Patch Cutting Tool

[TDM]

This certainly isn’t my original idea, but I’d been wanting to try it and it works very well. And fast too. I bought a cheap HF 1 1/4” hole saw, ground off the teeth, then filed/sanded a cutting edge. Sawed off a section of old cedar fence board, about 20”, the length doesn’t really matter. Cut an equal board width of .020” fabric at twice the length, then stapled the fabric ends to the board. Wasn’t sure if I had the edge sharp enough but it cut fast and smooth. Was able to make 124 patches from both sides in a couple of minutes, very little waste. This size is great for .45-.50.

[Gtrubicon]

Isn’t it neat how well it works! I did the same thing last fall. I just yesterday burned up a 3/4” hole saw at work. I’m gonna dress it up for making patches for 32 cal.

[bluenoser]

Yep- sure beats a punch. I have been cutting patches that way for quite some time now and fold and press the fabric several layers thick to allow cutting multiple patches at a time.  Haven't counted, but I think 6 or 8.  For safety, I have a small square of 1/4" pressed board having a hole slightly larger than the patch cutter that I hold on the fabric when making the cut.
I cut wads the same way, but one at a time.

[Hawg]

I cut mine at the muzzle.

[TDM]

Yep- sure beats a punch. I have been cutting patches that way for quite some time now and fold and press the fabric several layers thick to allow cutting multiple patches at a time.  Haven't counted, but I think 6 or 8.  For safety, I have a small square of 1/4" pressed board having a hole slightly larger than the patch cutter that I hold on the fabric when making the cut.
I cut wads the same way, but one at a time.

A buddy of mine suggested the folded layers to me today. I’ll definitely give that a try.

[TDM]

Isn’t it neat how well it works! I did the same thing last fall. I just yesterday burned up a 3/4” hole saw at work. I’m gonna dress it up for making patches for 32 cal.

Yes, a great use for worn out hole saws.

[P.W.Berkuta]

I do like the hole saw idea and it does do a great job in a drill press. I made a set of plug cutters from O-1 tool steel from 3/4" to 1-7/16" in 1/16 " increments for cutting patches and cardboard wads. I cut my patch material into long strips then lube them then stack them 6 to 10 deep and proceed to cut them with the plug cutters.

[TDM]

I do like the hole saw idea and it does do a great job in a drill press. I made a set of plug cutters from O-1 tool steel from 3/4" to 1-7/16" in 1/16 " increments for cutting patches and cardboard wads. I cut my patch material into long strips then lube them then stack them 6 to 10 deep and proceed to cut them with the plug cutters.

I’ve been using plug cutters too for a good while for cards and wads. They work great, but 1/2” is largest I have in the set, need a 3/4” too. But I’m definitely going to try the multi fold technique for patches.

[Hungry Horse]

 I’ve been advising using one of these for at least a couple years. I’m glad to see somebody else sees the value in reworking old hole saws into patch, and wad, cutters. I have a couple of trade guns made from some Belgian shotgun barrels that aren’t standard anymore ( 24, and 32 gauge ), old hole saws repurposed into wad cutters solved that.

Hungry Horse

[BJH]

I’ve been making my patches this way for years. I sharpen my hole saw with a stone from the outside with the drillpress running and carefully deburring the inside with wet or dry Emory paper wrapped around a dowel. Resulting in a scarey sharp tool. I use a pine board clamped to the drillpress table and advance the folded patch material as needed. The patch cutter cuts a perfect groove in the board on the first cut. So you only cut patch cloth each time. I’m usually zipping through 4-6 layers af cloth at a time. I’ll make a whole seasons worth of patching in one evening. I also cut my cleaning patches with a guillotine style paper shear. Fast and easy. I can chomp out hundreds in a evening. BJH

[bluenoser]

I turn my cutters from solid stock on the lathe, and BJH described my patch cutting process on both counts to a T.  The only thing I would add is to set the depth stop on the drill press so the cutter cuts only about 1/16" into the board.  If you don't, the cutter will gradually cut deeper and deeper, which eventually causes cutting problems.  I tear my cleaning patch material into strips and then cut stacks of them on the guillotine.

[smylee grouch]

I have been using a hole saw for several years now. I rip the cloth into strips and do a 4 fold held with a small vice grip to make 4 at a time. I have been lucky to find used hole saws at pawn shops.

[Bob Roller]

I cut mine at the muzzle.

I used surplus military cleaning patches  and bought a big contractor bag of them from Wes Kindig for very little money and liike Hawg,I cut them at the muzzle.
Bob Roller

[J.D.]

I've used the hole saw patch cutters for probably 30 years. They are an extremely efficient way of cutting an ample supply of patches very quickly and very accurately. I do like the idea of a slightly larger size hole in a "press" to hold the fabric in place, while cutting.

[Daryl]

Careful with hole saws. When cutting multiple thicknesses, the saw can grab the material and break your fingers.
I use an arch punch and cut 8 layers/patches at once. Easy and safe.
The block is black UHMW - HDPE for those South of the 49th.
Here, only white UHMW can legally be used in butcher shops for cutting meat.

[Scota4570]

I also use modified hole saws.  I got the blades at a used tool shop for nearly free.  I fold the cloth to make eight layers.  I iron it flat with each fold.  I then staple the corners.  I run the cutter in a drill press at very low speed.  Cutting hundreds of patches takes little time. 

[WonkyEye]

My own experience has been not too great. I tried an arch punch with a thick rubber backing with mediocre results.  It seems no matter how much I tried to sharpen the punch, the layers of fabric would shift and it would cut deep into the rubber before cutting all of the fabric.  I tried a hole saw on a drill press but found it was scary, it tended to grab the fabric and layers tended to shift around.  This was with dry fabric, maybe pre lubed would work better.  So far my best results have been just using the hole saw by hand on the rubber backing with a single layer of fabric.  I can cut a patch in about 3 secs.

[JBJ]

Wonky,
Discard the rubber matt and get a HDPE cutting board as Daryl suggests. They are super cheap at the Dollar Store, Dollar General, etc. Backed by the very firm cutting board, four or five thicknesses of fabric can be readily cut. In the past I tried wood end grain blocks and other "softer" materials with the same poor results you experienced. Daryl's advice is spot on.

J.B.