Dutch Schultz

[Dunc NZ]

For those of you who know or know of Dutch and use his dry patch method you will be pleased to know he is alive and well and still above ground , he is 94 in March . Sadly he is losing his sight , other than that, he is still his former self and just as chatty as ever . He now lives with his daughter Lynn.

For those of you who don't know Dutch , he is one of the few , or only , who has written a book on round ball load development , patch lubrication's. accuracy, target analysis  and cleaning muzzle loaders  and other tit bits of information.
If you want to contact him you can email him at
dr5x24@yahoo.com , Lynn will read the letters to him and reply for him .

Cheers Dunc

[Standing Bear]

Thanks for the update on Dutch, Dunc. It’s been too long since I’ve been in touch with hm.
TC

[T*O*F]

Glad to hear he's still kicking.  He's been losing his eyesight for decades.  He gifted me his lead pot and a pound of his favorite English tea.  I still use the lead pot.  A blast from the past of the old MLML days.

[Hunterdude]

I have purchased his Loading book on eBay in the last 30 days....I got a nice note from him thanking me for my purchase, and encouraging me to contact him if I had Any questions. He seems to enjoy helping folks be more successful with patched round ball accuracy.

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

I don't get it.  You guys poo poo the short starter and priming flask because there's no historical proof they existed, let alone used, but you advocate patching dry with teflon?

[bob in the woods]

I don't get it.  You guys poo poo the short starter and priming flask because there's no historical proof they existed, let alone used, but you advocate patching dry with teflon?

Dutch's dry patch method was advertised for years, and I know a few guys in our club spent their money to get the "method"   Most of us just continued using a soppy wet patch and wondered what all the fuss was about      Same with the teflon crowd.  I'd rather spend my money on powder and practice more   

[Daryl]

If I had to wipe or clean every shot, or every 3 shots, I would likely quit the hobby. I like shooting and clean it/them when I get home - or the next day.

[Dunc NZ]

I don't get it.  You guys poo poo the short starter and priming flask because there's no historical proof they existed, let alone used, but you advocate patching dry with teflon?

No teflon mentioned in Dutch's writings . I personally have never seen a teflon patch or know any one who used one .

[Dunc NZ]

Glad to hear he's still kicking.  He's been losing his eyesight for decades.  He gifted me his lead pot and a pound of his favorite English tea.  I still use the lead pot.  A blast from the past of the old MLML days.

Hi Dave your MLML was the first forum I ever had anything to do with and I gained a lot of useful information and help from you and others , Cheers Dunc , formally Cutfinger

[Leatherbark]

I tried a lot of concoctions of water soluble oil and water ratios back in the early 2000's and I still had smoldering patches unless there was a lot of oil in the mix.  I'm sure if I stuck with it I would have been successful.  I am going through a nostalgic phase now and only use TOW mink oil as the smell is  invigorating and intoxicating and it maybe a smell that reminds me of something from earlier in my life as a hillbilly............Bob

[Daryl]

I am surprised about the smoldering patches. That just doesn't happen if the patch is thick enough, no matter what lube is used.

[P.W.Berkuta]

I also got smoldering patches with Dutch's method and had to stop using it. I find a wet patch (not too wet) works well on the target range and woods walk - mink oil or beeswax/lard on a hunt will do me fine.

[RossN]

HI Dunc. I don't know what the weather is like for you, but Taupo is so dry I'm carrying a fire extinguisher to the range with me....

[Curtis]

TOF's MLML forum is where I got my start, also met Dutch and subsequently purchased his "shooting secrets".  We had several interesting conversations via email after that.

BTW MLML is dead...  Long live MLML!

Curtis

[Don Steele]

Dunc,
Since your post with Dutch's current email I dropped him a note and we have exchanged a couple of messages. Thanks for that.
I'm also another carry-over from the MLML days. I've been communicating with Dutch for a long time. When I am shooting over a rest, Bench or Table competitions for example I use a dry patch, a la Dutch...for the best precision possible. I have done side by side comparisons of my homemade dry patches vs commercially available Teflon patches and found them to provide equally excellent results.
As to smouldering patches....here's a story for you. In the late 1970's I was spending time in Rhodesia, a nation at war with terrorists at the time. I was on a ranch (approx. 12,000 acres iirc) in the Midlands. assisting the rancher with security. Occasionally, folks would come out to hunt the incredible variety of Plains Game available. One such fellow was a young man from California who brought a Colonial Williamsburg flintlock rifle to hunt with. It was in May, which is the dry season and the bush was "down" a good bit that year. Hunting was done on foot with a tracker and the ranch owner out front, then the client, with myself in the rear, heavily armed in the event we made contact with the terrorists who were known to be operating in that area.  Whenever he fired his flintlock, the tracker was detailed to watch for the patch...some of which smouldered....and stomp it out before any damage was done. 
Some great memories from those days. Thanks for allowing me to share.

[Dphariss]

I also got smoldering patches with Dutch's method and had to stop using it. I find a wet patch (not too wet) works well on the target range and woods walk - mink oil or beeswax/lard on a hunt will do me fine.

I suspect this is a patch material issue. Much of the fabric comes from places I prefer not to trade with and the cotton at least is substandard.
Fabric I find in fabric stores these days, denim or “ticking” is too weak. I bought some really nice natural buff colored denim that was hopelessly inaccurate in two 45 caliber rifles. Seemed strong but???
I have switched to heavy linen from the www. Seems to shoot better with oiled or tallow patches. Linen has a higher ignition temp than cotton and where I live shooting any firearm when it’s really dry can be risky.
But I only use a “dry” patch in my heavy “chunk” rifle. The matches I used to shoot this rifle  in one had to bring his “A” game and it shot a lot better with dry patch and wiped.  As the guy who ran the matches said, you don’t have to wipe, but you have to wipe to win.
I quit using spit decades ago.

[Dphariss]

I don't get it.  You guys poo poo the short starter and priming flask because there's no historical proof they existed, let alone used, but you advocate patching dry with teflon?

Dutch's dry patch method was advertised for years, and I know a few guys in our club spent their money to get the "method"   Most of us just continued using a soppy wet patch and wondered what all the fuss was about      Same with the teflon crowd.  I'd rather spend my money on powder and practice more 

Depends on the accuracy standard required. I use the evaporated water soluble  oil in my heavy rifle and wipe it. I also use a .500 ball in it. For everything else I use Neatsfoot oil or tallow and clean at home.
Now its possible that a wet patch, water of some sort, might shoot well too. Water is a high friction lube.  But I don’t use water. Learned that lesson in the 1970s.
I would use Teflon patching in the heavy rifle it I could find it. Jim McLemore told me the barrel would shoot the same hole at 100 with teflon and 120 gr of powder. And he tested it.