patch materials????

[Regulis7]

I hear a lot about pillow tick being used for patches. Excuse my ignorance on the subject but exactlly what is pillow tick?

I live in a heavy textile area, well whats left of it after NAFTA and WTO agreements, and we have a lot of textile outlet stores that carry a variety of cotton cloths at discount prices. Most are avilable either by the pound or yard and prices range around 2.50 a yard for 100% cotton.

Problem is these products are not labled with thickness and the outlet stores generally have no clue either. I dont have a micrometer to gauge the cloth and have tried to "eye ball" it with a .015 patch as a guide, almost a lost cause so no flames please.

Prices for "pre-cut" commercial .50 cal patches at the local shops runs around $5 for 100 and slightly more for the pre-lubed ones.

Anyway, wheres a good source for bulk quantity cloth thats suitable for patches or pillow tick material?

Thanks

Regulis7

 

[Rick Presley]

I us old dish towel plain cotton one that I cut into strips. These towels are the terry ones just cheap ones from general dollard stores.

 

[Regulis7]

Rick,

You ever noticed any burn throughs with the materials you use for patches? Most of the terry cloth type towels I see look to be a mix of cotton and some sort of plastic fiber (nylon, polyproplene).

I picked up a yard of 100% tight woven cotton fabric from the textile outlet today and will see how that performs at the range tomorrow. Not sure what the thickness is, but just by the look and feel its gonna be a close match to the un-lubed patches I have. Hopefully I can come into a micrometer soon then I can be certain.

Regulis7

 

[tg]

Pillow ticking is a tight weave type of cotton another type often used is pocket drill, also called drill cloth which is what the pockets in your Levis are made of, Wal Mart, Jo Anns fabric and such type stores carry both. normaly the pillow ticking is usually about .010 or .018 you can tell which is which by feel the drill is usually .017 or .018 any tight weave cotton cloth will work if the thickness is suitable to your ball & barrel. I would suggest asking for some drill cloth and trying it. if readily available but a bit to tight drop a size in ball.

 

[RJR]

Pillow ticking is a tight weave cotton that is generallya natural color with either green or blue stripes on it. It's the old covering that feather pillows were made of. Ticking normally runs .015 to .018 in thickness. I like .018 and when I find it I always buy the whole bolt. I get funny looks walking into a fabric store with a mic. and even funnier looks when I tell them why. Borrow a mic from a friend if need be to find what you need. Seeing as you have a lot of textiles down there, how much does 12 oz. canvas go for? Here it's around $5.00 a yard for 60 inch. I need a good supplier at a cheaper price. I like to make hand sewn tents (Pyramids, Bakers, Whelens) and trade them at rendevous. Take care, Rick.

 

[Regulis7]

DEADDAWG,

Not sure about the canvas material, but if the material I picked up for patching works out I will head back and buy more. The material I purchased was $2.50 a yard, which will give me a WHOLE lot more patches that the shop price of $5 for 100.

I will make a point of asking about the 12oz Canvas and let ya know.

Next time I head to Wally World or the Crafts store I will check the fabric section for Pillow Tick. Sure the little ole ladies in the fabric dept will be amused when they see me surveying their fabric offering....LOL.

Regulis7

 

[Rick Presley]

I miss quoted myself I use only cheap cotton ones not the terry cloth I am sorry about the cunfusion. I use pure cotton dish towels, not terry one sorry about that.

 

[musketman]

Regulis7:
[I hear a lot about pillow tick being used for patches. Excuse my ignorance on the subject but exactlly what is pillow tick?]


Most pillow ticking is 100% cotton, off-white with blue stripes on it.

Walmart and sometimes K-Mart stores sells pillow ticking in bulk yards or by the bolt (whole ream), I take my micrometer with me so I can measure the cloth's thickness before I buy it, .019 works for me...

Once I get it home its off to the washer with it to wash the sizing out of it, hang or tumble dry.

I then cut my ticking into 2 inch wide strips (for my .75 caliber) and roll them for later use.

I cut the ticking along the blue stripes, they work as a guide for even widths.

The ticking can be cut, prelubed and stored in tins or left in the roll form and cut at the muzzle during loading.

I hope this helps...

Here is a link to show you what pillow ticking looks like.
http://www.foxridgeoutfitters.com/mlaccessories/patches/7135.html

 

[Regulis7]

Thanks for all the feed back everyone. Went to Wal Mart today and picked up some "Pillow Tick" materials that looks just like the pic in the link.

Too back I didnt get it "BEFORE" I went to the range, so will have to try it out on my next range visit.

Anyway, found out what a difference patch and lube make on round ball accuracy. Had 3 different type patches today and could see and BIG change in shot placement when using the same charge and powder but different patch.

Will see how the Pillow Tick works next time. This is the fun part of ML shooting...testing and working up a load!

Regulis7