speaking of cleaning

D

DD4lifeusmc

New member
we already have a thread about the best cleaning solution (water or store bought)
So.
What do you all use for cleaning patches? And do you use once and throw away, or clean and reuse?
Way back in the day store bought were actually a cloth material, now I see they are a type of paper or some such.
 
I got a fairly large supply of Outers shotgun patches years ago during a clearance sale I'm still using. When I run out of those I'll probably cut up an old bed sheet.
 
cleaning

I see.
I normally use an old holey flannel shirt. Cut patches as needed and use the rest to wipe the gun down. Eventually need another new shirt anyway.
I put the patches in an old pair of nylons and run through the wash. Reuse them at least twice before tossing.
well Happy Shooting!
 
I cut patches from old tee shirts.
I use an undersize jag, cut over size patches and fold them over several times to fit the bore more tightly.
These large patches can be re-folded several times in different ways to use another part of the patch that remains clean.
 
100% cotton.

When I run out of old shirts, skivvies, etc. I just stop by the dry goods store (a Ben Franklin in my area) and buy a couple yards of white cotton flannel. Thousands of patches for a couple bucks and a couple hours with a sharp knife.
 
I'm lazy so I just buy ready made cotton patches. You can still get 'em at most LGS. I usually buy them in the larger quantity bags. Since I shoot a lot of 38 spl. etc. - they work well for my Navies as well. For what they cost, it's a whole lot less time consuming than sitting and cutting and the time I'd use for that is better spent in other pursuits. If I'm in a pinch, I'll use old tee shirts, etc. or various material that I have on hand - as long as it's 100% cotton.

For shooting patches though - it's the old standby of pillow ticking (cotton) as that works the best in my rifles/smoothbore.
 
Mrs WBB likes to use old t-shirts and underwear for her wood staining hobbies, so the first time she caught me cutting them up for patches, she went to the local gun shop, and bought every cleaning patch they had on the shelf.

That was close to 30 years ago, and I still have a pillow case full of them.:D
 
This is where I will differ from most of the others. For black powder cleaning, I really like using pre-cut patches made for a .50 cal. They are cheap and I don't have to guess whether they are the right size or not. A few bucks at Walmart will get you enough to last for a couple years (more if you catch the post-season clearance rack).
 
I'm not that frugal.

At times I do think its good to spur the economy. And this is one of those occasions I have in mind OP.
I'll buy the BIG economy size bag of Ox-Yoke G.I. square patches from TOTW every few years. No washing and/or hanging them out on my wifes clothes lines to dry. Nor dry cleaning. No saving a good look'in used one for a rainy day either. "B/P patches. When used Sir. "Always somehow end up pitched in the trash" by me or at the disappointment of my wife occasionally. Reason to hoard my flannel shirts: I save those flannel shirts torn up patachings for my more modern hunting equipment. Example: Iver Johnson 410 single shot or my Steven's model (Favorite) 22 cal. _:)
 
Another vote for the skivvies

I cut patches from old tee shirts.
Click to expand...
I especially like this type of weave for M/L use as it has such an open weave that helps to trap powder-mud. The flannel type, I use mostly on rim and center fire. I don't even give the thin paper types a second look. I once had a small piece break off into one of my M/L bores and it was just enough to start giving me hang-fires. ..... :)

Be Safe !!!
 
cleaning

I had to buy a new cleaning kit couple weeks ago. It had everything in the kit.
rods, tips, wire brush, cotton swabs on a screw in fitting, hoppes, and patches.
That's when I noticed they went to a type of paper.
I never throw anything out that is still usable, so will use them for the revolver.
But otherwise the flannel shirt.
Time cutting is not wasted. it's still time spent on our hobby.
And provides eye hand coordination!
Have fun shooting!!
 
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