Salty Dave Morgan

I came in a bit late... me plans got scuttled afore they could be acted upon. I plan on being there tomorrow night. If'n I can make it to port on time this week.

Thanks for the reply. I was aware of the threaded barrel on the original but was inquiring about the Pedersoli repro... As I said, I've been contemplating a brace and had been wondering if they came with ramrods. BTW... Dixie Gun Works has a nice screw barrel pistol. It's a flintlock .41 caliber and is about 7.25 inches long and comes with a barrel key. It sells for about $150.

Did the Pedersoli Queen Anne come with a ramrod? If not, what do you use? I have been contemplating a brace of them from Cherry's but have wondered about the ramrod issue.

Arrgh... treasure! We be workin' on the design to have our own coins minted... We're plannin' 4 different "values" to correspond to the reale, the piece of eight, the escudoe, and the doubloon... They will be actually used in our tavern events and such...

I noticed some of the auctions even included props! Woo hoo! Nothing beats a costume AND a blunderbus or cutlass!

Moving magic lantern pictures hummm? Well... Casablanca... they actually wrote the final script during production. It's amazing they ended up with such a masterful film noir classic Lawrence of Arabia... Every frame is a painting... the cinematography is legendary. Gettysburg... Just simply a moving and beautiful film. Barry Lyndon... If only they had left Ryan O'Neal out of it... oh well... it's still one of Kubrick's finest. Amadeus... Beautiful music... beautiful sets... beautiful costuming... Awww hell... it's just beautiful. The Matrix... What can I say...? No one can tell you what the matrix is... you must see it for yourself. Add to this Reloaded and Revolutions. Last Temptation of Christ... a very thought provoking film. Angel Heart... Beautiful New Orleanian exteriors... voudouin... and DeNero as the quintesential Satan... Not to mention... Cutthroat Island... Just turn off the analytical side of your brain and enjoy a fun ride. The carriage chase along the dock is just too great for words... "I suddenly find myself being fired upon by a ship!..." Pirates... Anyone else remember this 1986 movie with Walter Matthau? What a hoot! There's a quick "Top Ten"...

A word about cigars... Cigar smoking in America doesn't show up before about 1762 when Israel Putnam returned from Cuba. He brought Havana cigars and cuban tobacco with him and soon thereafter, cigar factories were established in the area surrounding Hartford, CT. The Spanish on the other hand were smoking and manufacturing Cuban tobacco cigars as early as 1717. Seville, Spain is considered the birthplace of the modern cigar. Initially, Spain imported the raw materials from Cuba but in 1821 Spain allowed Cuba to manufacture cigars locally, thus the Cuban cigar was born. As a "thank you" gesture, the Cubans sent a box of their best cigars to the King of Spain each year. In Britain and France, cigar smoking didn't really get popular until after the Peninsula War (1806-1812). The production of "segars" in Britain began around 1820. Prior to these events, history and legend says the Columbus' crew found Cuban natives smoking a crude form of the modern cigar when he reached the New World in 1492. The cigar was made by wrapping maize around a filling of tobacco leaves. So... any pirate sailing between the Caribbean and Spain after 1717 would have been exposed to tobacco and cigars. Hope this has been useful information. (The Mystick Flame always has a goodly supply of fine segars for Captain and crew )

My avatar be the ensign flyin' from the main mast o' the Mystick Flame...

Thank ye for the welcome. Lake Charles is about 30 miles from the Louisiana Texas border and the weather is usually fine for Contraband Days. The night the pirates (Buccaneers) arrive is a hoot since they actually do sieze the Mayor and usually a city councilman or two and make them walk the plank into the lake. This is followed by raising the Jolly Roger over the city and that signals the beginning of the festivities. It's also a major boating festival with vessels from all over showing up to make anchor in the lake. The lake is accessable from the Gulf of Mexico via the Intercoastal Canal and there is a large port facility there so large vessels have been in attendance over the years.

Arrrrrgh.... Me first post here! We be noticing that no one has mentioned Cantraband Days on this board. Think Madri Gras with nothing but pirates! It happens every year in a little city called Lake Charles, Louisiana and is based around the legend of Jean Lafitte and his nefarious deeds in and around the lake there and the Contraband Bayou. More info can be found at http://www.contrabanddays.com/