Recommended patch material

[gabedard]

I've been away from shooting black powder for a long while. I've used pre-lubed patches in the past and need to restock....I'm open to the possibility of a better source and looking for recommendations both for patch material and lube. I currently have a variety of weapons (mainly Hawken) with 1-66 to 1-48 (.36 to .54 calibers).

Thanks
Glenn

 

[Grenadier1758]

Since pre-lubricated patches deteriorate over time, most of us recommend getting unlubricated patching. Generally we lubricate and cut our own patches either at the muzzle or shortly before shooting. The striped pillow ticking (0.015) or mattress ticking (0.018) is easiest to find. Some like the extra thickness in denim (0.020) patching or canvas (0.022). Some like the finer and denser weave of the drill cloth / utility cloth (0.017) from JoAnn's Fabrics. All those fabrics must be 100% cotton.

There's a lot of us on this forum and there's about that many different patch lubricants that work for us.

Most lubricants work. From simple spit to moisten the patch and wipe some fouling from the bore to exotic mixtures. Mink oil from Track of the Wolf or tallow or oil based lubricants for hunting. Its quite simple to use a cooking oil be it olive oil, canola oil, or peanut. I haven't tried coconut oil. There is a waxy oil such as jojoba oil or a mix of oils with bee's wax.

Since you are just getting back into muzzleloading, I would recommend one of the oils from the kitchen. Don't make getting back too hard. Keep thing simple.

 

[Zonie]

I've had poor luck with pre-lubricated patches. Often they have been sitting on the shelf in a store for years and the lubrication breaks down the cotton fibers that make the cloth. When that happens, shooting them results in a total loss of accuracy with the patch blowing into fragments when the gun fires.

I suggest that you look for the blue and white, or red and white striped "pillow ticking" that is available at Walmart or other stores that sell material like JoAnn's.
It is rather thick. Usually about .018" but that is often a very good thickness to get the best accuracy out of a rifle shooting roundballs.

If you can't find pillow ticking, look for a pure cotton fabric with a very tight weave.

As for patch lubes, there are thousands of different mixtures people use. The Shooting Accessories section of the forum has many threads about this.

Here is a link to one of them

https://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/...red-alcohol-patch-lube-users-question.116991/

 

[pmccoywss]

Another alternative is linen. It is thinner than cotton, but a tighter weave, and flax is a stronger fiber than cotton.

Old tablecloths or napkins are available at most second hand stores (Salvation Army, etc).

 

[renegadehunter]

If you go for linen bring your calipers or c-mic and readin' glasses with you. There are lots of different thicknesses and weave of linen at the fabric store, as well as some blends. You want to make sure it says it is 100% linen and has a tight weave. I struggled to find any that was much thicker than about .008". I found some that measured .0115" thick, but it just wasn't quite thick enough for what my rifle prefers and the groups from it weren't that good with .530 and even .535 RB's. I get the best results from pillow ticking that measures .018" uncompressed. I lube no more than a week before shooting, and usually more like a couple days before shooting, to ensure I don't have patch fiber break down issues. I experienced what Zonie said about store bought prelubed patches several times when I first was starting out. I'd get great groups out of one package of them and then see a bunch of flyers with the next.
Track of the Wolf Mink oil is great lube, but it is really slick and if I get too much of it on my patches my groups open up, so apply lightly.
I recently tested out some Frontier's anti-rust and patch lube and found it to be really good too, one of the best groups I've gotten out of my rifle and not as finicky with application amount as the mink oil.
If you're not interested in making your own patches you can buy unlubed pillow ticking patches from several different places.

 

[Gooba Jones]

Ive always mainly just used cotton pellow ticking of my own for patches. Keep a couple in my mouth and im set, the rest in my possibles bag. But I have used Hoppe's black powder gun bore cleaner and patch lubricant from time to time.

Gooba Jones

 

[mooman76]

Cotton Drill cloth or sometimes called pocket drill is also good. Tight weave and made strong to hold up in pockets. Cotton Denim is also a good strong tight weave. You cab get it in different thicknesses. I have also used cotton flannels. It's not as strong but works ok for light casual shooting.

 

[Eterry]

I started with cotton pillow case material, was really thin, but gave good groups. Also used ticking, with good results.

Flintlocks INC sells different thickness cotton and synthetic cloth for patches.

I've almost always precut my patches, put a few in my mouth,"just a pinch between ur cheek and gum", and i'm set. Even done this while hunting... GASP!!

My 1 experience with pre lubed patches was a disaster. Stay away from them.

 

[Bob McBride]

I use pillow ticking (=/< .018), canvas (.022), or denim (.024) for patching, and bear grease or Mink oil.

(pillow ticking/mink oil from trackofthewolf.com, painters canvas from Sherwin Williams, denim from my old jeans. Bear grease from hunting buddies or muzzleloader rifle shows.)

I cut a strip about 4” wide and about 20” long, wipe lube on the end of it, tie it to my bag strap, and cut at the muzzle.

 

[hanshi]

Sometimes it will depend on the rifle. Mostly I use pillow ticking (.015"), mattress ticking (.018"), cotton duck (.019") or canvas (.023"). Denim is excellent, too. I only lube them just prior to shooting. Hoppes #9 BP Lube and TOW mink oil are great.

 

[MSW]

I wold urge you to check out Dutch Schoultz' method - here's a link

http://blackpowderrifleaccuracy.com/
Mr. Schoultz is a real life expert on such matters, and his work is, to my mind, the best non- shooting accessory you can get.

I would also recommend that you get a micrometer (I use a cheapie from Harbor Freight) and when you go down to the dry goods store (JoAnne Fabrics, etc.) bring it with you, along with your little notebook.

Do not get anything with any synthetic material in it!! (Don't ask me how I know … that was before the internet and I didn't know any better) … if you make this newbie mistake, you will get to clean a dreadful mess of melted goo out of your nice barrel … EEeeeeeeeww!

I like pocket drill, which has a very tight weave, but pillow ticking also works well. Get a few different thicknesses and be sure to write down the numbers from the bottom of the bolt. This way, when you get a cloth that works well, you can try to get the same lot number.

I would avoid using pieces of clothing or odd bits from the thrift store for this particular use, because you cannot be sure how they have worn. The inner thighs of your jeans don't get the wear that the knees or seat do.

When you get the cloth home, be sure to wash the sizing out of it - one trip through the washing machine will do the trick - I line dry to avoid fraying any more than I need to, but it's not really that big a deal.

If you ask a dozen muzzle loaders for their favorite lube, you'll come home with twenty to thirty recipes. I would tell you mine, but that would be revealing a deep dark family secret and my 4x great grand mother would rise from her grave in county Mayo and have herself transshipped here to southeast Vermont to torment me. It involved mink oil. (the lube, not the torment).

As with most things muzzle loading, probably the best advice I can offer is (1) only change one variable at a time, (2) be consistent, (3) be methodical, and (4) go with what works best for you and don't get too wrapped around the axle about "what every one says."

Good luck, and Make Good Smoke!

 

[Grenadier1758]

Most of the help at JoAnn's Fabrics is getting educated to what is required if some is walking up and down the aisles with a micrometer in hand as to what they are looking for. They will either pretend they didn't see you or run away in abject fear. There are some that will take you to the utility fabrics to peruse the pillow and mattress ticking. Some may be able to take you to the utility cloth section for the pocket drill. A real gem can find the 100% from flax linen. Others will take you to the denims and the canvas section, These may all be in different aisles in the store.

One aspect to be aware of is that with the sizing in the fabric on the bolt, you won't get a good compressed fabric measurement. You can only get the compressed measurement after washing and drying. You can get a feel for the tightness of the weave by looking through the fabric at a bright light. You want to avoid a loose weave.

 

[Kansas Jake]

The neat thing about Dutch's findings is he spent lots of time testing and documenting results to gain accuracy. He assisted a number of other to do it also. Most of us find a load that works to our satisfaction without doing lots of testing to get the best accuracy from a gun. I would guess there are a number of different ways to get the best accuracy from a given muzzleloader, but many of us will get close or "good enough" and call it quits.

 

[Smokey Plainsman]

I use “pilled tickin” (pillow ticking) of a thickens of between 18 and 15 thousandths of one imperial inch, and a spit or mink’s oil enluberned patch, cut at muzz or pre-cut I. The form of circular patching. Works well!