Hickory rod conditioner

[dondiego]

I recently received some hickory ram rod blanks from Track of the Wolf. I have heard of soaking these in kerosene to condition them but I also recently read of someone recommending another liquid for conditioning that supposedly lasts longer. I can't find the thread that mentions that liquid. Could one of you fine gentlemen please enlighten me?
Thanks

Don

[johnson1942]

when i first got into muzzleloading over 30 years ago i met and man and wife who shot muzzle loader and was very knowlegeable about it. they took a pipe about 4 inches in diam. and welded a base on it. they then welded a flange on the top. it was long enough to fit a ramrod in for their guns. they then took another plate and drilled holes to match the top flange. in the center of the plate they welded a small pipe with a valve on the end and a fitting on the valve to accept a air pressure hose. they filled the pipe with kerosene, put a some ramrods in it, capped it tight and put about 100 lbs. of air pressure on top of it. they would leave them this way for a week. when they took out the ramrods they claimed they would last for ever, were very strong and flexable. they looked good to me. i know canadian made infield rifles had their gun stocks treated this way in world war two. i dont know what liquid they use but on the gun i had it seemed close to kerosene. the stocks were tough and water proof. very hard to refinish. your on the right track. let us all know what you all find out, thanks for the post.

[Rick Hodges]

I remember reading about soaking them in "coal oil"....whatever that is? I have no idea where to get it either. I am interested in hearing other suggestions.

Ok, I just looked it up. Coal Oil is an old time name for Kerosine. The same stuff.

[mooman76]

I have heard coal oil is basically kerosene. I have heard it works and also that it doesn't help and you are stuck with a ramrod that smells of kerosene which is not good for hunting. I think there must be something too it but I have never tried it.

[johnson1942]

if you want the right smell for hunting i have a native american friend who is a tremendous hunter. deer and moose, he has a small farm on the canadian border. what he hunts in is a pair of coveralls that hangs in his barn and smells of cows and horses. he says the deer never smell him comming. he wears them over the top of his winter clothes. i dont know if kerosine offends deer. i know that wd40 isnt offensive to fish but deer arent fish. i know we are talking about ramrods but would like to hear also about smells and deer.

[mooman76]

When I was in Alaska and went deep sea fishing the guy running the boat used WD40 as an attractant for fishing. He swore by it and we did do better than anyone else that day so maybe something too it or maybe not. I don't know. I like the smell myself.

[Rattus58]

if you want the right smell for hunting i have a native american friend who is a tremendous hunter. deer and moose, he has a small farm on the canadian border. what he hunts in is a pair of coveralls that hangs in his barn and smells of cows and horses. he says the deer never smell him comming. he wears them over the top of his winter clothes. i dont know if kerosine offends deer. i know that wd40 isnt offensive to fish but deer arent fish. i know we are talking about ramrods but would like to hear also about smells and deer.

Yer supposed to be hunting into the wind with the sun to your back...

[johnson1942]

their is no wind in the deep woods along the canadian line and the sun is hard to see, they arent plains indians up their.

[waksupi]

I use bear oil, penetrates completely through the wood. Good substitutes are pure lard, or raccoon oil.

[dondiego]

My dad always told me that he read and did his homework by his "coal oil" lamp when he was a kid. He still has that lamp. My grandparents didn't get electricity until the mid 50's. Yep, we threw the bucket into the 10 foot deep well to get water and used an outhouse. This was in rural Texas.

I like the barn clothes idea. Even if you hunt into the wind, and are in deep woods, the wind can swirl. I like to get them in close.

I think maybe mineral oil was recommended for the ramrod soak. I just saw my cutting board oil and it is 100% mineral oil. Would that work?

[ogre]

My experience has been that these "conditioning oils" don't do a dang thing other than to smell up the ramrod.

[johnson1942]

the barn smell coveralls work. ive got a few moose antlers in my little shop given to me by that native friend. up their they sneak up on them eating willow bushes and shoot them behind the ear. believe it or not the old natives use only a .22 on moose this way. to dondiego, my two youngest cant comprehend no lights, i didnt get power untill 1946. we played a lot of cards in those days by lamplight. i learned my numbers before i went to the rural school with a horse barn next to it, from cards. it is a diff world to day. my dad and grandfather rode a small indian pony to school every day. i guess its ok to get off subject as their are a lot of older shooters out their who can relate to all this. never wash those coveralls and keep them hanging in the barn.

[fouronesix]

I imagine the deer will think something like, "sniff, sniff, sniff, that one smells like he dipped his ramrod in diesel and he's wearing those charcoal lined boots from Cabela's and I can smell that Chinese coat, Shanghai plant I believe, all the way across the canyon" or "let's see, that nimrod last bore cleaned with Ballistol and Hoppes 9 but dang I wish he'd change bath soap from Dial to Ivory, that Dial always makes me sneeze"

[dbosman]

I may be wrong, as I've done that once or a thousand times, but I seem to remember that really pure kerosene lamp oil doesn't have an odor.

[gnoahhh]

Quite honestly, I have never treated a hickory rammer with anything. Getting it made from nice straight close grained wood so it starts out straight and semi-flexible is 90% of the battle. I feel that one get a rammer too flexible- I wouldn't want it to flex so much when ramming a tight ball/patch combo so as to also rub the rifling as pressure is applied the length of the bore.

[Rattus58]

their is no wind in the deep woods along the canadian line and the sun is hard to see, they arent plains indians up their.

so no worries then.... However.... and I'm no expert of the deep woods, I've never been anywhere where there is no wind. Oftentimes I tie a thread with a feather attached to my rifles for a quick wind indication in that I'm a spot and stalk hunter and this is a trick I learned with my bows that I carried over to the muzzleloader... in light winds it's fairly evident with the feather.

[Rattus58]

Quite honestly, I have never treated a hickory rammer with anything. Getting it made from nice straight close grained wood so it starts out straight and semi-flexible is 90% of the battle. I feel that one get a rammer too flexible- I wouldn't want it to flex so much when ramming a tight ball/patch combo so as to also rub the rifling as pressure is applied the length of the bore.

I have Hickory ramrods made from dowels that I have stained and sealed with various sealers in the past. I prefer steel or fiberglass while hunting however... whether aluminum or some other material. So far my Hickory Dowels don't flex much being roughly 100 to 125 pound spine..

[Hanshi]

Most of my rods have been soaked in kerosene. I won't swear it helps but I do know it hurts nothing.

[Rattus58]

Most of my rods have been soaked in kerosene. I won't swear it helps but I do know it hurts nothing.

Doesn't it keep them from drying out and getting brittle in the long run?

[waksupi]

Fiberglas WILL ruin a barrel.