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Idaholewis

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Thought i would share this for those looking to make their own over powder wads at home. I will go with these 5 calibers .36, .45, .50, .54, and .58 Cal

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.
 
Bulk material is obviously the ticket here, Durofelt online is the best source i know of for Wool Felt, they sell it in different thickness, and weight (Medium, and Hard) The 1/8” thickness, and Hard felt being the most popular for Wad making. You can order a few different bulk sizes which are priced according to the size. I have never bought from them, but have read all good about them, they are highly recommended on all shooting forums i have been on.

Buffalo Arms (and I’m sure others) carries both Vege Fibre and LDPE (Poly) in 3ft square sheets, You can get either Material in .030 thickness or .060, The .060 being the most popular. Hard Card Wads hitting your Chronograph can be a problem, if you prefer the .060 material but fear them bouncing off your Chronograph face, you can always double up and use 2 .030s, These will likely go seperate ways upon exiting the muzzle, a single .030 hitting the face of your Chrono would be easier on it than 1 heavier .060

Buffalo Arms also carries Cork material in bulk sheets, i have a big chunk of it, but have yet to test any of it? I am not sure the benefit, if any to using it? I read about it being a good cushion for the twisted tail of a paper patched bullet, it makes sense, but I am not convinced that it is needed, So far i have done very well without it. It is far more expensive than the Vege, and Poly, And nowhere near as friendly to work with for punching wads, It’s doubtful i will do much with it? But i had to get a piece to try! :D
 
You can also cheat and go to Buffalo Arms and order their .45 and .50 hammer struck punches :lol: They are made by Buffalo Arms themselves and are high quality punches, 18 bucks a piece. Their .45 punch is .460, and their .50 punch is .512, Which are both ideal sizes.

Just figured I would break down the MM to inches etc. above for those that might already have Hollow punch sets but unsure of the numbers, The above will get you where I personally feel is best for a good tight gas seal.
 
I bought one of the Buffalo Arms 50cal punches when I had my rollin' block. once ya get a rhythm goin' it don't take much time at all to knock out a thousand or few. at one time I coulda told ya how many 1/2 gallon & how many quart milk cartons it takes per thou. half gallon cartons were close to 30 thousandths thick while quarts were about 22 thousandths.

still got a few thou tucked around here somewhere in a box or two.
 
bubba.50 said:
I bought one of the Buffalo Arms 50cal punches when I had my rollin' block. once ya get a rhythm goin' it don't take much time at all to knock out a thousand or few. at one time I coulda told ya how many 1/2 gallon & how many quart milk cartons it takes per thou. half gallon cartons were close to 30 thousandths thick while quarts were about 22 thousandths.

still got a few thou tucked around here somewhere in a box or two.

bubba.50, Those Buffalo Arms Punches are very precise and well made, I have looked at them a few times. I will likely get 1 in .50 Cal someday since My expensive Fred Cornell Press mounted wad punch in .50 Cal ended up being returned as defective, that thing was cutting Wads at .535-.539, To big for .50, and to small for .54, Needless to say they were on the tough side to load :lol: But I was able to load them from .060 Vege Fibre and they shot very well, but not the .060 Poly, that stuff isn’t as forgiving. I can’t remember If i sent you some of those or not? If so, i would file them in the Garbage, The Poly that is
 
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