For those of you who don't know, and especially for those of you who own a Thompson Center rifle, if the wood has "grain runout" there is a very good chance that it will break or shear off along the grain when heavy pressure is applied to it when your loading your gun.
When it does break it will leave a razor sharp point that can easily go completely thru your hand or wrist.
Wood has grain, and the strands of wood fiber grow in layers. If these layers "break out" of the side of the rod they will form a distinctive pattern that is easily seen. If you do see these patterns like the ones in my sketch you really should get a replacement rod.
View attachment 19440
I don't know why but every Thompson Center ramrod I've seen has grain runout. I guess it was because they were more interested in saving a few bucks by using machined dowels rather than wood that was split along the grain to make their ramrods.
Another thing to check on your ramrod is to see if the metal end pieces are pinned onto the wood.
A lot of factory made guns just use glue to hold the ends on and these will often fail because the metal piece pulls off of them.
Pinning the tip isn't hard to do if you have access to a 1/16" drill bit, an electric drill, a flat file, a small hammer, a pocket knife and a piece of 1/16" brass rod (available at most hardware stores).
Drill the hole close to the joint between the metal end and the wood. Use your pocket knife to remove the burrs and to form a small countersink in the metal. Cut off a length of the brass rod and push it thru the hole. Use the hammer to tap the ends of the rod down into the countersunk hole. File off any of the rod ends that stick up above the outside of the metal end.
It should look like this.
View attachment 19441
