Parker Hale and other 2 piece Loading Rods

[DuncNZ]

There seem to be any number of folks on this Forum who shoot Parker Hale rifles , and other rifles , usually military type which have steel ram rods .
I have not looked at every make but many which I have looked at , Parker Hale , Pedersoli etc have two piece ram rods , the jag is a separate piece fixed to the rod . The join line is very fine and not easy to see , but it is there .
I discovered this fact when the jag on my PH Musketoon jammed in the barrel when I was wiping the bore , . I gave the rod a hard tug and it came out , without the jag . I removed the nipple , poured in some ffffg and seated the jag/patch onto the powder and fired into a mound of sand conveniently placed by the range shed . I recovered the jag and both barrel and Jag were unharmed .
On examination I discovered the jag had been pushed / pressed on to the rod , not soldered or pinned . I then checked all my other Parker Hales and found the same thing , so I removed the lot , soldered and pinned them back on so no more jags got stuck in the bore.
It is worth a look if you ML has a one piece steel loading rod .

 

[Stantheman86]

I bought an aftermarket made in the USA rod from Lodgewood for my Pedersoli 1816 Springfield, that is a one piece rod made for rough handling in competition shooting.

Were the original Enfield ramrods 2-piece ?

 

[bisleyjohn]

I don’t use the rod belonging to the rifle but a three-piece brass one I made myself with an aluminium muzzle guide.

But then, I only shoot on formal ranges where carrying extra kit is’t a problem

 

[Rudyard]

Original rods for Enfield,s are a steel shaft fire welded to an Iron head note the blue ish steel that goes into the darker brown head . or any Iv'e had where so made . On a range' Bisley Johns' got the right idea . The muzzle is vunerable so a guide on the rod helps that wear happening .
Rudyard

 

[dave951]

That's why I don't use the original rod for anything.

I load and shoot with a solid brass repro rod and clean with a dedicated range type rod with a bore guide.

 

[DuncNZ]

I used to shoot in competitions where the original rod on the rifle had to be used ,I always used my left thumb and forefinger as a bore guide in these competitions and stainless steel range rods with bore guides in ordinary matches . I do have a bore guide off one of my Parker Hale volunteer rifle rods in a drawer in my workshop , it is there because it is plastic and I made a brass ones to replace them .