[Milkmaster]

I guess some will say I am braggin' but I don't care. I'm no wood worker, and I had a need for a bullet starter for my new trapper pistol. All the bullet starters I saw were plastic and were not quite long enough to double as a ramrod for my pistol. SOOOOO.....I went to the local hobby lobby store and bought a few wooden balls for 59 cents each and a 7/16" dowel rod. Next thanks to the good folks here on THR I found out that a .45ACP spent cartridge would work nicely as a brass tip on the wooden dowel pieces. It cost me about 3 bucks for the stain and laquer ( I got plenty left over!) to finish the pieces. The beauty of this deal is that the one piece works for everything with the pistol.

I still use a longer ramrod for my Hawken rifle of course, but the starter works there too.

The largest ball only has the short starter on it. I had the parts and decided to make it that way for no particular reason.

Now I am open to suggestions for some sort of improvement I should make to it. I still consider them a prototype. I will probably look for some true hardwood to make the perfected model at some point in my life. So far it is still just a hobby I hope all of us enjoy.

[4v50 Gary]

Half the joy of buckskinning is making your own equipment. Congratulations on your first project. It looks terrific!

[Gbro]

Nice setup.
Anything beats that plastic junk on the market.
Use up some more of that stain on your new loading stand.

Hate to be a critic, but those triggers need some finishing. (sand off and blue, or redo the whole thing in Plumb brown).

[Steve499]

They have wooden balls at Hobby Lobby? I spent half a day whittling a walnut ball for a starter for my nephew a few days ago. Wish I'd known.......

Steve

[Old Dragoon]

I bet Hobby Lobby doesn't have Walnut Balls though, and he's your nephew.....

[4v50 Gary]

Hardware stores may carry those wood balls. Either that or some place that will have wood trim. My uncle (cabinet maker by training) use to get them to make his short starters and ramrods.

[DixieTexian]

Maybe you could go to Lowes or Home Depot get a fancy railing post with a ball on top that is made of some hardwood and whack it to make a starter.

[Duncaninfrance]

If I was going to make these I would have used brass rather than wood dowel. Proper starters in wood/brass are easy to buy here. Like the idea of the combination though. Well done for a first attempt.

[Plink]

That's a good looking and well thought out setup. If you had bought a premade one it would have costed more and not been as nice.

[Jim K]

Why not put both the starter and the rammer on the same ball? That's the way they used to be made.

FWIW, another idea for a starter is a crab mallet. Enjoy the seafood and pocket the mallet (bring along a baggie, though, or your pocket will not smell very good).

Jim

[Milkmaster]

The rammer is in the same ball as the starter. It is made to be long enough for the pistol you see in the picture.

[arcticap]

http://thehighroad.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=52795&stc=1&d=1170864289

Jim Keenan,
You must have read my mind! :D
I always seem to use a mallet when loading and never use a brass ended short starters anymore.
I prefer wood or plastic ends. What's not to like about plastic ones as long as they aren't too soft? They protect the bore just like my delrin bore guides do.
I have plenty of brass ones with a ball top but I don't use them unless I need a threaded end to attach an accessory.
The black starter with the cylindrical top is my favorite design, and I found that it's better for hitting with a mallet too. Pictured below it is one of the crab mallets that I picked up at a Walmart (near the ocean) for $1. I intend to use it as a mallet, but as JK mentioned it can also be used as a starter. The end is ~1/16th" under .50 caliber.
Starting enough balls with a wooden rod will make a little depression in the end, which can also be sanded to shape if desired.
I don't even use the factory wood/plastic & metal ended ramrods either. I buy the thickest to bore size hardwood dowels and just add a handle because they are more durable and solid. I don't have one on the rifle when hunting, but carry it in an arrow quiver on my hip even though I've had some custom made brass ones made up in the past.
You did a great job on your starters Milkmaster, but IMO using brass isn't really necessary. I placed the brass shell casing at the top of my .36 caliber starter where it's hit with a mallet and then added a rubber wrap.