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<  16ga. Ammunition & Reloading  ~  Felt wads - make or buy
Charlie16ga
PostPosted: Sun Nov 30, 2014 7:07 am  Reply with quote



Joined: 28 Aug 2014
Posts: 924
Location: Eastern Tennessee

In my ongoing mission to prove to the rest of you how cheap I am I have a new question:

I have a few load data calling for 20ga 1/4" felt wads. Now these are likely to be high usage loads. My question is, worth making or just buy?

If you did make them, other than buying a 20ga punch, how would you select the right felt?

A question like this just makes me feel cheap and dirty!

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jschultz
PostPosted: Sun Nov 30, 2014 8:03 am  Reply with quote



Joined: 07 Apr 2007
Posts: 1624
Location: northwewst Wyoming

I think it depends on how much time you have. All of my hunting loads use card and fiber wads and I buy my felt wads from Circle Fly. I load all brass hulls and while it takes at least twice the time, the process is more personnel than pulling a handle. I can't help you on material, but I'm sure that someone on this forum will point you in the right direction.
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16'er
PostPosted: Sun Nov 30, 2014 9:36 am  Reply with quote
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Joined: 08 Oct 2006
Posts: 1393
Location: Tappahannock, Virginia

http://www.durofelt.com/products.html

Came accross this recently searching ML lubes. No experience with them personally.
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byrdog
PostPosted: Sun Nov 30, 2014 11:26 am  Reply with quote
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Joined: 22 Aug 2011
Posts: 1498
Location: the Moosehorn

I use felt wads in shotcups to improve patterns. I bought a small set of "Arch Punches" They punch 3/8 ,1/2, 5/8, 3/4. Picked up some 3/8" and !/2" grey rag wool carpet padding and I can make any felt wad I need. the padding was .50c per sqft the punches were $40.00 have had them 20 years cut nice wads. If I need a bunch I put 3 layers together and with 8 cuts I have enough for a box

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AmericanMeet
PostPosted: Sun Nov 30, 2014 2:16 pm  Reply with quote



Joined: 26 Apr 2010
Posts: 3172
Location: NCWa

I use four punches, because that's what I have: a 10 ga & 12 ga I got from a friend & a 1/2" and a 3/8" I purchased at a hardware store. For wads I use Styrofoam salvaged from packages of hamburger (they were the trays that the meat was placed on for wrapping with Saranwrap). I don't have sizes that work well for a 16 bore, so the two smaller sizes get used for filler within a shotcup when I'm getting really cheap and loading 1/2 or 5/8 oz in a 16 ga.
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Carlos
PostPosted: Sun Nov 30, 2014 5:36 pm  Reply with quote



Joined: 21 May 2010
Posts: 602
Location: Victoria BC Canada

Two points;

1. 20 gauge is as near as spit to 5/8 inch. So a cheap hollow punch would work.

2. Durofelt are great to work with. Tell them what you are doing and they will help you out. Not the soft felt: Medium or hard?

3. (Bonus) I have not ever punched out felt cushion wads. I have cut the petals off regular or range pick-up wads when I wanted a bit wider patterns, or a bit more room. I have made cushion wads out of Bounty. A 1/4 sheet soaked and stuffed into a cut off shell, with a shingle nail through the primer hole to eject the wad after it has dried over a radiator. Then a quick dunk in olive oil before loading. I have punched wads from 1/8" cork sheet or even pulp egg carton.

My Over powder wads are cut from scrap cadged from a picture framing shop.

My over shot cards are punched from waxed paper milk cartons.

I load my BP loads in Magtech brass shells. I have a stock of fibre cushion wads, but need 14 gauge O/P and O/S cards. I went to a tool supply shop and bought a "General" arch punch. It is marked "11/16 18mm" It mikes .685, a bit smaller than I'd like, but they fit snugly and glue-gun fixes them.
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