Cardboard wads

[tacotime]

Got some cardboard wads from TOTW for the Ruger Old Army. Should these be lubed at all?

[Baja_Traveler]

I lubed cardboard wads once - dipping them in my pot of black powder lube with tweezers to soak up, then placing them on wax paper to set. Alot of work for no real return IMHO...
Now I shoot a lubed conical made for the ROA, and it is much easier.

[Nobade]

I use lubed felt wads under the balls in the ROA and other revolvers. That works great, can't say card wads would do much.

-Nobade

[oldracer]

I tried wads under the round balls in my Walker 44 and made no difference at all? So I don't use them in the revolver. In the slug gun I tried lubed felt, non lubed felt, lubed fiber and non lubed fiber. The non lubed fiber seemed to give best accuracy at 100 and 200 yards.

[Good Cheer]

You might try wads (dipped or not) made from that gray molded pressed pulp paper scungus looking stuff from egg cartons. It's kinda half way between milk carton and felt. Soaks up melted lube pretty good and give it up some when the gun goes bang. At the same time it will conform to the shape of the rifling while it tries to be a card. Not a cure all but just something else that sometimes works and we're lucky enough to have laying around. Making a stack of 5/8" diameter cut outs right now to try with .58 REAL's. Hee hee.

[Omnivore]

I've used tight fitting cards over the powder and under a lubed felt wad, to keep the lube out of the powder when I figured the gun would stay loaded for some time, as in carrying a pistol while hunting (over time, the lube will degrade the powder and result in weak shots). Othwewise I figure a card wouldn't do much. For that matter, the lubed felt is only to help keep the fowling soft, I figure, though some people say their guns shoot better with them.

I understand that some people use cards as something of a gas check, to protect the bullet base in BP (or even smokeless) cartridge loads where higher velocities are achieved. It's to reduce or prevent bore leading, which if I'm not mistaken is practically never an issue in these BP handguns. That method seems a little bit unlikely to me, but then I haven't reied it so I'm only speculating. Results speak for themselves, assuming you've isolated your many other variables scientifically. Try it and see what happens. Go back and forth, and see if your results go back and forth along with it in a predictable fashion. Let us know what happens.

[Nobade]

Seems like a card wad would mold itself to the shape of the ball and not touch the bore. They work great on square base rifle boolits, but it would be interesting to see some high speed photography of a card wad behind a ball at the instant it leaves the muzzle of a revolver.

-Nobade

[tacotime]

I reckon I will try the cards and see what happens then... to proof the pudding. Thanks.

[tacotime]

Tried a couple of cylinders with card wads slightly lubed and group size appeared to tighten up slightly compared to the lubed felt wads. Difference was not huge. Will test again.

[tacotime]

Tried a few more card wads, about the same group results as the felt wads, but a lot cheaper. Still testing...

[drhall762]

I know a lot of shooters use the lubed felt wads under the ball and say they don't have to grease the chambers to prevent chain fires. Kinda' old school myself. Grease them even when I use the felt wads which is less and less these days.

[Nobade]

Yep, I am in the felt wad camp. If you make your own they're practically free and they're easy to deal with. Not messy and don't run all over in hot weather. Keeps the fouling soft too, I can shoot all day without fouling out.

-Nobade