thumb|A [[countersink|countersunk ramrod, used in the 19th century for cylindro-conical bullets, as in the Thouvenin stem rifle or the Minié rifle.]]
A ramrod (or scouring stick) is a metal or wooden device used with muzzleloading firearms to push the projectile up against the propellant (mainly blackpowder). The ramrod was used with weapons such as muskets and cannons and was usually held in a notch underneath the barrel.
In some pistols from the 17th century, the ramrod is folded up in a small compartment at the end of the pommel.
The ramrod could also be fitted with tools for various tasks such as cleaning the weapon, or retrieving a stuck bullet.
Caplock revolvers
Cap and ball revolvers were loaded a bit like muzzleloaders—powder was poured into each chamber of the cylinder from the muzzle end, and a bullet was then squeezed in. Such handguns usually had a ramming mechanism built into the frame. The user pulled a lever underneath the barrel of the pistol, which pushed a rammer into the aligned chamber.
Caplock revolvers mostly had mechanical devices with ramrods mounted on the frame of the revolver, which rammed the ball into the chamber of the cylinder by pulling a lever that was connected to the ramrod in various ways (by hinge, screw or lever). These mechanisms are called rammers or loading-levers. The most popular rammers used in caplock revolvers were the Colt, Adams and Kerr systems.
Colt's rammer
link=https://sr.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%94%D0%B0%D1%82%D0%BE%D1%82%D0%B5%D0%BA%D0%B0:Colt_Model_1849_Pocket_Revolver-NMAH-AHB2015q022119.jpg|thumb|[[Colt Pocket Percussion Revolvers|Colt pocket revolver model 1849 with loading lever under the barrel.]]
Colt's rammer, patented by Samuel Colt about 1839, is a straight lever hinged under the barrel, with a triangular plate on its back end. The back corner of the triangle is hinged under the barrel, while the bottom corner is hinged to a short ramrod below and behind it. Pulling the lever down pushes the rod into the lowest chamber of the cylinder. This system was used on Colt revolvers from 1839 until 1873, when the Colt Peacemaker with metallic cartridges was introduced, as well as on Remington and Webley revolvers.
Adams rammer
link=https://sr.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%94%D0%B0%D1%82%D0%BE%D1%82%D0%B5%D0%BA%D0%B0:Revolver,_percussion_(AM_616424-1).jpg|thumb|[[Adams (revolver)|Adams revolver with Adams-type rammer.]]
link=https://sr.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%94%D0%B0%D1%82%D0%BE%D1%82%D0%B5%D0%BA%D0%B0:Revolver,_percussion_(AM_616424-4).jpg|thumb|[[Adams (revolver)|Adams revolver with Adams-type rammer rotated down 90°. An upward rotation of another 180° brings the rod into position to force the ball into the cylinder.]]
Adams rammer, patented by Robert Adams in 1853, a straight or slightly downward-curving lever mounted on the left or right side of the frame with a screw at the front end and resting under the cylinder on the side of the stock when not in use. The lever pivots around a pin at the front end (on the frame of the revolver in front of and below the cylinder), and has a short ramrod in the middle, facing down in a fixed position. To use, the lever must be manually rotated down and forward for 270°, until the lever is in front of the cylinder and the rod enters one of the chambers, pressing the ball in. This mechanism was used on older Adams revolvers (on the left side of the revolver) and Webley Longspur revolvers (on the right side of the revolver).
Kerr's rammer
link=https://sr.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%94%D0%B0%D1%82%D0%BE%D1%82%D0%B5%D0%BA%D0%B0:Webley_percussion_revolver_(left_side).jpg|thumb|[[Webley Longspur with a Kerr-type rammer.]]
Kerr rammer, patented by James Kerr in 1855,
Artillery
Naval artillery began as muzzle-loading cannon and these too required ramming. Large muzzle loading guns continued into the 1880s, using wooden staffs worked by several sailors as ramrods.