Due Diligence And The Smokeless Paper Patch

I was going through the FAQ stickies and somewhere, long ago, one of the fellas chided noobs like me to actually READ the stickies and do the homework. That's fair as far as it goes; but the problem I have as a noob is that one authority will expound on a certain way of doing things and then 7 others will chime in with THEIR way and who knows who's right and what the best starting point is?

So... sorry if this has been asked before... but I notice some guys have tails to be clipped on their PP boolits, and others just seem to fold them over. Is this because some are shooting the Holy Black and some aren't? Also, for lubing - do you just smear the lube on the patch?

Your two bits is, as always, sincerely appreciated.

Simply put, there are several methods that will work. I have tried some of them but they did not work well for me. My system does work well for me. Regarding tails, I would perhaps fold the tail on a large .38 to .50 caliber bullet but my patching is on .30 cal. There, the bullet is too small for me to conveniently manipulate to I make the patch long, roll it up and trim it on loading. I have shot the bullets without trimming but the jury is still out on accuracy.

I do not grease my patches as it draws dirt and with my lube, will cause case corrosion over time. Some cartridges may remain loaded for a couple years. Lube does not seem to affect accuracy in my experience but it does provide some weather proofing. Best weatherproofing is to dip the loaded projectile into some 1lb cut shellac.

I have not had luck with note book paper. For me, standard tracing paper as found at Wally World or the local drug store does the job and is more durable. I am able to carry several cartridges in loops on a cartridge belt for hunting reloads. The patch stays put in the belt and feeds through several different leveractions with no failure.

Pick a system from your reading and try it out. Work on it a bit then branch out and experiment. You should get, with iron sights, 2 to 3 inch groups at 100 yards with factory load velocity; possibly better with better eyes etc.

Good luck and have fun. Dan

Everybody patches differently. Some are smiling after a shooting session. Some aren't. In the end were all striving to get the best accuracy possible. If we don't succeed there's always another day to try.

I found the Stickies by Pdawgshooter to be the most useful to me. I have managed to get my 30-06 and 308 patched loads to shoot very, very well. The 7.62x54R in the Mosin Nagant is a completely different story. I'm about to throw in the towel for that one.

Edit to add:

I just twist the "tails" and clip them, then fold them over. No problems there. For lube, I have just been "crayoning" a small amount of lube onto the patch with a lube stick. I'm using BAC for lube. For my 30 caliber boolits, I bought a paper patch specific mold (.303 dia). I size these down to .301, and double wrap with 45* angles. I then size to .310 only if needed.

Hope this helps.

I`ve been folding the patch edge under the boolet base when I wet wrap. As I am setting that patched wet boolet aside to dry I push down on the boolet base and give a gentle twist on the boolet to form a twisted looking base wrap when dry. If everybody did things the same, we would all be driving Fords!Robert

So... you don't lube the bullets before you patch them right? Just smear some lube on them once the patch dries...?

I lube mine after the patch is dried, and before final sizing if needed. Only a very small amount is needed! I'm still experimenting with different lubes. I have tried Johnson's Paste Wax, Rooster Jacket , and White Label's BAC. All three seem to work OK, but I think I will stick with BAC for my load development. What caliber are you planning on patching for?

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Originally Posted by Guy La Pourque

So... you don't lube the bullets before you patch them right? Just smear some lube on them once the patch dries...?

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Don`t put any lube on the boolet core before putting the patch on, The patch will stick to the core after exiting the muzzle and there will be no accuracy. The patch must be rid of the core at the muzzle. So only put a lube of some kind on the patch after the patch (if wet) has dried (I wait 24 hrs) and is ready to either final size or load as is.Robert

I have a rolling block in .45-70...

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Originally Posted by Guy La Pourque

I have a rolling block in .45-70...

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You have the best possible situation! Just use heavy 45 Colt bullets that are already the right size to patch up to fit your rifle. As for tails, on 45s I don't use them. Just cut the patch short enough so it leaves a spot of lead in the middle of the base and no tail. After the patch is dry, smear a little wax type lube on and you're good to go. Recently I have been using Johnson's paste wax, that seems to work well. Before that I used a mix of vaseline and beeswax.

-Nobade