Punching wads

[lead chucker]

Im going to make a couple wad punchers. What diameter are guys using for a 50 cal muzzle loader and 44 ball and cap revolver. I have some of that 1/8 hard felt on the way should be here end of this week.

[charlie b]

The ones I use for .50cal Lyman are .512"

[Edward]

Im going to make a couple wad punchers. What diameter are guys using for a 50 cal muzzle loader and 44 ball and cap revolver. I have some of that 1/8 hard felt on the way should be here end of this week.

I get the whole set on the internet 12 pc hollow punch set 3-19 mm and covers most all of what I shoot for maybe $16.00 Cheap yup but I use them a lot and have not broke one yet ! Ed

[rodwha]

You want them to be slightly larger than the groove diameter so they make a nice tight seal. Your cap n ball gun is likely around .452” so I’d opt for .454” or so. Your .50 cal depends on the rifling depth.

[lead chucker]

I made a punch tonight for the 50 cal. seems to work on card board not sure how it will work on felt. Im hoping the felt will be here in the next couple days. My disks are around .550.

[dsayer]

Shamelessly copied this from somewhere on the interwebs somewhere and saved but don't recall the source. Plagarism I guess...

In an over powder wad we are usually looking for a bit oversize to seal the bore good, say 10-15 thou over bore, depending on bore and Groove, but 10-15 thou over is a safe bet for a good gas seal. I have found that MM Hollow punches are a better fit in some cases than Inch. I have, and use both. Here are examples of sizes that i feel to be ideal.

For .36 Cal a 3/8” Hollow punch is the best fit at .375 There are no MM sizes close enough here.

For .45 Caliber rifle, a 15/32” would be a great punch size in inches, 15/32= .468
And the closest size in MM for .45 Cal would be a 12MM hollow punch at .472 (a little big for a hard card, but perfect for wool)

For .50 Cal i hear guys refer to a 1/2” Hollow punch, in my opinion that is to small and not giving a good solid seal, 1/2”= .500
A much better fit for .50 Cal would either be a 33/64 inch punch at .515 or a 13MM at .511

For .54 Cal a 9/16 inch hollow punch= .562 (again, a little large for hard card, but great for wool)
A better fit for .54 Cal would be a 14MM Hollow punch at .551

For .58 Cal a 15MM Hollow punch= .590, And the closest inch size would be a 19/32 at .593, Either of these would work great.

[bedbugbilly]

Everybody does it differently and it still works . . . I'll just add this.

I shoot .36 caliber C & B. For the .36 cal, I use a 3/8 hollow punch that was in a set I bought at Harbor Freight. You will of course have to "size" you punch to your caliber.

What I'll add though,is this . I used to use the felt wads - I haven't used a felt wad in my C & B for years. I do leather work so I have leather scraps - I punch my wads out of vegetable tanned leather that is around 1/8" in thickness. I set it on the end grain of a piece of 4 X 4 and just punch 'em out with the hollow punch. I then toss them in a tupperware bowl, put in some of my BP lube (I use 1 Lb Crisco to 1 real beeswax toilet bowl ring) - any BP lube will work. I put it in the microwave long enough to melt the lube and then make sure the wads absorb the lube and then remove and pat the excess lube off between layers of paper towel - then toss them in an Altoids tin. The natural fibers of the leather expand a little when they absorb the lube so they are a good friction fit when pushed in to the chamber. They seal under the all and have served me well for many years.

I just mention it as an alternative to the felt - all depends on what a person prefers. For your calibers, you'll want the felt wad enough oversize to give you a friction fit to the bore. If you buy a .50 (1/2") hollow punch, you can always polish the inside of the punch to make it a bit larger so your wads will have the friction fit you need. Not much different than opening up a push through boot sizing die.

You'll get it worked out and you can certainly save some $$ by making your own. Good luck and have fun!

[KCSO]

460 for 44 and 515 for 50 M/L I make most of my cutters fro either old hole saws or gun barrels and make them to use in a drill press. For the most often used punches I make a press punch to use in an arbor press. Pictures and instruction can be sent.

[rodwha]

I often read how Harbor Frieght punches are recommended. I bought a set and couldn’t get it to punch through the felt. Worthless in my case. Pretty pathetic when they can’t punch through felt.

[KCSO]

Sharpen them and punch into end grain softer wood. I use an old ash stump that my anvil is mounted on.

[rodwha]

I bought punches from a retired machinist instead. They shouldn’t have needed sharpening right out of the box.

[Idz]

I made a punch and die that mounts in my press. It works nice for 1/8 felt 44 cal wads.