patch cutter

[Nobade]

I suppose this has been done many times in the past, but I finally tried it and it works well. I needed patches for my 12 bore rifle, so I used an old 2 1/4 inch hole saw, spun it in a drill motor, and ground the teeth off on a bench grinder. Then ground a bevel on it, and finished up sharpening it with a stone. I had a yard of pillow ticking material I folded up so it was the size of four of the patches and about 2 inches thick. Running my cutter in the drill press and using a chunk of delrin as a backer, I cut through the whole stack in one shot. So four plunges and I now have a huge number of patches for my rifle. This works well for cleaning patches also of course, if you can get free t shirts or similar. Just don't use the drill bit in the middle of the hole saw!

[Swampman]

Square patches work well and are easy to make.

[AtlLaw]

Square patches work well and are easy to make.

True Swampus, but did you ever try to cut a square hole on a drill press?   

[Winter Hawk]

So what's wrong with cutting the patching at the muzzle?

-WH-

[Swampman]

It scratches the muzzle up real bad.  It takes more time to load.

[Semisane]

So what's wrong with cutting the patching at the muzzle?

Nothing at all wrong with it Winter Hawk.  Lots of guys prefer it.  It's not for me though.  I like them precut - square or round, makes no difference. 

[flintlock]

Cut them at the loading block...

[Semisane]

One of the reasons I like pre-cut is it suits my shooting regimen and lubing method.  I like olive oil lube and prefer to lube a stack of patches suitable to my shooting plan for the day. 

If I expect to shoot 25 shots in a range session, I take about 30 patches, put them in a stack and put a liberal dose of olive oil on them.  A good way is to put them in an empty Musket Cap tin or similar small container and squirt the oil in.  After they sit a short time I massage the stack with my fingers to get the oil well distributed, then put the stack in a couple of paper towels and squeeze the bundle until the patches have an almost dry feel.  Now they are pleasant to handle and all of the patches have about the same amount of lube.  Works for me.

[necchi]

It scratches the muzzle up real bad. It takes more time to load.

Piffle,,who told ya that ya hafta drag the knife across the muzzle?

There's more than one way to skin a cat.

[longcaribiner]

Actually, patch cutters are sold in the upolstery business.  On some fancy stuffed furniture there are those little cloth or leather covered buttons every 6 or 8 inches.  Round cutters are available to cut the round patches to cover those little metal face buttons. They come in various diameters and will cut through about an inch of fabric.  I have one and it was incredibly "knife sharp" when I got it second hand from an upolstery shop in Alexandria VA.  Mine cuts a circle about 25/32 which is ok for a 40 or 45 caliber, a little too small for a 50 cal.   

[Rock Home Isle]

Hey Nobade,

Slick Idea...Nice use of the old noodle.