Cap'n Black Jack

I'll take two please....

The fishtail has a bore opening of 3/4 inch. My Queen Anne has an opening of 1/2 inch.

It just arrived on Wednesday evening. I had enough time to take it out of the box and inspect it. I then pulled a 6am to 10:30pm day yesterday, so I have not had time to measure it yet. I will tonight and I'll let you know.

I have bought a few things in the past, some items take longer than others. You will get what you order. Normally 3-4 weeks for most clothing items.

These can be made to fire? Just looked at the website, they look very nice.

You want to wear a work cap, tarpaulin hat, leather, knitted something like that. Cocked hats will stay on in light wind, but are not ideal for working in the rigging. I have lost baseball caps in the bay just sailing a 35 footer.

Well, I see that they make dental Vulcanizers, Topidus, dental chairs, dental wheel engins (operate drills), nothing before this. I also found similar tools for measuring for mouth/teeth impression molds. I just learned that there were a lot a scary dental tools out there in the 1800s. I sent the images and link on to a friend who might have other ideas.

Due to all the nonsense with my 10 year old's schooling up here I am ba ck to school myself, getting that teaching degree I always wanted. The have put a stop to history and science here, grouping them with math and English...the schools are a joke. If it was for me my son would know nothing about history and science. What they don't teach I teach, its the only way. Which leads me to wonder if this guy with the cannon was educated or not. You would think that someone with a bit of intelligence and education would not be shooting a cannon, live, in his back yard. I know people who have swivel guns on their decks, over the water out side Boston, who fire them all the time, but with not with shot. Again, even smart people do stupid things sometimes.

The International Dental Journal 1890 lists Hood & Reynolds, the Boston Business Directory 1871 list J Hood & SH Reynolds Goldbeaters, the Boston Almanac and Business Directory 1898 has an ad for Hood & Reynolds Dental Depot manufacturers of fine gold foil and all kinds of dental instruments located at 781 Treemont Street, Room 4 the Knickerbocker building, Beecher's manual and dental directory of the United States 1884 lists them under 'tooth powders' at 74 Treemont. It also seems that Hood and Reynolds split some time around the 1900s each continuing to make dental equipment and supplies. I would venture to guess that it is some sort of Victorian dental device.

Common sense only exits in 10% of the population, the fringe population of this country. When you use common sense people think something is wrong with you, so less and less people use it. They all want to be too cool for their own good, its a problem. I wont even get on to US schools, I have been fighting with the school department for years, they are ridiculous! Didi you know that they don't even teach handwriting any more??? WTF? The dumb shall inherit the Earth....

I still say its funny. I have spent the last 20 years dealing with really educated people who do really stupid things and the I have to fix it. After a while it just makes you laugh. Yest it was stupid and dangerous, but still funny. Think about the call to the guys homer owner's insurance company " yeah, I have to make a claim. A cannonball was shot through my house,..am I covered for that?" That's funny. I don't feel that it makes me look bad as a reenactor, it just makes him look like a fool. Sometimes you just need to see the humor in other peoples stupidity.

That is so funny. At least no on was hurt.

If you are looking to buy anything over 18-20 feet get ready to shell out a lot of doubloons! You cab make plywood dories for a few hundred and make them look like a planked dory. You can also make an 18 foot sailing dory for just a little more. There are books at the Barns and Noble and Borders, and onthe web that tell you how. You do need a little knowledge of bout building and alot of carpentry skills. As soon as I am done with the house, looks like next summer, I am going to start on my sailing dory, square rigged.

Which flints are the best? I have been using English, I am thinking about switching to German Agate Flints. Any comments or thoughts??

Thank you sir. I could not get on to their website last night, don't really know what was wrong.

I have all that, I'm just trying to find musket balls for a .75 cal. musket! That seems to be the trick at the moment. Any ideas? We're going to the gun club on the 12th and I need to be able to shoot.

Well, I made up my mind. Tomorrow I order an English lock fishtail fowler from Middlesex Village. So if anyone has any comments on this tell me now! Thanks.

I used "Quick Filler" asphalt tar filler in small amounts on my slop trousers for that i've been working in the riggn' look. I know a guy wh actually shot a live round blunderbuss at his jacket. Or the other option is just wear your gear all the time like I do, that is if you don't mid the smell after working in the garden or doing some manual labour!

Thank you for that great article, kind sir.