No more store bought patches!

[Dave_B]

Shoot much? :hmm:

:rotf: :rotf: :rotf:

Dave

 

[jimeckersley]

How many of you make round patches?
Dave

I don't make patches, just strips. But, I have a tip for those who are buying cloth such as ticking, twill, and denim. It all needs to be washed to get the sizing out, right?

In the past, when I washed the cloth, quite a bit of it turned into threads in the washing maching. She who is queen of the laundry room wasn't too happy with all the threads and strings everywhere. I wasn't happy about all the cloth that turned into threads. So, now, I could put a hem around the edges so it will hold together but I hit on an easier way. Just get a bottle of waterproof wood workers glue, like Elmers. Run a small bead around the edges and let it dry. The cloth can then be washed and dried without falling apart.
Whether you're cutting it round, square or into strips this will make both you and she who is queen of the laundry room happy.

 

[paulvallandigham]

If you don't want to spend the money on glue, you can also put the cloth in one of those knit bags She-who-must-be-obeyed seems to always have for washing her delicate unmentionables, and that will keep the agitator from beating the cloth up so much, or the spin cycle from removing the thread so much. Any that does come loose is likely to stay in that knit bag where you can remove it and dispose of it, and leave her machine in good working order. ( I can't stand the smell of most glues.)

 

[marwat06]

I was in such a hurry to shoot that I didn't wash my Wal-Mart Pillow Ticking. Seems to work fine. What does washing get you? Is my barrel going to stuff if I don't wash the ticking? Washing it will making it thicker right?

 

[riarcher]

Washing will make it softer and nicer to handle. Also fluffs it up to hold more lube, as well as fill the rifling better/easier.
Some think the sizing (starch like stuff) may wear out a barrel,, I really don't know if that's true or not,,, but I doubt it.

 

[paulvallandigham]

The sizing keeps your lube from being distributed evenly in the cloth. By washing it, you get that stuff out, whatever it is, so that your patch will take the lube, and compress evenly on all sides when you load. Its not going to matter much at short ranges, but if you start shooting at 100 yds from the bench, you will be able to see the difference in how the patches perform. Steel is steel, and the only thing that is going to wear it down is something harder, like glass or any other form of silica. They use a dust made from granite on our paper so it will accept ink, and granite dust is put in a lot of other products including things we eat. That is silica. IF it is put into the patching, THEN you may see some wear over time. Of course, intense heat from the burning powder can loosen a few molecules in the barrel every shot, and that is probably the main cause of barrel wear.

 

[paulvallandigham]

The sizing keeps your lube from being distributed evenly in the cloth. By washing it, you get that stuff out, whatever it is, so that your patch will take the lube, and compress evenly on all sides when you load. Its not going to matter much at short ranges, but if you start shooting at 100 yds from the bench, you will be able to see the difference in how the patches perform. Steel is steel, and the only thing that is going to wear it down is something harder, like glass or any other form of silica. They use a dust made from granite on our paper so it will accept ink, and granite dust is put in a lot of other products including things we eat. That is silica. IF it is put into the patching, THEN you may see some wear over time. Of course, intense heat from the burning powder can loosen a few molecules in the barrel every shot, and that is probably the main cause of barrel wear.

 

[Homesteader]

I've been just cutting a patch off a strip at the muzzle, the end of which has been soaking in my ever-salivating mouth, once I've got the ball in place. Is there something wrong with this? Does it affect the accuracy somehow? I'm intersted, because I was under the impression this is how it was done back in the day. (Jeez, what else would I do with that pach / neck knife I put so much effort into?)

 

[paulvallandigham]

You describe using a spit patch. There is nothing wrong with it, and lots of things that are right! For one, it does not use petroleum products. Two, you never run out of spit. On a range, where you expect to fire the round within a few minutes, spit can keep the fouling soft, lubricate the barrel, and help the patch seal gases behind it. Use a spit patch in combination with a card, or fiber, or felt wad, and you should get very good accuracy. The only thing better would be to run a lubricated patch down the barrel when or after you seat the PRB. The chronograph shows this increases velocity, and also reduces the standard deviation of velocity for a given load. That lube in the barrel will keep the barrel one shot clean, regardless of the temperature and humidity where you are shooting. You can use several different lubes to lubricate your patching materials, including using water soluable oil and let the lube dry, so that you are putting a dry, lubed patch down the barrel. That would be the alternative to using spit. For informal shooting, where pinpoint accuracy is not expected, stick with spit. However, if you are going to shoot against someone for money , or other prize, then by all means use the lubricated patching. Spend some time at the bench shooting these various combinations, so you know where the Point of Impact is for the different combinations. Take notes, and keep them handy as a reference. I had a nicee .45 rifle that would shoot as well as any gun out to 50 yds, but wasn't worth much beyond that. I shot spit patches out to 50 yds, but when I switched to lubricated patching, groups tightened up for me, and I was lucky that they shot to the same POA at 100 yds. It doesn't work that way with all guns.