Recently I was working on my first ram rod on my Dimick muzzleloader build. The barrel is 34” and has 7/16” pipes. The ram rod that came with the kit was a 7/16” piece of hickory. It was a bit to large to fit in the pipes, so I started sanding the rod by hand. After about 2 hours, I had the rod through the 2 pipes and started in the stock. The stock hole was smaller than the pipes, which I found out was normal with the original Dimick rifle. It was drilled for a 3/8” rod, which meant more sanding. As I sanded further on the rod I realized that insects had made tunnels through the wood and I needed a new ram rod.
At that point I decided to talk to my teacher about the ram rod situation. Fortunate for me he had an extra hickory ram rod all ready to go. They were inside of a 48” long, 2” piece of copper pipe that had caps on each end. This was so they they could soak in kerosene. He told me that this displaces the water in the wood rods and causes them to be much more flexible and strong. Makes sense although I never would have thought of this. Many time people leave the ram rod for years untreated and they become dry and brittle. This process prevents this.
The next step was shaping the rod to fit my gun. Since I needed the rod tappered from 7/16” to 3/8” and smaller there was a lot of wood that needed to be removed. I’ve heard of builders putting the rod in a drill and spinning it while holding sand paper in the other hand on the rod. This helps to shape the rod faster than sanding by hand. My teacher had a different way to shape the rod faster. He took a drill bit gauge and clamped it in a vice. Then inserted the rod into a hole slightly bigger than the rod. Angling the rod down slightly, you just pull the rod through the gauge. The gauge sharp edge removes a slight sliver of wood from one side of the rod. Turn the rod over and repeat the process. In about 10 minutes he had shaped the rod and it fit my gun perfectly. After the rod was inserted into the pipes and stock he connected the rod to a drill and spun it for a few seconds. This left marks on the rod where it touched the stock or the pipes. A little hand sanding at these points made for a great fit.
It is really remarkable how craftsmen have come up with all types of methods to simplify a job. I’m thankful to have a teacher that is willing to share these gems of knowledge.
