Barrel cleaning patch material?

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T-shirts here as well. Keep one patch for mopping out carbon/filth and another soaked with CLP for the barrel wipe coat. Works perfectly.
 
I shoot way more than I clean. When I do clean the bore, I do a wet patch down the bore and a dry patch. Clean or not, that’s bout where I stop unless I have rust or severe fouling. I don’t shoot precision rifle though, unless you consider 22 and 30-30 offhand at coke cans precision. I clean the action and wipe the outside much, much more than the bore.

I’ve used Scott rags in a box. Basically paper towels, and they work fine. But I’m too cheap to buy them when I can cut a few patches as I need them. But for birthday and Christmas I always get some cleaning stuff. And I always am looking for old kits and gear at yard sales.
 
I like the Hoppe's patches. They're not too thick, but they're strong and they've got some fibrous texture to them. I do NOT like the flannel patches that Scheel's sells in bulk bags.
 
trackskippy said:
...Unless youre overly anal, it literally only takes a few minutes.
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Ummmm ... I can easily use up a couple dozen patches field-cleaning a rifle, and a whole lot more if it's an old milsurp I just bought that I'm refurbing. Maybe I am anal, but I don't think that particular personality trait enters into it .... however, I most certainly am lazy, not to mention I have other things to do, and cutting my own patches from scratch would take a whole lot longer than "a few minutes."
 
FWIW, you can reduce the required number of patches for cleaning by running a Bore snake down the barrel while the barrel is still warm from firing.
 
trackskippy said:
LOL. The way some people talk, youd think cutting patches was a hard days work. :)

Unless youre overly anal, it literally only takes a few minutes.
Click to expand...

That's a few minutes I can spend doing something else. Call me a spendthrift, but I am willing to lay out a whopping $0.01 per parch.
 
Where do you get them for $10 a bag? If I could get a 1000 Southern Bloomers or similar for a penny a patch, I probably wouldnt bother cutting them either. The cheapest Ive seen 2x2 patches at that count has been $20+.

The main reason I started cutting them is, I clean a number of guns each week and use a lot of patches over the year, and for literally a few minutes of effort on my part cutting them, I get the same thing for less than half the price. Thats more money for powder, primers, ect. At least thats how I look at it.
 
Shooter’s Choice are my favorite, t-shirt esque material without any fraying. I buy various sizes but often cut the 2x2s down for other calibers when needed.

Despite my wife’s protesting, I rarely sacrifice old ts unless they develop a hole. They generally become gun cleaning rags at that point.

If you cut your own, invest in fabric shears. DO NOT touch your wife’s shears or other crafting materials for any reason lest you be killed in your sleep.
 
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What? The "where" is still a secret? :)

And if they really were a penny apiece, they would be $5 for 500, or $10 for 1000. ;)
 
My wife is a quilter. Most of the time I can avoid the fabric shop visits. But occasionally I get trapped into one. So I occupy my time seeking out 100% cotton flannel and buy a yard or two.
Then when she has her cutting stuff set up. Some sort of special matt and a round cutting gizmo and sturdy straight edge. Most of the time she worries I'll mess up her stuff and does the cutting for me. In a matter of minutes I have thousands of patches cut. I usually (or she does) cut three different sizes. Those rotary cutters are the way to go, very fast and efficenet
 
I thought that looked like Midways site. Between their "bad math" and what youd likely pay for shipping, especially if it was just that, youre really going to pay. :)

Just another reason I dont deal with them much anymore. And if anyone could screw up a bag of patches, their shipping department would be the one! :p

Youre math is still off too by the way. :D
 
trackskippy said:
What? The "where" is still a secret?
Click to expand...
The Hoppe's patches ARE hard to find. The two local sources I have for them don't do a very good job of keeping them in stock. Maybe because I'm the guy that strips every last pack off the peg, leaving just one hanging. I'm kind of pissed at Scheel's because they used to stock them but don't anymore.
 
wiscoaster said:
The Hoppe's patches ARE hard to find. The two local sources I have for them don't do a very good job of keeping them in stock. Maybe because I'm the guy that strips every last pack off the peg, leaving just one hanging. I'm kind of pissed at Scheel's because they used to stock them but don't anymore.
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Back in the early 2000's, a friend of mine worked in a local, high volume gun shop. Hoppes used to use the leftover cotton from the patch runs as shipping packing material. Just basically tons of sheets of cotton with squares of various sizes punched out of it jammed into the boxes. Not a whole lot of big pieces, and most of what there was, was irregular, but there was a lot of it and if you were willing to cut out what you could salvage, it was free, as the shop considered it trash. My buddy brought home bags of it and gave me as much as I wanted. I didnt have to buy patches for a number of years.
 
trackskippy said:
LOL. The way some people talk, youd think cutting patches was a hard days work. :)

Unless youre overly anal, it literally only takes a few minutes.
Click to expand...

I've done my share of cutting cleaning patches over time. Some disposal shop "rags" make good patches as do old tee shirts.

I do not generate much "old tee shirts" to keep me supplied in cleaning patches. I'd rather keep my old tee shirts for refinishing stocks.

I used to work for a one of the major manufacturer of disposable shop towels. They do make good cleaning patches. I've cut lots of cleaning patches from the free samples I got from work.

But, without good cutting equipment, you do not get patches of consistent size.

I'd rather have patches cut to a consistent size without expending time to do so.

But, what ever floats your boat on making patches is fine by me.
 
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Seriously guys, if your wife has a rotary cutter for sewing or crafts it’s the bees knees (craft slang) for cutting several layers of cotton or felt for patches.
They usually have a nice big cutting board to work on.
If you want to cut thousands of patches an hour in any size you like this is the ticket.
If you get one for your loading room don’t tell swmbo or it will get “borrowed”.
 
MatrixReality said:
I don’t buy patches. Old, cotton t-shirts work great. Sharp scissors, and I cut them various sizes for different calibers
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Frogfurr - like MR, I buy very few premade patches. Old flannel shirts work well in small calibers when cut into squares between 1 x 1" and 2 x 2". For larger calibers, I have used old socks, usually old "tube" socks as their thickness holds more solvent and fills the barrel better. They are too big, even at 1 x 1" for .22 calibers and are almost too tight for a .243 where they work better on a solid jag instead of a slotted jag.
 
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