Loose Ram Rod Question

[Top Jaw]

I have a 50 cal rifle with a 5/16” ram rod hole, 2 x 5/16” lower thimbles, and a 3/8” thimble on top. 
I made what I thought was the perfect tapered ramrod for it out of a super nice piece of straight grain hickory that’s been in my closet for a decade.  And it “almost” is perfect.  However, rod is ever so slightly smaller than it needs to be.  Even after 3 coats of finish.  And wants to come out of the thimbles if you turn the gun upside down.   

I know the easy answer is to put a bend in the rod. I tried that over the stove and it didn’t want to take a bend - even after some significant heating and flexing to shape. A great piece of straight hickory I guess - and the 3 coats of finish probably doesn’t help either.  Anyway, are there any other thoughts short of stripping off the finish, more heat, bending, refinishing?   Maybe removing and crimping the thimbles a bit, etc. 

[rich pierce]

I’ve made a spoon-shaped spring stapled into the barrel channel that extends down through the web and presses on the ramrod.

[J. Talbert]

Tie a piece of string or thin strip of leather thru the front thimble.

Jeff

[Grischi]

I made a small spring out of a feeler gauge (0,024"), shortened a screw and installed it in the barrel channel for two of my kit guns.
Christian

spring for my jaeger rifle (no picture of installed spring taken)



spring installed at my Pedersoli scout

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

Glue a small piece of leather into the rod groove between the first and second thimbles, or the second and entry thimble.  Taper the ends so that the leather has a hump.  It'll press against the rod and keep it in place.

[RAT]

I glue a small piece of leather inside the ramrod hole in the lower forestock so it can't be seen. It's easier if you remove the entry pipe. Glue the leather just inside the hole, then reinstall the entry pipe.

[MuskratMike]

Not trying to be smart ass, but why not just make another slightly larger in diameter?

[Top Jaw]

Valid point.  I’ve made and tapered at least a handful of RRs.  However, making one with such a large taper - when you have different sized thimbles - and hitting that sweet spot is a bit of a trick.  Unlike other rods I’ve made, most of the weight on this one is in the upper 12” going through the larger top thimble. So I think it’s more about the skewed weight that is causing most of the issue. This rod is close, and would probably work with with the current clearance in a normal gun with 3 thimbles that were alike and the weight more even.  With this taper, it would have to be a tighter fit than I would normally like to put on one to stay put.  So looking for some other options. 

[WadePatton]

Heat is what lets wood bend, finish has nothing to do with it. I say more heat will let you put the slight bend in it. Maybe get it hotter and try again.  I've seen wood bent with nothing more than a gentle oxy-acetylene flame very very cautiously applied.  I prefer a heat gun.

[alacran]

Simplest thing is to clean inside of tail pipe and solder a bit of low temp solder in it. easy enough to file it down to fit. If you are afraid of altering the finish with heat, Epoxy wou If done at the pack of the pipe, it will never be seen.ld accomplish the same thing.

[2 shots]

perhaps removing the finish in the area you want to bend and steaming it over a tea pot will get it to bend. if you try that bend it a little more than needed to allow for spring back.. also a few nails in a board as a jig to hold it in position while it sets would be helpful. or as said and the british did on brown besses when converting from wood to metal rods put a spring in one of the thimbles

[mgbruch]

I certainly wouldn't alter a gun for the sake of a ramrod.  Tie a piece of leather through the upper ramrod pipe, as J Talbert suggested, or just make a new rod.  Simple is usually better.

[Top Jaw]

Appreciate all the suggestions.  For now, I’m going with the simplest first. I ran a small piece of thin dark string down through one of the thimbles and tied it on the outside.  Barely noticeable. That alone really tightened the rod up when inserted.  Almost too tight.  😀  But I’m sure it will get compressed and worn in.  May try some other low impact suggestions later.  For now, this simple fix solved my issue.  Thanks. 

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

When bending wood, it is not the water, but the heat, that makes the wood bend and stay that way.  If you use a kettle and water, it is the steam, not the water vapour that make the wood eligible for bending.  Same goes for straightening a ramrod (or arrow shaft).

[wmrike]

That would have to be a perfectly straight ramrod.  Never heard of such a thing.

[eggwelder]

Ramrod on my flintlock os made of quartered oak- 4 pieces the long way with opposing grain. Was kind of upset when i finished i and it took a warp overnight. That bend is what keeps it in the pipes.

[Bob Gerard]

Wrap a bit of masking tape around the ramrod where it will fit snugly inside the front pipe. You won’t see it and it will hold the rod in place.

[Waksupi]

When you heat it to bend, the bend must be retained until the wood cools. The easy way is putting an end in a vise, heat the wood with a heat gun, then hang a weight from the other end of the rod until cool.