civil war gun care

[bodiebill]

How did the soldiers keep their blackpowder weapons clean and free from rust while in the field during the civil war.

 

[CajunBass]

In battle, where a man might fire dozens, if not hundreds of rounds they used what was called a "cleaner bullet." Ammo came packed in ten round packets. One of each ten was a "cleaner bullet." Rather than have the conical base of a normal Minnie Ball, they had a metal plug that fit into a tight hole in the base of the bullet. When fired, the plug was driven forward into the hole. The plug flattend out and scraped the powder residue from the barrel.

Were they effective? No idea, but we used to dig them up all over the place down home (Gaines Mill & Cold Harbor area, east of Richmond).

You also have to remember that Minnie balls were undersized and expanded to fit the bore when fired. That fact made it easier to load a fouled barrel, and probably served to scrape the barrel also.

There was also the field expedient solution of simply throwing down a badly fouled rifle and picking up another one. There were usually plenty of them laying around.

As for other times I would imagine they used hot water and soap (if they had it). I would imagine gun oil of some kind was issued also.

 

[Arkansas Paul]

Yeah, I just found out about the cleaner bullets. I forgot what the guy called them. I bought a few, along with some minieballs at a little shop outside of Atlanta. I believe they came from the battle of Chikamauga. (That's horribly misspelled I know)

 

[mykeal]

Hot water and soap were not plentiful, to say the least. They used fresh urine, both human and equestrian.

 

[Hawkeye748]

I am still waiting for someone to show me an actual reference to someone cleaning their weapon with urine in the CW. I have read many a document, diary, etc. and haven't seen an authenticated instance of this. According to others that are wider read than I, this basically a tale spread around Re-enactor camp fires over the years with little to back it up.

The soldiers were issue tools to clean their guns just like today's soldiers. These were usually fitted to the ramrods for field cleaning. The tools included nipple picks, nipple wrenches, slotted cleaning jag, button cleaning jag, scraper, worm, and brushes. Ball pullers were also included. In addition, when in camp, they had available better cleaning tools to do a proper job. Mainly, they used soap and water. It was usually available. If soap was not available, they just used water.

Lubrication was done by many means. A variety of natural lubricants were used to prevent rust, mainly tallow from various sources, vegetable based oils, and even fish and whale oil were used. The oil industry, particularly in Pennsylvania, was starting at this time and kerosene and other petroleum products were coming out for use by soldiers. Remember, wagons and trains were using petroleum products to grease axles and train parts. A light coating of axle grease would go a long way toward preventing rust.

There is a document from the Yankee War Department called:

Rules for the management and cleaning of the rifle musket, model 1863, for the use of soldiers
by United States. War Dept.

I don't have one but read it many years ago. If you can find it, it will definitively tell you how a soldier was supposed to clean his weapon and what he was issued to clean it while in the field.

 

[Ridgerunner665]

Those darn Yankees were much better provisioned than the Reb's...what was likely the most plentiful "oil" of the time???

Lamp oil...

 

[Texas Moon]

Plain old water to clean.

Sand to scrub down with.

Lard or other animal fat to lubricate.

 

[Hawkeye748]

There was not a great deal of difference between Armies with "Official Methods" of operation as both sides rule writing officers were for the most part, West Point trained.

Lamp Oil was of several types: Kerosene was one. Vegetable oils, Whale and fish oils were used. I am sure corn and cotton seed oil was used also. Anything that could be converted to a liquid oil were made into lamp oils. If you don't believe vegetable oil will burn, get some wesson or crisco, olive, or any cooking oil and pour it in a lamp with a cotton wick. Light the wick after it gets saturated. The wick will draw the oil up and it will burn a nice light. Many of the resturaunt candles that seem to be floating are burning vegtable oil.


These same oils were used to prevent rust.

 

[StrawHat]

I read in Muzzle Blasts magazine, that a common way to clean muzzle loaders was to wrap a piece of tow or flax aound the jag and swab the barrel with tallow. I believe it cleaned and lubed at the same time. I haven't recieved MB since the late 70s and can not reference the writer. I received the same advice from a couple of old timers when learning about muzzle loading in my youth. Tallow would be a common substance and tow, flax, hemp etc were certainly much more common then.

 

[110Redmen]

The cleaner bullet you refer to was called the Williams cleaner bullet. It was smaller than a normal minie in height, and the washer at the base was made of zinc. The washer, at detonation, mashed up to the base and slightly expanded within the barrel, and scraped the fouling out of the barrel, allowing the soldier to continue loading and firing the weapon.

The reason you find a lot of them is because more often than not, they were discarded. Ramrods of the period were threaded, and a number of attachable implements were provided to each soldier, as listed above. In the heat of battle, more often than not, picking up a gun from someone who no longer needed it would be the most expediant way of staying in the fight.

 

[StrawHat]

110Redmen

In the heat of battle, more often than not, picking up a gun from someone who no longer needed it would be the most expediant way of staying in the fight.

After all the battles the Armies (perhaps only the victors) would glean the battle site for weapons and other useful items. Often mentioned was the fact that recovered muskets had mutliple charges in them. Maybe from someone picking it up, reloading and being shot prior to firing it, dropping it and the cycle starts over. I recall one had something like 'teen loads in it, practically to the muzzle.

 

[Voodoochile]

After all the battles the Armies (perhaps only the victors) would glean the battle site for weapons and other useful items. Often mentioned was the fact that recovered muskets had mutliple charges in them. Maybe from someone picking it up, reloading and being shot prior to firing it, dropping it and the cycle starts over. I recall one had something like 'teen loads in it, practically to the muzzle.
Yesterday 11:22 AM

I remember reading that about after the battle of Gettysburg.

 

[Ohio Gun Guy]

If you dont get a chill walking around at Gettysburg......

 

[CajunBass]

After all the battles the Armies (perhaps only the victors) would glean the battle site for weapons and other useful items. Often mentioned was the fact that recovered muskets had mutliple charges in them. Maybe from someone picking it up, reloading and being shot prior to firing it, dropping it and the cycle starts over. I recall one had something like 'teen loads in it, practically to the muzzle.

I have read that a lot of times in the heat of battle, a man would forget to cap his rifle, or the cap might drop off. With the noise and excitement he wouldn't be able to hear his own rifle go off/not go off, or feel the recoil/lack of. Reportedly then, he'd go through the motions of firing, then reload, oftimes over and over, with very ugly results when/if he finally did remember to cap the nipple.