Hawkyns

I saw an almost identical belt rig at Fort Matanzas in St. Augustine. I made a copy that works quite well. I have a belt axe through the verticle frog and a large plug bayonet on the angled frog. Works very well. Hawkyns

Remember also that slops were made to go over breeches. They were a kind of overall, to protect the breeches underneath. Here is the info from the Kannik's Korner slops pattern. Lightly later than GAOP, but still usefull. http://www.kannikskorner.com/patmen.htm Man's Outer Breeches "Slops" 1750-1820 A protective garment used by sailors (even pirates), fishermen, farmers and field workers, generally worn over breeches or trousers. Based on original garments and contemporary illustrations. Side pocket slits to reach breeches pockets. Center front opening without fly buttons. Laced vent in back of waistband. View A has optional watch pocket or watch pocket access flap (to reach breeches watch pocket). View B has pleated front and wider waistband. Hawkyns

Most of Switlik's rules are OK, though heavily slanted to ACW. I have 3 problems with them. One is the plastic baggie. I will not put plastic down my bore for any reason. It is not always combustable, it can create static, and it does not always mold well to the cartridge mandrel. Second is the gauntlet issue. I've been round and round on this with a lot of gunners and I'm still conflicted. I've always used them, not neccesarily the welder's gauntlets, but generally a regular leather gauntlet. After talking with a bunch of people in the BB, I understand the concept that they lessen your 'feel' for what is happening in the bore. I've run with and without and I'm not sure which I prefer. I understand the safety issue, but I have to wonder if it makes a difference if you are double wet swabbing and keeping to the three minute rule. Last is wadding. I do wad my guns for blank firing when not firing at opposing forces. I use cut green grass. It breaks up, leaves no mess and increases volume/cuts powder charge. I think that there are some wads that should never be used like wadded newspaper or florists foam, but banning all wads in all cases goes too far in my opinion. Hawkyns

Snapsacks were still being used up into the F&I period, so they would still be correct for GAoP. Whether they would be carried be sailors is another question. The one you are making sounds a bit big. Mine is about 20 inches long and 10 inches in diameter. Enough for a spare shirt, spare hose, bowl, spoon and a tin mug/boiler and 2 days rations, as was supposed to be for ECW soldiers. When worn, it sits from right shoulder to left hip, tight across the back. I've seen them made from hemp canvas or thin leather. They're not supposed to be holdalls, but marching packs for soldiers. Hawkyns

Not sure where you are getting that. Everyone on my crews are trained to all positions and everyone of them is a safety officer. Anyone can stop any gun's drill if they see something wrong. I'm talking about chain of command. The organiser of the event determines which particular set of safety regs will be in effect- BAR, BB, NPS or whatever. The Master Gunner of the event is responsible to the Muster Master to ensure that all guns meet the regs, that all crews are properly trained, and that all safety protocols are in place and maintained. Each gun captain is responsible to the Master Gunner for the action and operation of his gun and crew. Anything else and you have crews doing different drills on the line which can cause confusion, especially in tight quarters. You have people bumping into each other, cartridges being passed while guns are being fired, mixed signals about when a gun is loaded or misfired. It is also impossible to take the word of a gun captain that their gun meets regs. Just like the musket safety officer walks the line and checks half cock, cleared barrel, and ammo pouches, the Master Gunner must inspect every gun for safety. People have a tendency to overlook things on their own gun or crew due to familiarity. As far as teaching in the Pyrate Realm, you are correct. There is a huge resistance to having an overall umbrella organisation with rules and procedures. Part of that comes from the whole "we're pyrates, we don't need no rules" mindset. Part of it comes from the fact that we are a massively diverse group, both in time period and focus. We have groups like mine, Elizabethan sea dogs with a hard authenticity focus, to GAoP groups that are mostly fantasy, and everything in between. I've done some teaching, 3 other crews and their commander, and they are now spreading that way of doing things to other crews. But that's a limited scope and involves a few crews in a couple of states. Anything that I am running willbe run to the standards I've been using for 20 plus years. But then I run into people who do things totally differently and refuse to conform to the rules of the event. The whole bloody independant streak that runs through pirate reenactors/recreationists/hobbyists is our biggest problem when it comes to safety. Hawkyns

There are plenty of places to learn to be responsible, M.A.d'Dogge. Most all serious reenactment groups run schools of the soldier. There are plenty of places on line where rules, safety instructions, loading info, etc., are listed. When I'm Master Gunner for and event, do I trust that the crews have attended a school or even read this info?? Hell no. I've seen too many people in 25 years of firing cannon that show up without a clue of the proper way to hold the tools, what the safety minimum distances should be, how to tend the vent, or how to make a cartridge. I've seen guns go to the line that had the touchholes shot out, where the capsquires were not tight, the carriages were cracked, or even that they did not have a full set of tools for each gun. No, I want to see that each gun passes the safety standards, that there is sufficient crew and that they know what they are doing, and that they have not been drinking prior to going on the line. (That seems to show up a lot in pirate circles). I've seen people put Bic lighters to the touchhole, fail to pierce the charge and drop a couple of hundred grains behind the charge, smoking next to the magazine box, handling cartridge while the next gun is firing, firing point blank into tall dry grass, any number of stupid things. I haven't seen ATF rules that recommend dispersal of powder, but I've been to plenty of state parks and forts where a single magazine is required. Most re-enactments do not let you make cartridges on site, you have to bring them pre made to the event, both artillery and small arms. There is no second place when it comes to safety with black powder. You are either 100% or you are a danger. If there are musters out there with Master Gunners who don't know their stuff, then take it up with the organisers. If they are doing things you don't think are safe, stand down. Better to drive 200 miles for nothing than wind up in an ambulance. If enough people stand down, the organisers will get a clue pretty quick and get another Master Gunner. When it comes to blackpowder, both cannon and small arms, we have to get rid of this notion that 'we're pirates, we don't want no stinking rules'. Safety and common sense tells me that gunners of all types need to be professionals, just like Master Gunners in period. Hawkyns

French fly is most definitely the type you would want. Knee breeches are fine, but you want them baggier than the F&I or Rev War styles. What you might want to look at are Sykes Sutlering, The Practical Goose, or Big Bear Trading. They all deal in earlier kit, Sykes and the Goose in particular in English Civil War kit. and that's probably more where you should base your research. English Civil War, Restoration, or Marlborough's Wars are the period covered by 1650-1720. GAoP is still in its infancy when it comes to real research sites, and especially sutlers. Most of the best sites are run by people on this board. Look in Twill, there's a lot of info. Ask questions of those who look like they know what they are doing. Hawkyns

Artillery Rules?? HELL YES!!!! On any line that I am in charge of. If someone won't submit to inspections of gun, kit and cartridge, either they leave the line or I stand down. And if there's a crew on the line that is doing something unsafe and the Master Gunner doesn't do something about it, I stand my guns down, also. If it's a crew I don't know, I want to see them do the drill dry before I let them load powder. If they are doing something not in accordance with the rules, they fix it or stand down. Iron Hand, I would not let you fire your cartridges on my line. Aluminum foil or nothing. I also believe in a central powder magazine. At Pennsic, where I am the Master Gunner, and have enough powder for up to nine guns for a week's firing, all powder is stored in a double wall powder chest with locks on each wall. I have one set of keys, my number 2 has the others. I don't like the idea that powder can be in individual camps where I have no idea who is smoking, drinking, how close people can get to the powder or whatever. I'd rather have that 40 lbs where I have security, rather than dispersed about the camp. We can talk about being freebooting pirates all we want, but one accident with this and we can all get shut down. We are in a position that we have large amounts of powder and large calibre weapons that are effectively unlicensed. The anti gunners out there, as well as some in homeland security would love an excuse to shut us down and remove gunpowder from public access. I'm not about to risk losing thousands of dollars worth of cannon and the right to continue firing because someone wants to play fast and loose with the safety rules. I folow the same powder rules as the British Brigade, the Brigade of the American Revolution, the Continental line. They are similar to the American Civil War Artillery Association, also, with the caveat that we do not use friction primers. Yes, I run my guns and my line just like one of those 'military reenactor groups'. That way we keep our guns and our hands intact. Hawkyns

A lot depends on what kind of steel it is, how old it is, and how bad the rust is. It could need anything from careful polishing with rouge to hitting it with a wire wheel. More detail and pics, please. Hawkyns

Looking at those blades, I'd say 250 and 252 have lost blade weight due to corrosion and/or excessive sharpening. Neither blade is straight anymore. 251 puzzles me. Looking at it, it appears to be in reasonable shape so no loss like the previous two. Further examination of the picture shows, though, that it was made without the upper part of the basket and that the basket is relatively thin, in comparison to similar baskets. The blade is also shorter by a couple of inches. I'd have to say that it might have been a blade for a youth or smaller person, made lighter than the norm. 253 is listed as having an earlier blade, which definitely appears to be a cut down rapier blade. Hawkyns

The Paul Chen is pretty, but in my estimation, its a bit light. It only weighs 2 pounds, whereas when I look through catalogues like the Wallace Collection, I find original weights for similar sword coming in at around 2lbs12oz, 2lbs8oz, and similar. Likewise, when I look at later variants of the cavalry sword, like the 1796 British Heavy Cavalry Sword (Sharpe's sword) being in the 3 pound range. 17th century basket hilts like the Irish hilt weigh as much as 4lbs2oz. Schiavonas weigh in at anywhere from 2lbs3oz up to 3lbs5oz. I'm much happier with my Armour Class mortuary which weighs in at a solid 3lbs. Hawkyns

The pommel of the sword was often carved into the likeness of a head. Frequently, this was taken as a memorial to His Martyred Majesty, Charles Stuart. This, however seems to be yet another piece of Victorian re-written history. The name does not seem to appear until the 19th century, and the swords certainly predate His Majesty's death in 1649. Hawkyns

We use a mix of alcohol, peroxide, and Murphy's Oil Soap. Equal parts of each. Tip it down the bore and swab till it comes clean, then drop the muzzle and let it drain. On a normal season, with no more than 2 or 3 weeks between musters, it keeps things nice and clean. It also cleans the swabs and they come out white again. Except when putting away for an extended period, I generally don't oil, and even then with nothing as heavy as motor oil. That stuff just gums up and makes a hell of a mess. Hawkyns

English Civil War Firearms- Donald Reid, Partizan Press, 1989 "Most guns of the 17th century were stained a very dark brown, in fact almost a black colour. This was achieved by dissolving alkanet root, with perhaps soot and burnt umber in linseed oil. Several coats were applied, allowing each coat to dry in turn. On munition quality weapons, the stock and barrel were simply painted black." "Barrels were sometimes protected by 'russetting' which involved coating the metal with a brown pigment, rather than the more modern process of browning which uses a chemical reaction." The reference to the variances in ships muskets is, according to Howard Blackmore in "British Military Firearms, 1650-1850", from the 1740's. Also, many English firearms of the 17th and early 18th C were stocked with beech, not walnut, which would give a significantly different look to what we commonly thing of as a polished walnut stock. I've stained some of my stocks with black leather dye and then beeswax over it. It is personal preference, of course, but hopefully being done with an eye to what was common period practice, using period finishes. The chrome shiny polish on barrels and stocks that look polyurethaned may be the modern version of pretty and perhaps easier to maintain, but they just don't look right. Hawkyns Hawkyns

Maybe not. But it sure as hell makes a difference when I take my matchlock into competition or my Tulle into the woods. Hawkyns

Problem is, most of the guns we see in the museums are not in the original finishes. They have been cleaned up and preserved in ways that would not have been originally done. So the question is, do you want your piece to have a modern finish that people recognize, or do you want it to look like the originals did? If you want to have a fancy modern piece, by all means use the modern stock waxes and the RenWax on the metal. Personally, I hate a shiny gun. It reflects light to show your position, and glare from the barrel can make it hard to site. I let mine naturally age to the brown/black patina that comes from general rust and black powder corrosion. Any physical surface rust is rmoved but the stain left is not. Originally, they used powdered brick dust as a scouring agent. Cleans things up nicely but will not give you the mirror finish that comes witha modern piece. I use beeswax on my stocks so they are water resistant, but not shiny. Brass I let go to black, just removing any actual green corrosion. A bunch of years ago, Kit Ravensheer brought a piece to a muster that was done in an original mid 17th C finish. He painted the barrel with roofing tar and the stock with deck paint. Its anothrr case where we have to be careful not to let our modern notions of looks spoil our interpretation. Hawkyns

Not really a case of 'won't', more a case of 'can't'. The training is so different and the muscle memory and reflex training are at completely different levels. When a blade comes towards my face, I assume it is going to hit and take appropriate action, void and counterstrike. For someone who is planning to stop the blade and then do some flashy move, they will be completely un prepared for the blade now coming at them, and I will be expecting them to react as I would. Recipe for major disaster. I've come more than a bit close to taking out a mundane coworker when they appeared unexpected over my shoulder. Reflexes are just trained. Actors and choreographed fencers think about each move. Martial artists react on a much more instinctive, below thought level. Hawkyns

Nah, I generally don't like working as a paid performer, or with them for that matter. Too restrictive when you have to worry about the terms of the contract. As I said, faire is not really one of our venues. My crew has never actually been to one as a crew. No, our preference is for timelines and re-enactments where nobody gets paid and there are lots of people, all on the same level. Don't even need the public, really. This is our game, for ourselves. We are not performers, we are reenactors/living historians. Many of our events over the years have been private, with no public allowed. We've started doing some of the festivals over the last couple of years. I hope that they continue to go in the direction of reenactment, rather than faire. Maybe that is what I am trying to say. There are plenty of faire venues out there, for people who want to go the acting/choreographed route. I guess I'm just hoping to stop the festivals from becoming just another version of faire, with paid performers, a script, and a lot of limitations. Hawkyns

Comes back down to the fact that there are nearly as many types of event as there are crews running them. No, as faire goers, we would not be allowed to do anything. Heck, Maryland Ren Faire doesn't even let you carry a weapon at all. But most of my crew doesn't bother with ren faires, we do more historic timelines and re-enactments where it is pretty much accepted that you will be carrying, it will be real(though blunted) and you know how to use it. We interact more with the RevWar, F&I, and similar groups than we do with the faire folk. We are now expanding into pirate festivals, as they bcome more authentic and less Hollywood. Nothing like an adrenaline and blackpowder high to focus your mind on the weapon and the fight. Hawkyns

Yeah, it depends on what grade powder you use. I use 2f, 100 grains for my .62 muskets, and 120 for my .75 musket and .75 blunderbuss. My pistols are also .75, but I only load them at 80 grains. I also use part of that cartridge for the priming, so what goes down the bore is a little less. I cary a small pocket flask of 4f to prime when needed. Also, I only use real blackpowder, never the synthetics like pyrodex. I've tried them, and they foul too much, don't give enough smoke, and can be hard to ignite with a match. When I was trying them out, I found I had to prime with real powder in order to get enough heat to ignite the main charge. I prefer Elephant, but it can be hard to get. Goex is more readily available. I tried the re-enactor powder and it is garbage. Basically the floor sweeping and whatever is left in the vats. Inconsistant as hell and fouls like wet charcoal dust. Hawkyns

All 4 of my cannon were cast solid with the trunnions in place, then bored out and sleeved. They are all iron guns. I don't particularly trust cannon where the trunnions are added after the tube is made. I've seen it done on anything up to six pounders and never been happy with the result. I just don't think that most of the people who are lathe turning guns and then adding things like truniions, or dolphins or even the cascabel are up to the task. Professionals cast them solid and intact. That's the way it's always been done and I don't think this is a place to try and reinvent the whel. Hawkyns

On the one that was shot at us, we detrmined it was the result of two things. 1) The gun was an old bronze tube, 19th c, that had been fired a lot and not well treated. The touchhole was shot out and had formed a cone shaped cavity on the inside. Not visible from the outside, but should have been caught if a proper gun inspection was done. 2) The charge was not rammed home hard enough. This allowed the cartridge to be deformed instead of pierced when the prick went down. I've seen this happen before with new or inexperienced crews. They are nervous about the ramming and therefore don't seat the charge fully, being anxious to get their hand out of the way. The combination of these two things allowed the vent tender to drop about 400 grains beihnd the charge. For some reason (inxperience?) it never occurred to him that 400 grains was too much. No warning bells went off. Hawkyns

It was in 17th century, a few years back. We load from the bandolier and the corporals carry a flask to reload the bandoliers. Trapezoid flask with a brass valve, not a horn as you think of in 18th century. Our best guess is that some sparks from the match flew off and landed in the spout of the brass flask. Whether it wasn't completely closed or whether there was enough powder debris to flash it and set the main body off we don't know. The flask had a blowout panel and he was wearing a buff coat over wool breeches, so all he got was a scorched buff coat and a bruised hip. Fortunately. The bandolier chainfire happened in England. Again, some ill tended match and a bandolier with bottles that didin't close well. Maybe it's me, but doing 16/17th century using matchlocks and bandoliers has made me paranoid when it comes to safety. Probably something to do with having lit match in one hand, powder in the other, and doing it in a block of a dozen or more troops. In 25 years, I've seen a lot. From this stuff to being on the receiving end when a cannon crew screwed up, put a lot of prime behind an unpierced charge, and shot the main charge at us intact and smoking. I've seen groups that go to the field with multiple guns and not enough tools and crew to completly outfit each gun, people lean over the touch hole when firing "to keep the rain off it", and Goddess knows what else. What scares me is that probably 80% of the screwups I have seen have been at pirate festivals and ren faires. I love doing the pirate guns, but I feel a lot safer when I'm in the line with military unit that trains together regularly and is used to firing in battle. Hawkyns

10 feet still twitches me with small arms. If you have a single demo with a couple of people to watch the crowd while you watch what you are doing, maybe. On my own, trying to talk and demo while watching what I'm doing and trying to watch the crowd at the same time, I'd feel they were too close. Watching your muzzle while you pour powder gives some fruitcake plenty of time to cross that 10 feet and get up close and personal. Plus, I've seen bandoliers chainfire and powder horns go off on the belt. It's OK for me and my crew to take the risk, but I don't really want the public that close if something goes south in a hurry. Hawkyns

I've worked with pieces only 5 feet apart. It is possible, if the crews are well trained and proficient. Quite honestly, with a crew that does this 2 or 3 times a year, especially if they are using 6 foot tools, they will be in each other's way. For normal battery fire, I require 10 feet betwen hubs. Hawkyns