.
Chain fires usually stat at the rear end, through slack-fitting or lost caps.
I tried cork, but much prefer punched felt wads, lubed in melted deer tallow. Takes up space when a full cylinder not wanted, and V good lube.
My 54 bore Tranter , (.44 cal) hold 40 grains if fully charged . I like to use it with 25 to 30, hence the wad.
 
Using the Bottom Dealing Mike method I make my own wads. A mix of lard (salt free) and either bees wax or paraffin canning wax from the grocery store using proportions any where from 50:50 to 60:40 and 1/8" pure wool felt from Duro-Felt . This makes good inexpensive wads of various calibers. Punches from Track of the Wolf or other outfitters.
Respectfully
Bunk
 
Measure the tip of your nipples. Another call out for having an inexpensive digital caliper.

If the tip measures 0.156" approximately, then use #10 percussion caps.

If the tip measures 0.165" approximately, then use #11 caps.

Using the correct caps will help prevent cap jams and chain fires.

These are diameter measurements?
 
Using the Bottom Dealing Mike method I make my own wads. A mix of lard (salt free) and either bees wax or paraffin canning wax from the grocery store using proportions any where from 50:50 to 60:40 and 1/8" pure wool felt from Duro-Felt . This makes good inexpensive wads of various calibers. Punches from Track of the Wolf or other outfitters.
Respectfully
Bunk

I ordered some felt and already have some 50/50 crisco/beeswax lube made up. Think that would work? Otherwise I have plenty of home rendered (and hence salt free) lard and beeswax as I keep several hives.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top