Ramrod size chart

[Lonewolfe20]

Does anyone have a size chart of the different diameters of ramrod and what caliber they fit.
Or could we all post what we have as far as caliber and what fits
Thanks everyone

[rollingb]

I've never seen an actual chart for caliber/ramrod size,.... but the most common (wooden) ramrod sizes can be obtained in 5/16" and 3/8". Most generally you'll find rifles of .40 caliber (or less), equipped with 5/16" ramrods,.... and .45 caliber (and larger) with 3/8" ramrods.
The various sizes of cleaning jags available (however),.... are dependent on "bore size" (caliber) in order to fit properly when using a cleaning patch. 

It's just simpler to have lots of different sized jags,... than to have a lot of different sized ramrods. 
 

[Lonewolfe20]

Is hickory the best for this application?
Thanks RB

[Ohio Joe]

Is hickory the best for this application?
Thanks RB

That's what has been claimed,,, though I've gotten just as long (if not longer) use out of birch. I have some poplar rods too and they work fine also. Anymore when I need a rod, I just give them (birch or poplar) a couple coats of the Watco light walnut stain, and call it good. The one thing I do before using any wood for a rod is to check the straightness of the grain.

[rollingb]

Is hickory the best for this application?
Thanks RB

That's what has been claimed,,, though I've gotten just as long (if not longer) use out of birch.

I can't vouch for birch as I've never used it, but if Joe likes it, then it should make for good ramrod wood. 

Hickory is what I use and I like it.

Most any wood that has straight grain running from end to end, will make for a passable ramrod. 
Just try to stay away from wooden rods that have any visible "grain run out", 'cause if they break while under pressure, they'll instantly turn into a needle-sharp "dagger" and can possibly go through your hand while loading. 

[Ohio Joe]

I might add one more note here, and perhaps someone with a better memory then I have can throw in here;

There was a formula for soaking a new ramrod in (coal oil, and something else) and I just can't remember the something else)? What ever it was I did try it probably 30+ years ago and it did work - you could bend your ramrod probably close to a 22 to 30 degree angle (perhaps more) and it simply would show no signs of breakage at all... I still have some old rods in rifles that were soaked in that formula.

Anyone remember the "what else" ? (Maybe it was the Watco oil)

[rollingb]

I might add one more note here, and perhaps someone with a better memory then I have can throw in here;

There was a formula for soaking a new ramrod in (coal oil, and something else) and I just can't remember the something else)? What ever it was I did try it probably 30+ years ago and it did work - you could bend your ramrod probably close to a 22 to 30 degree angle (perhaps more) and it simply would show no signs of breakage at all... I still have some old rods in rifles that were soaked in that formula.

Anyone remember the "what else" ? (Maybe it was the Watco oil)

Yep,.... ramrods can be soaked in coal oil/lamp oil/kerosene (all pretty much the same and all are petroleum based), or bear oil, coon oil, or even vegetable oil.
Bear oil or raccoon oil are probably two most "old school" ways to go, and the quickest with the least amount of time needed to soak in good.
Bear oil is so "fine" it'll even soak through a cork if you have a bottle of it laying on it's side for a length of time. Don't ask me how I found that out

[rollingb]

One thing I might also add regarding ramrods,..... stay away from fiberglass ramrods they are very abrasive. While unbreakable under normal use, they will destroy the crown on muzzleloaders.

[Ohio Joe]

What Rondo says;

stay away from fiberglass ramrods

I don't think this is said enough these days. 

[Bigsmoke]

I am thinking that Mountain State Muzzleloading published a chart of ram rod size for most popular rifles.
The sub .40 caliber rifles mostly all used a 5/16 rod, CVA's and Traditions used an odd one, 23/64 (must be metric 3/8), and all the US made rifles over .45 cal were 3/8" diameter.  Exception to that was The Great American Sporting Rifles were 7/16" diameter.  However their 8 bore and 4 bore rifles just used old broom sticks.     The chart also gave you the length of the rods.  When I was making ram rods, I found that info quite invaluable.
I don't recall ever getting any bulk 23/64" wooden ram rod material, but all the rest were available through various sources.  Usually in 48" lengths.  The cut offs made good pistol rods.
Hickory is the wood that is typically used for ramrods, although some import rifles use some sort of wonder wood that I don't think is even suitable for a fire.  Miserable stuff.  Replace the rod immediately.  For the unbreakable ram rod crew, the most popular material is delryn, a form of nylon.  I guess it is OK, but personally, I find it way too flexable.  When viewed from a distance, it does appear to be ebony, so that's cool.
If you are putting brass ends on the rods, don't just glue them on, cross pin them also.
I found that for inletting the rod end, using a tubing cutter was an easy way to score the rod for a sharp, clean surface for the rod end to mate up to.
Although not terribly PC, a steel roll pin is a good way to pin the end onto the rod.  Else use a piece of thin brass rod.
And there you are folks, Ram Rods 101.  The accompanying text is Ram Rod Construction for Dummies, available at the company store.

[Lonewolfe20]

Thanks guys
Very informative and helpful

[Winter Hawk]

I got a piece of 2" (I think) PVC pipe, glued a cap on one end, filled it with kerosene and 3/8" dowels from the hardware store, then capped the open end without glue.  I was told on another site that this would make the rods more flexible.  That was quite a number of years ago and I am still waiting for one of the ram rods on one of my rifles to break so I can use one of the soaked rods.   

Absolutely watch the run out of the grain.  I have no personal experience of a ram rod breaking but have heard horror stories of folks having this happen while pushing down to seat the ball.  Also, don't try to ram the ball down with one push; rather, grab the ram rod a foot or so from the muzzle and push it down, then again a foot from the muzzle, repeat until the ball is seated.  some folks then slam the rod down on the ball several times until it bounces to get all the compaction of the powder they can.  I've tried that, but it seems it would weaken the joint where the brass ferule joins the wood.  Anyway, I just use hand pressure to seat the ball and haven't seen any difference in the shooting.

And lastly, NEVER put your hand over the end of the ram rod.  I know that there are do-goodies which are supposed to save your palm, but if there were to be an accidental discharge I still wouldn't want to have my hand in the way when everything comes flying out of the barrel!

My two cents worth, and worth every penny of it!

~Kees~

[Bigsmoke]

And lastly, NEVER put your hand over the end of the ram rod.  I know that there are do-goodies which are supposed to save your palm, but if there were to be an accidental discharge I still wouldn't want to have my hand in the way when everything comes flying out of the barrel!

Wondering which is worse, having the rifle accidentally discharge and punch a hole in your palm

OR

You are holding onto a rod that is say 3/8" in diameter, pushing it down the bore and the rifle accidentally discharges and the ball exits the barrel and takes out the entire inner portion of your hand and fingers.  Ouch, that's gotta leave a mark. 

Methinks it would be better and safer to stay home, sit in front of the fire with a nice hot toddy and read a book.   But not nearly as much fun.

[Lonewolfe20]

Big smoke you had me at Hot toddy!

I took the boys out to try and do a little shooting and we broke 3 different rods on 3 different rifles so it basically shut us down!
Not sure why that happened but I don’t ask anymore!
So I’m in the market for some now.

I appreciate all the posts
I’ll try and get to the New Ulm trade fair in a month or so and get a couple and will probably soak them and let you guys know how it goes.

[rollingb]

Big smoke you had me at Hot toddy!

I took the boys out to try and do a little shooting and we broke 3 different rods on 3 different rifles so it basically shut us down!
Not sure why that happened but I don’t ask anymore!
So I’m in the market for some now.

I appreciate all the posts
I’ll try and get to the New Ulm trade fair in a month or so and get a couple and will probably soak them and let you guys know how it goes.

For youngsters learning to load their muzzleloaders, I'd recommend ToTW's nylon rods for durability and safety's sake.
Once they get their loading technique perfected,... then I'd replace their nylon rods (which can still be used as "range rods") with traditional wooden ramrods.