round ball patching material

[johnson1942]

for those of you who would like to share with the rest of us the best round ball patching material you have ever used or are currently useing. we would all like to learn from you. thanks johnson1942

[waksupi]

Blue stripe pillow ticking is the standard. Then find a ball that works well with it.

[Dean D.]

What Ric says! I learned what little I know from him. Walmart is where I can usually find pillow ticking. One yard makes a LOT of patches! Wash and dry it twice to remove all the sizing from the material.

[missionary5155]

Good afternoon
Linen. Go to Good Will and get some womens Linen pants. Linen is very tough material and was used by most of the old match masters. After linen good old pillow material.
Mike in ILL.

[newton]

for those of you who would like to share with the rest of us the best round ball patching material you have ever used or are currently useing. we would all like to learn from you. thanks johnson1942

X2. Also, dimensions you cut for different calibers.

[JeffinNZ]

100% drill cotton or denim to whatever thickness your smokepole requires.

[KCSO]

I got some fine irish linen 15 thou thick one time and it was super patching material it didn't seem to get cut in the bore no matter how tight you pached. That said I haven't used anything but pillow ticking for years as a buddy of mine does pillow refurb and gives me the old covers for free. The strangest patching I used was chamois leather. It worked but was field expidient at best.

[Maven]

johnson1942, 100% cotton materials such as pocket drill, blue striped pillow ticking, and denim make wonderful patches. So does linen, but it's $$$. However, not all blue striped pillow ticking is the same thickness. Ditto for pocket drill and denim. What you need to do is take a micrometer or dial indicating caliper with you to the fabric store to determine what the compressed thickness of the material will be. Joann Fabric often has an excellent selection, btw. What you'll need to do is find which thickness of ticking gives the best accuracy with the roundball you'll be using, i.e., without having to use a mallet to start- or seat it.

[waksupi]

I like Irish linen, but as was said it is expensive, and around here for the REAL stuff, very difficult to find.

[mooman76]

The best I ever used was cut from old military BDUs. It's tuff like denim.

[Hogdaddy]

.010 Buter lube, Great Fit with .490 balls ; )
H/D

[fouronesix]

Depends on ball diameter, bore specs and the rifles' individual tastes. Usually .015" ticking or .011" tight weave cotton (very similar to ticking). One of those two choices normally work best- again the final say is up to the rifle.

[DIRT Farmer]

The best I ever used was airplane cloth but there aren't many cloth and dope covered birds flying anymore I guess. It was very consistant in thickness and weave and avatible in several differant thicknesses.

Now I use ticking.

[mooman76]

Flannel is not the best but it works and usually with reasonable accuracy. It has more cushion so it gives easier but may shread a little but who cares if it gets the job done. Some people can't load them real tight patched balls due to lack of enough strength or other reasons.

[1874Sharps]

I use either the blue stripe pillow ticking or thin leather that has the same thickness (about 0.025 inches). A side benefit of doing leather work is having scraps of various leathers in different thicknesses. I turned to leather because it is not only a traditional material for patches, but resists burn-through and tearing a bit better than cloth, as my Early Virginia rifle with ratchet rifling was tearing the pillow ticking patches. It seems now that after nearly 100 shots the patches are not getting cut so much anymore. Using straight Ballistol as patch lube seems to help on the patches not tearing, too.

[Boerrancher]

I use regular pillow ticking with the blue stripes that is 12 thousandths thick, and go from there. I usually cut my patches at the muzzle, unless it is for my 32 cal, then I cut them into small squares that fully cover the muzzle. This allows me to keep a square of patch in my mouth for a quick reload when squirrel hunting. I have also found that unless you are target shooting for money a tight load is not required. A load that the ball can be started with the thumb and rammed home with out the use of a short started is all that is needed to consistently take a squirrel's head off at 40 yards as long as the shooter does their part. I have discovered over the years that there are many other factors besides patch thickness that effect the interior and exterior ballistics of a round ball.

Best wishes,

Joe

[curator]

While pillow ticking is the "standard" for make-your-own patching, it may not be the best choice for every rifle. I have several rifles I use in teaching the NRA/NMLRA Muzzle loading Rifle Instructor course. Individual Rifling depth varies from about .006" on Tompson Center rifles to .018 on one "custom" Hawken barrrel. .016" Blue-stripe pillow ticking and bore-size balls work well on rifling .011" deep and less. Deeper rifling requires thicker patching material. Cotton denim can be had in thickness of .020 to .028+. To shoot accurately without resorting to an over-powder wad, patching material must compress sufficiently where it seals the grooves to prevent blow-by and patch burn-through. Generally, a compression to 2/3ds is sufficient with most tightly woven cotton or linen cloth to do this.

[johnson1942]

to kcso and every one who said linen: i went though all my tons of stuff and found some irish linen that is 15 thou thick. i cut out a sq. ft. ironed smooth and coated it with rooser lube for paper patched bullets. it was dry this morning. i put 80 grains of 2f behind a .445 ball patched with this linen and cut off at the muzzle with a straight razor. results were all hole touching at 50 yards. i rediscovered the fun of shooting a 45 round ball gun. thanks every one johnson1942

[grullaguy]

I have never tried pillow ticking as it is not available here.

I have used;

denim
linen
cotton drill
cotton duck
airplane cloth

Airplane cloth, linen and cotton duck have been the most consistent for thickness and weave.

Denim is also very good but is hard to find thin enough. (Watch for and avoid denim/spandex blends)

Cotton drill is the easiest to find and the most affordable, but varies in quality from absolutely wonderful to total garbage. You really need to check it out before buying it as I have even found material listed as 100 percent cotton that was entirely synthetic and melted in the barrel. I now take a small piece outside to test with my lighter before buying any quantity.

[10 ga]

I use mostly blue or red stripe pillow ticking. Best stuff I've ever used and always on lookout for is real linen. Usually find it at the "thrift" stores in the womens section. usually pants or a coat and it is good stuff. Even better when it's been used and well washed. Strong sturdy and tough stuff. Just a pair of scissors to make patches real quick. 10 ga

[fouronesix]

One thing I've noticed while reading through all the patching posts is the wide variety of thicknesses quoted for say- pillow ticking. I don't think it varies as much as is reported so probably has more to do with HOW folks are measuring it and with what device- flat jawed calipers or small round jawed 1" mics. I guess the best advice is to use the same measuring technique each time when hunting around for material- that at least keeps it apples-to-apples for staying with what works.

Also, for patches in rifles there is more "wiggle room" because the material has somewhere to go-- into the grooves. Whereas in a smooth bore there is less wiggle room, so finding the exact right thickness or compressibility is a bit trickier. Historically, the smooth bores were often shot with only the paper from the "cartridge" for taking up windage or simply as bare ball with no patch or as a shotgun that requires a completely different type loading. My experience is that a proper cloth patch usually helps the smooth bore roundball shooters quite a bit.