i cut off the business end of a 3/8" brass ferrule and stuck it in a piece of hardwood. i used that to smack down a .526 ball wrapped in .015 cloth. it worked well as a test. then i drilled into my patch knife handle and epoxied in the "ball smacker".
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the ramrod i used yesterday was 3/8" diameter aspen, with a 3/8" ferrule at the jag end ...
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... and a 5/16" ferrule at the ramming end. this smaller ferrule makes it easy to insert that end into the stock's rod hole, and its end is concave for pushing a patched ball down the tube. no need to fiip the rod for ball ramming, it's just an up down thing. I tapered the rod to blend in with that smaller ferrule. both ferrules are epoxied in as well as brass pinned. the smaller end also has a hole that will allow inserting a nail for hand leverage or for a cord for dry ball pulling.
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