Cleaning Patches: Buy em or make em

mc223

I make my own out of white cotton flannel from the local dry goods store. I made a "Cookie Cutter out of a piece of pipe and use an arbor press to cut out the patches.
What do you do?

Dimitri · Super Member Joined: Nov 25, 2005 Posts: 5947

I buy them. Smile

But I'm pretty sure my method of cleaning takes less patches then most seeing as I only use a max of 4 (normally) per cleaning Smile

Neat idea on the pipe and arbor press Very Happy

Dimitri

Bushmaster · Last edited by Bushmaster on Mon Jun 26, 2006 10:01 pm; edited 1 time in total

My old cotton (white) T shirts become cleaning rags and patches. Cut into squares of different sizes for the different calibres...

george20042007

Got rags? Got scissors? Got patches Very Happy

Gil Martin

I make them out of old pillowcases and sheets. One hundred percent cotton is best, but 50/50 fabrics are OK. I rip them into different sizes and have been doing this for many years. There are so many different guns and requirements that this works for me. All the best...
Gil

Spacedone · Member Joined: Nov 04, 2005 Posts: 266 Location: missouri

i love pillow ticking.

it works for blackpowder patches and gun cleaning patches and its easy to fine and like 2 dollars a yard 60 inches wide

Handloader

I buy commercial patches, always the Pro Shot 3" square ones. I get about 1,000 at a time. As is they are great for 45 calibers, cut in half they are perfect for 357, and quartered they work fine on 257s. By using various jag diameters, these patches work for 308, 270 and 348 as well.

But, I tend to splurge on patches and 1,000 of them last me about 60 days max. These are 100% cotton fannel and super absorbant. I've found none better.

kbis

I buy the 12 ga. patches in the bags at Wall-Mart and cut them into quarters. Makes a lot of patches.

Crackshot

Old cotton sheets, ours or sometimes a yard sale will have some.

Vince

Well, I do neither...that is buy or make them.

When I was in the Army I "liberated" Shocked

a supply of what we commonly called Fourby. It is designed for cleaning firearms and comes in rolls that are fairly long and are 4" wide with a line across it ever 2"...hence four by two, or fourby. This stuff is pure flannellette, pretty well lint free, absorbent and is magnificent....especially the cost. Very Happy

A couple of rolls has lasted me for a number of years with plenty left to go. What I have will last me a lifetime. wtf

I cut it into 4"x2" pieces for .308 and half these pieces into 2"x1" for my .243. They can be cut smaller if desired but I don't find it necessary.

I find that cotton material from shirts or bed sheets isn't really absorbent enough for my liking, but if it works for you far be it from me to bag it.

Cheers, Vince

Vince

Well, I do neither...that is buy or make them.

When I was in the Army I "liberated" Shocked

a supply of what we commonly called Fourby. It is designed for cleaning firearms and comes in rolls that are fairly long and are 4" wide with a line across it ever 2"...hence four by two, or fourby. This stuff is pure flannellette, pretty well lint free, absorbent and is magnificent....especially the cost. Very Happy

A couple of rolls has lasted me for a number of years with plenty left to go. What I have will last me a lifetime. wtf

I cut it into 4"x2" pieces for .308 and half these pieces into 2"x1" for my .243. They can be cut smaller if desired but I don't find it necessary.

I find that cotton material from shirts or bed sheets isn't really absorbent enough for my liking, but if it works for you far be it from me to bag it.

Cheers, Vince

ripper007 · Member Joined: Mar 05, 2006 Posts: 199 Location: Colorado

I never realy thought about this subject before.

they are so cheap for what they are used for, I have allways just bought them from the store.

although the last ones I did get , I do not like, they seem to fall apart easily, start to look like a fur ball. they do absorb good.

since I did not think much about this, I never realy checked to see what kind of material they are made of.

as far as useing to many or few, I allways keep swipping a new one threw till it comes out clean. then I am done.

PaulS

I did my stint of making cleaning patches back in the early eighties and decided that it was cheaper to just buy them in bulk at the store. Of all the cleaning supplies that I use the patches are just too cheap to consider using home made patches. You want to make something that can save you some money - make your gun oil - easy and cheap by mixing equal parts of ATF and Kerosine. It is as good as or better than any gun oil on or off the market.

calsibley · Super Member Joined: Jan 28, 2005 Posts: 317

I find Sinclair has good quality cleaning patches and buy them by the thousand. (www.sinclairintl.com) If there are better patches available to us I certainly don't know about them. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal