[col.lemat]

Long thought to be extinct, this is the anti balloon sight developed in 1862 to use against professor Lowes balloon corps. Only 100 were ordered by the confederate government to be issued to artillery units to shoot down the balloons. It is thought that less then 10 ever made it past the federal blockade, most of the sights were thought to have been destroyed and the guns issued to other units. Very few survive today and only the advanced collectors have mentioned them in passing. Made of brass in England by I.M. Hochs who later made aircraft sights in WWI for the Lewis machine gun. Col. LeMat was known for several other patents such as a device for assisting boats in distress, securing ordnance in the deck of a ship, instruments for surgery and a device for helically driven dirigibles and a dirigible drive.

[chicharrones]

http://bestsmileys.com/lol/3.gif

[arcticap]

Thanks for mentioning about the Lemat sight and the Union Army Balloon Corps which I never knew much about before. :)

Union Army Balloon Corps

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Army_Balloon_Corps

[PRM]

Bet its safe to say they did not carry them in a holster.

[col.lemat]

Soon to follow the front sight, the open front fast draw holster was developed

[StrawHat]

I.M. Hoch was a German immigrant wasn't he?

[Lunie]

I see this example was made before they started fitting the traverse and elevation mechanisms. :evil:

[two gun charlie]

very interresting , got anymore of these peculiarities in your collection ?

[col.lemat]

Not much is known about the canteen stock for the LeMat. What can be determined is about 500 were made for the secretive Louisiana French Legion headed by P.G.T. Beauregard. This group of highly trained hand-picked Cajuns were supposed to travel north from Baton Rouge to enter battle. They never made it and were found frollicking with the red light district ladies several days later in New Orleans. Every last one of the L.F.L. were drunk and out of their minds having previously filled the canteen stocks with bourbon. Claiming that they got lost the unit was quietly disbanded by Major Beauregard who nearly became known as PVT Beauregard for this debacle. What became of the stocks is unknown. The pistol was described as having extended hammer screw and side plate screw nut which allowed the finger-like projections on the stock to hook under and forward in an upward manner. The final attachment point was a machined lug with hole at the base of the grip. This lug can be seen on the later LeMats. These canteen stocked LeMats also came with shotgun barrel extensions that could be screwed in. Two surviving examples can be seen in the book LeMat The Man The Gun by Val Forgett and Alain & Marie-Antoinette Serpette, on pages 81 and 129. Recently after Hurricane Katrina several hundered brass pieces were found and were thought to be brass remains of the stocks, it was later determined to be discarded bathroom toilet plumbing fixtures.

[junkman_01]

Col.

Those stocks may be lost, but I think you found the bourbon before you started this thread! :what::neener:

[Lunie]

19th Century Tacticool... Detachable Canteen Stocks (DCS).

The absolute way to make sure that the operator is just as loaded as his revolver.

[Noz]

:what::what::what::what::what:


Aw, shucks!:p

[GCBurner]

Very steampunk! :D

[Busyhands94]

it's a nice idea, but the only drawback i can see is that whoever drank the bourbon inside probably would be too drunk to shoot, especially after a full canteen. :neener:

[kBob]

AAAAAIIIIEEE!!! MY LEG! MY LEG!

AAAAHHHGGGGAA!!!! MY OTHER LEG! MY OTHER LEG!

STOP! STOP!

-kBob

[IdahoSkies]

thanks for this bit of history. The LeMat so intrigued me when I was younger (thank you Louis Lamour) it is the first firearm I just had to know about and it made my whole week to see one at the Smithsonian when I visited D.C. Thanks for this post. Super interesting.

[wittzo]

I read that it was common for soldiers to fill the bores of their rifles with alcohol using their tompions as corks. They would drink it down before they swabbed and loaded their weapon for combat.

[col.lemat]

Its called takeing a hit before gitting hit.

[Busyhands94]

i imagine that would leak with the vent if it's a flintlock or out the nipple if it's a percussion gun. although that is probably the coolest flask in the entire world! haha!

[scrat]

Nice pumpkins :D

[rondog]

Saaaayyy, this isn't April Fool's Day.....

[Lunie]

Yep, April Fool's Day has fooled us all...

By moving to October. :neener::cuss::D:fire::p:evil::rolleyes::scrutiny::uhoh::what::cool: