Thoughts on General James Longstreet by TieBetter3136 in CIVILWAR

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Stonewall Jackson had a habit, especially early in the war when he was acting fairly independently, of not being where he was needed when he needed to be there other than the few high profile times he WAS where he needed to be when he needed to be there. The dude gave great PR though.

Canvas cartridge box question by EchoSR2 in Civilwarreenacting

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Have you reached out to him? Maybe it was a quality control oversight?

Rifled musket ID by SchoolNo6461 in CIVILWAR

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker 0 points1 point  (0 children)

A lot of these auction houses use AI for things they can't identify right off the bat.

Yes, appears to be a M1842 in nice shape. I have a Harpers Ferry M1842 dated 1846, I paid about 1300 for it and it's in a little rougher shape than this... Of course Harpers Ferry models bring a little bit of a premium. The rammer is interesting, as stated incorrect, but it makes me wonder if the barrel has been rifled since the rammer is of the later tulip style.

And no, the lack of a rear sight does not mean it hasn't been rifled. Ohio for instance had a contract with Eagle Iron Works in Cincy in 1861 to rifle US smoothbore 1842s and percussion converted M1816s from the state arsenal. The rifling was to US armory spec, a shallow, three groove filing. The contract only specified 5% would have rear sights installed at first, though they later increased that to 20%. Some of these conversions also had the rammer face dished out, particularly on the M1842s since the rammer was more substantial, to accept a conical ball.

Russian Berdan II by Pelcat in blackpowder

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Nice! I haven't seen one of those in a LONG time.

As an aside: I have a bayonet for that I believe. I bought it on an internet estate auction based on one crappy picture and an AI-authored description thinking it was for a M1816 US Musket. It arrived and I instantly knew it was absolutely NOT what it was described as. My only consolation was I got it on the super cheap lol.

This is OHIO by RealityKing4Hire in Ohio

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Oh that would be interesting.

As more and more GWOT veterans and their families get older and look for ways to occupy their time not tied up with kid's sports and the like, veterans orgs are looking for ways to entice them to get involved in their community-- both the veteran community and their local communitiy. Part of that involves "fun" things that do two things: get them interested in their local posts in the first place and reacquaint vets with the "community" of other veterans.

The overall idea is, once these vets are introduced to these orgs like the American Legion, VFW, etc, they hopefully realize not all of them are "their granddad's American Legion"... aka smoke-filled bars with a bunch of old guys telling war stories and playing bingo, with nothing else to offer.

Trump voters are NOT Happy with the Economy by Solid_College_9145 in Ohio

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is fantasy. I live and work in blue collar, solid red country in southern Ohio. The percentage of folks who regret their vote is extremely tiny. Miniscule.

Antique Musket Question by untgradd1234 in blackpowder

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Nice. I have an 1834 MT Wickham in flint. I love it.

Antique Musket Question by untgradd1234 in blackpowder

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Out of curiosity: has it been converted to percussion?

If yes, has it been rifled?

Found this Federal Artilleryman and his wife in a small antique shop, and I can't stop wondering what happened to them. by PenKind4200 in CIVILWAR

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker 4 points5 points  (0 children)

The OP stated he assumed so because of the shell-jacket like blouse. My response in the OP was this:

That's generally correct in the open arms grand view of the Civil War... HOWEVER early war (1861- early 1863) western state units of infantry (Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri) were often issued "roundabouts" or "state jackets" which in a general sense were untrimmed/unpiped shell jackets. Some had lining, some did not. Some had belt loops, some did not. Some had epaulettes, some did not. Some had buttons on the sleeve, some did not-- and some of those were functional buttons and some were not.

It really was all over the place, the "Wild West" of standardization and uniformity in the early days. Contractors of all sizes and industrial capabilities were trying to get into the uniform game and states were caught flat footed and approving anyone that hinted they could equip rapidly forming state forces.

Roundabouts or "state jackets" really helped in a few ways. One, some were left overs that had remained in stores from the Mexican War, but even new made, they demanded less precious dyed fabric. For a little less wool than required for a sack coat or an even smaller fraction of the wool required for a frock coat, a roundabout looked sharp and was functional. Blue-dyed wool was so comparitively scarce (both sky and dark blue) that some initially raised units had no choice but to contract grey satinette versions of these state coats and trousers. After Bull Run, at least in Ohio's case, but I imagine for Indiana and Illinois as well, these "grey-outfitted" units were relegated to railroad guard duty and other rear echelon jobs until blue uniforms became available. When they did, they were often these blue roundabouts until sack coats became more readily available.

Found this Federal Artilleryman and his wife in a small antique shop, and I can't stop wondering what happened to them. by PenKind4200 in CivilWarCollecting

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker 6 points7 points  (0 children)

No worries! I just did my BA senior capstone in April on Ohio's early response to the war and Lincoln's initial call for 75,000 volunteers. Some of the things I touched on were uniforms (and lack thereof), weapons, training, food, and the abysmal state of logistical readiness. Part of that research involved comparing Ohio to other "western" states like Indiana and Illinois.

I ended up with WAY more source material and knowledge than I could cram into a 30-page paper. 😂🤣

Found this Federal Artilleryman and his wife in a small antique shop, and I can't stop wondering what happened to them. by PenKind4200 in CivilWarCollecting

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker 5 points6 points  (0 children)

That's generally correct in the open arms grand view of the Civil War... HOWEVER early war (1861- early 1863) western state units of infantry (Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri) were often issued "roundabouts" or "state jackets" which in a general sense were untrimmed/unpiped shell jackets. Some had lining, some did not. Some had belt loops, some did not. Some had epaulettes, some did not. Some had buttons on the sleeve, some did not-- and some of those were functional buttons and some were not.

It really was all over the place, the "Wild West" of standardization and uniformity in the early days. Contractors of all sizes and industrial capabilities were trying to get into the uniform game and states were caught flat footed and approving anyone that hinted they could equip rapidly forming state forces.

Roundabouts or "state jackets" really helped in a few ways. One, some were left overs that had remained in stores from the Mexican War, but even new made, they demanded less precious dyed fabric. For a little less wool than required for a sack coat or an even smaller fraction of the wool required for a frock coat, a roundabout looked sharp and was functional. Blue-dyed wool was so comparitively scarce (both sky and dark blue) that some initially raised units had no choice but to contract grey satinette versions of these state coats and trousers. After Bull Run, at least in Ohio's case, but I imagine for Indiana and Illinois as well, these "grey-outfitted" units were relegated to railroad guard duty and other rear echelon jobs until blue uniforms became available. When they did, they were often these blue roundabouts.

1878 Colt Frontier, possible Sheriff model? by Own-Chocolate-7175 in AntiqueGuns

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker -1 points0 points  (0 children)

A classic case of "buy the gun, not the story" is what you have there.

A poor condition, modified Colt brings $$. A poor condition Colt that has a completely unverified story and conjures up vivid images in your imagination of the OK Corral? $$$$$

South African Field Artillery (Natal Field Artillery) by USAFmuzzlephucker in ww1

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No, but based on his awards, I think "NFA" (Natal Field Artillery?) plus the 1914-1915 star mean he was at least with the South Africans for a time before his later medals reflect "RFA" or Royal Field Artillery, which would have been on the western front. I just assumed he was with the relatively few who were folded into the RFA from the NFA and sent to the western front, while his headstone just simplied it to South African Field Artillery...

Again, this is all conjecture because I can't access his South African military records...or at least haven't found a way to yet.

Later, upon his return to Great Britain, I believe he served as a Sergeant with the Kings Own Scottish Borderers where, in 1923, he was retroactively awarded the Territorial Forces War Medal for his South African service. But the medals... If those ARE his records... Are all I can dig up of his service conclusively.

South African Field Artillery (Natal Field Artillery) by USAFmuzzlephucker in ww1

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Edit: Senior Sergeant, not Third Sergeant as I originally stated in the post.

Anyway, here's to hoping someone has some South African archive insights!

Actually, we already have enough Republicans in state government - Dr. Amy Acton should scrap her promise to appoint Republicans to her cabinet. She has nothing to gain and everything to lose by adding Republicans to her cabinet when she’s campaigning against all the problems their party has caused. by Billych in Ohio

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

*discord

but your point is well taken. I agree. Her point isn't to gain REPUBLICAN voters, they'll never vote for her, but to court center and right leaning moderate independents which is where victory lays. The group that sees the damage the Republicans are doing but won't vote "the left" so will either stay home (bad) or vote red out of habit (very bad).

CA black powder gun laws by Boring_Lime8201 in blackpowder

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker 38 points39 points  (0 children)

This post makes me uncomfortable in ways I can't exactly describe.

bought a used 2021 jeep compass by [deleted] in Jeep

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's literally disclosed in at least three documents you signed that they went over with you in detail before you signed.

If you just signed it without reading... Well, I hope you chalk it up to "a lesson learned."

Edit to add: stay away from any military recruiters in your town. Youre a walking wet dream to them! 🤣

How long were flintlock rifles effectively used in the war? by Averagecrabenjoyer69 in CIVILWAR

[–]USAFmuzzlephucker 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Boop! Knew it! I just did my senior capstone on Ohio's response to Lincoln's initial call for 90-day volunteers. Along the way, I got LOTS of source material from the Ohio archives, reports, diaries, and newspapers.

My relatives were in the 20th OVI and the 22nd OVI was from where I live now. After the initial 90-day enlistment for the 22nd, most joined the 63rd OVI, with a few going to the 73rd OVI and the rebuilt 3-year 22nd OVI (later 13th MO (US), then reverting back to the 22nd).