Homemade wads first try

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Dave Markowitz

Dave Markowitz

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After reading Gatofeo's post about homemade wads in the BP Essentials stickied at the top of this forum I decided a few weeks ago to get off my behind and try it myself.

I ordered a sheet of 1/8" 100% wool felt from Durofelt.com, which arrived in a few days. I also went to the local Harbor Freight store and picked up a set of hollow punches for about $5. I took the 7/16" punch and reamed out the inside using my Dremel tool and a small grinding wheel to about .45" or so.

For a lube I used a mixture of mostly beeswax with some mutton tallow, a tub of which I'd bought awhile ago from Dixie Gun Works.

Note: Melting mutton tallow on the kitchen stove top is a guaranteed way to tick off one's wife. It reeks. :barf:

After soaking the wads in the melted lube mix and letting them harden on a paper towel, they looked like little lube cookies.

I got to try them for the first time today in my Euroarms 1858 Remington and can say that I'm pleased with the results. They are bit messier than Wonder Wads but work better to keep the powder fouling soft. And of course, they are much cheaper than Wonder Wads.

I'll have to see how they compare to the Wonder Wads in hot weather. It was in the low 50s today, I can see these being a lot messier if it's 90. I may add a bit of canning paraffin to the mix to make them a little stiffer.

Definitely try this if you haven't. Part of the fun of black powder shooting is making your own supplies and accessories, and in this case you can save yourself some cash.

Gatofeo, thanks for your contributions to this forum.
 
Nice Work

I did pretty much the same thing.

Read Gatofeo... ordered the Durofelt... went to Harbor Freight... deja vu?

Luckily I didn't have a tub of mutton tallow lying around or I might think we were twins seperated at birth... LOL...

I formulated my own concoction... it's... by weight... 2 parts paraffin, 1 part Beeswax and 2 part's Crisco.

OK... truth be told, that's actually just Gatofeo's proportions without the fractions and substituting Crisco for the Tallow because it's all I had.

My mix leans towards a plenty waxy wad... with the added advantage that it doesn't stink... it melts easily and totally permeates the felt in moments... it makes a stiff wad that perform's nicely.

Looks like my first batch will last me a very long time... it doesn't take much to soak a couple hundred wads and I made about a pint... took about 30 minutes.

Wonder wads work great, but the price they ask is totally insane, they run $8 per hundred around here.

If I could only find a decently priced source for pure lead...
 
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Have you guys considered lightly lubing the balls (rolling them around in a lightly greased pan) and shooting dry wads?
Powder first...wad second ...followed by ball.
 
I cast and load .45colt and .357mag using Lee Alox as bullet lube. I tumbled some .454 balls in Alox....but haven't shot them yet. While it may prevent lead build-up in the bore, I don't think it will do a thing for the fouling residue left behind by the powder.
 
Noz said:
An 11mm punch works perfectly for the homade wads for a 44.
Click to expand...
Or a Ø7/16 which, both are available from places like Harbor Freight. Just get which ever one you find or the cheapest. I have a more expensive Ø.45 cutter too, but I actually like the way the Ø7/16 wads fit better, so I use them now. They are easier to start, the .45s have to be poked in most of the time and are a hassle. Not just poked in to seat, but you have to use a dowel to even get them started.

The 11mm and 7/16 are within thousands of an inch of each other and both work well, you couldn't tell an Ø11mm wad from a Ø7/16 if your life depended on it.

So +1 to Noz
 
Before I slightly reamed out my 7/16" punch, I made a couple of wads. They were a bit small, so I opened it up with my Dremel. This had the side benefit of polishing the inside, which was a bit rough.

When dealing with cheap Chicom hardware, tolerances may not be all that good. So, a "7/16"" punch may cut out an off-sized wad. The only real way to be sure is to cut a couple wads with a new punch and try them in your gun.
 
Dave Markowitz said:
Before I slightly reamed out my 7/16" punch, I made a couple of wads. They were a bit small, so I opened it up with my Dremel. This had the side benefit of polishing the inside, which was a bit rough.

When dealing with cheap Chicom hardware, tolerances may not be all that good. So, a "7/16"" punch may cut out an off-sized wad. The only real way to be sure is to cut a couple wads with a new punch and try them in your gun.
Click to expand...
Yep, they vary.

Dave, when you say undersize do you really saturate your wads, or do you mean a dry fit? My .44 caliber wads cut with a Ø7/16 punch look like this and I don't think a larger diameter would make much difference.



wads-1.gif


~Mako
 
Mako, my wads look pretty similar to yours. When I made my first test wads I checked them unlubed against my Euroarms Rogers & Spencer, then opened up the punch a little at a time until I got a snug all around fit. They are still plenty easy to seat.
 
I've been using Gatofeo's system for a while now and it works great. Use them in C&Bs and 45 Colt BP cartridges. As shown in the photos in this thread they are quite stiff and waxy. I've used them below freezing and near 100 degrees with no problem. I think they are more effective and are a LOT cheaper then the commercial stuff, which is priced like they were stamped out of gold.

Jeff
 
I have a hunch that when the wad gets mashed between the ball and those expanding gasses, it probably deforms enough that a few thousandths difference won't be significant. Can't prove it of course...not the first time I wished we could take a peek in there!
 
My lubricated felt wads came out not looking as clumpy as yours Mako. I don't know if it's because I use Crisco instead of mutton tallow or maybe my mixture was hotter and runnier when I dumped in the felt wads. Sounds like mutton tallow is stinky so a slight edge to Crisco in that category. One of these days I'm going to try to use BoreButter or moosemilk (ballstol:water) for the lubrication to see how they compare with the Crisco/beeswax mixture.
 
My thumbs got a workout putting the 7/16" wads into my Uberti Remmie chambers last weekend as it was pretty cool in the AM and the wads were quit stiff. (50/50 deer tallow and beeswax) For cool/cold weather I use beeswax/olive oil at 1 part BW to 2 parts oil. I put a 1/2" chunk of blue crayon into the mix to identify the cold weather wads. They come out a nice aqua color.
 
J-Bar said:
I have a hunch that when the wad gets mashed between the ball and those expanding gasses, it probably deforms enough that a few thousandths difference won't be significant. Can't prove it of course...not the first time I wished we could take a peek in there!
Click to expand...

J-Bar,

I agree which is why I think the Ø7/16 punches work fine. I'll bet they are plenty squeezed out even after seating. As I said I am going to try what Dave did since I have a spare cheap punch. I will see if it makes any difference. I can't complain though the pistols make it through an eight stage match without any problems, and the bore and cylinders clean like greased magic...

ClemBert said:
My lubricated felt wads came out not looking as clumpy as yours Mako. I don't know if it's because I use Crisco instead of mutton tallow or maybe my mixture was hotter and runnier when I dumped in the felt wads. Sounds like mutton tallow is stinky so a slight edge to Crisco in that category. One of these days I'm going to try to use BoreButter or moosemilk (ballstol:water) for the lubrication to see how they compare with the Crisco/beeswax mixture.
Click to expand...
Clembert,
Where I live we have hot summers and I need a lube that won’t melt until fired. I use the classic Mutton Tallow, Bees Wax and Paraffin lube. I can’t complain too much because it works well Summer, Fall, Winter and Spring.

I use the same lube for my cartridge bullets, primarily rifle bullets since I rarely shoot cartridge pistols in competition anymore unless it is a "rain day". I use the lube for my .44 Armies, Dragoons and Walkers , my .36 Navy models and my cartridge guns in .38 Spl, .44 Russian, .44 Spl, .44WCF, .45 Colt and .45-70. The only problem is the sources of Mutton Tallow have dried up. Ever since the "mad cow" disease scare, tallows which were used a lot in animal feeds or as a byproduct of feed processing have gotten harder to get other than lard. The ready sources are gone. I am down to my last tub and a half of Mutton Tallow.

I am going to experiment with soy based grease as a substitute. Animal fats and vegetable oils contain a lot of "Fatty Acids." Which in the case of saturated animal fats act as emulsifiers and give them their semi solid characteristics. The three primary acids in Mutton Tallow are Oleic acid, Palmitic acid and Stearic Acid. Soy beans have more linolenic acid than anything else which is not surprising because it is plant based.

But whatever I end up using it needs to be stiff for me to want to use it. Stiff until exposed to the heat of firing. I would actually prefer it to be stiffer than the classic Tallow Lube.

~Mako
 
Dixie hasn't carried it in months and on two other sites they said they had talked to them there and they can't get it anymore.

I tried to order some in December and called again in April. They don't know when or if they will ever get any. If you know a place to get it please post it here
 
I just now added the mutton tallow to my cart on the DGW website, and it made no mention that it was out of stock.
 
I hope you're right!!!!

After I saw your post I went online and ordered 2 containers of it and some odds and ends things to make the shipping worth it.

I'm glad I said that and you looked. I really did talk to them only a month ago it was just after April 1.

Well it took my credit card I hope I don't get a few cap loader and tools but no mutton.
 
LUBE

Easiest way to do it is to melt some TC natural lube in a pan & throw those wads into it. Spread 'em on wax paper till they set & you are good to go.

I prelube patches the same way & they seemingly last forever. Found that old cap cans are great for both.
 
LUBE

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Easiest way to do it is to melt some TC natural lube in a pan & throw those wads into it. Spread 'em on wax paper till they set & you are good to go.

I prelube patches the same way & they seemingly last forever. Found that old cap cans are great for both.
Click to expand...


me too...'cept I used bore butter/beeswax.
 
I hope you're right!!!!

After I saw your post I went online and ordered 2 containers of it and some odds and ends things to make the shipping worth it.

I'm glad I said that and you looked. I really did talk to them only a month ago it was just after April 1.

Well it took my credit card I hope I don't get a few cap loader and tools but no mutton.
Click to expand...

I'd be very surprised if you don't receive the tallow. I've added items to my cart at DGW and if they are out of stock they warn you that it'll have to be back ordered.
 
Back when the military was testing Colts' revolvers for the first time, they recorded firing 1,000-1,200 shots fired every day, using several revolvers each, with no lubrication over the chambers and only cleaning at the end of each day. So what are we doing wrong??
 
Bluehawk said:
Back when the military was testing Colts' revolvers for the first time, they recorded firing 1,000-1,200 shots fired every day, using several revolvers each, with no lubrication over the chambers and only cleaning at the end of each day. So what are we doing wrong??
Click to expand...

Where did you read that? I'm interested in anything like that. Which revolvers are you talking about?
 
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