Cushion wads .... are they really necessary?

ComradeVlad

ComradeVlad

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Shooting shot from my Brown Bess (smoothbore musket).... the 11ga cushion wads i bought are fairly tight. What is the purpose of a cushion wad and do i really need one? Im still planning on utilizing nitro cards and overshot cards.
 
Zdravstuj Tavarisch,

A friend of mine who immigrated from Yorkshire said that the old timers there used to use dry grass or tow instead of cushion wads and he cuts his out of felt. The theory behind the cushion wad is to make sure the shot is not deformed when the initial explosion of the propellant happens.
 
Fiber cushion wads are dirt cheap and easy to get via mail order. I bought some off Dixie and use them as a space filler in my Snider chow loads.
 
The card and the wad work as a pair.

The card prevents the expanding gas (upon firing) from passing "through" the shot.

The wad keeps the shot from dropping through the powder AND keeps the card (initially) intact upon firing.

If you don't use a wad (or some sort of cushion) the shot is sitting directly on the card and it (the card) could distort upon firing (not enough integrity all by itself) allowing gas to blow through/around the shot instead of pushing it out as a (mass).
 
The best way to know for sure what the effect is in your load would be to experiment. Get some big poster paper or similar and find out what happens.
I'm guilty of not getting around to this too. Been meaning to pattern my muzzleloader for years and still haven't.

A good excuse to get out and shoot some more! Always a good thing.
 
From what I have read just use 2 tight fitting nitro card wads over the powder and forget about the fiber filler wad. A lubricated fiber wad will cut down on fowling though.

The idea of using a filler wad is to cushion the shot and prevent crushing of the rear most pellets. Black powder is not too hard on shot though. In modern smokeless shells filler wads allow us to get a good stack height for crimping. Cushion wads also help control pressure curves in modern shot shells.
Don
 
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I'm just getting into this black powder shotgun thing myself and I'll be using a French .69 smooth bore. I'm going to start with this loading stack; powder>1/8 cork(dry)>1/8 cork(edge lubed)>1/16 hard card>shot>1/16 hard card. I figure that the 1/4" of cork cushion should be adequate but, time will tell. :)
 
I used to load with a nitro card wad, lubed cushion wad, nitro wad, shot and overshot.
The past 10 years or so I have tried loading only a nitro card wad , loading with wasp nest with a thin wad on top of that, and a couple of other systems i was told " were the best".
I found that it depends on the gun.
My Beretta muzzle loader can be loaded with no issues.
In my Hughes I use a lubed wad with an .0335 wad on top of that after three shots as well as the nitro card

My son's Chance and Sons vintage gun needs a lubed cushion wad or it will be too fouled to load after the third shot.

My buddy uses only a nitro card wad in his double flint shotgun.

Another uses only wasp nest.
I like wasp nest in my Beretta and use a thin overshot wad on top of that unless we are doing a loot of shooting, then I run a lubed wad occasionally .
The pattern is not affected too the point that the charge will not kill a flushed pheasant cleanly, so I do not concern myself with it.:)
Cat
 
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