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sdporter

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I got my first MZ when I was 17 for Christmas, a T/C Renegade. I’ll be 53 on July 5th. So it will be 36 years old on Christmas this year. Went out shooting on Memorial Day and noticed that the ramrod was cracked. I’m building a hollow brass one with stainless ends. Probably epoxy a wood dowel into it to give it a little extra strength. Here’s the beginnings of it.
Also gonna replace the wood in the original. It appears it’s just red oak.
 

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The only thing I have heard on the delrin rods was the flimsey bendy tendency of it. I use a poplar dowel rod for range work( not pine) oak always came in 3' so poplar was the next best bet. I only use the hickory for the hunt.
 
A guy on our N-SSA team made several from fiberglass rod with a piece of heat shrink tubing on it. They work great as a range rod and I think if sized to the gun would make an acceptable replacement ramrod.
 
I use These Delrin Rods in All of my Guns, The first thing i get rid of is the Wood Rod, I have a Small bundle of them around here somewhere
This is what I do. Set the wooden rod to the side and order a Delrin rod.
They are pretty flexible, but that really helps them to not break. When loading a tight fitting PRB combo I just have to push it down by only choking up on the rod about 8"-10" at a time.
 
Have a couple delrin rods and are ok as long as a fairly easy loading load but a stiff load is a pain.. as said prefer aluminum over anything.
 
I have a bunch of delrin rods in all my Whites. I like them, and I have a piece I ordered in that’s long enough for two rods. I bought a .54 T/C Scout off of GB that didn’t have a rod, so I bought the delrin to build a rod for that one, and a rod for a guy at work that had lost his. I prefer to build everything I can build. I get a lot of enjoyment out of it.
I’m also going to replace the hardwood in the broken rod, just because I can.
There’s something “original” about a wood ramrod in the rifle that got me hooked into this sport over 30 years ago, that I can’t overlook.
I no longer hunt with the Renegade. I only get it out to shoot once in a while.
It has some pretty good battle scars, and to a collector, it wouldn’t be worth $25.
There’s something very real about sentimental value.
The barrel has been abused horribly, that’s what happens when you give a 17 year old kid a muzzleloader with no instruction on how to care for it properly. Yet it still shoots good.
My father never hunted with one, not even sure he ever shot one. I think he shot mine with me a couple of times, but I can’t honestly say he did, because I just don’t remember it.
I built the brass rod with the stainless ends mainly to see how it would look. I personally like the way it looks. The edges of the stainless portions are all rounded nicely and shouldn’t add any more scratches to the inside of that barrel than are already there.1590872185005.jpeg1590872370580.jpeg
 
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The ends go in 1” and are a press fit. I smeared some JB Weld into the grooves and tapped them in. i will drill a brass pin through the ends to mechanically lock them in place. I’m surprised I’ve never pulled the ends off of the wood rod. I’ve had some patches get locked up tighter than heck in the breech of that gun and had to use pliers and a vise to get the rod back out.
 
I'll put in an order when you get going.
Lol. Seriously though, if you want one, I’ll build you one. P.M me length. I can go 3/8” diameter, or 11/32” with that style of rod (just using brass tubing). This one, I stuffed a 5/16” oak rod up the middle to help keep it from bending. It’s 11/32” o.d. tube. It was like $6 for material.👍
 
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Here’s the new one out of oak. Stained with a mix of used hydraulic oil, charcoal, and flat black spray paint. Didnt come out as dark as I hoped but, it will stuff a bullet into the gun.
 

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