Cleaning

H

Hardcase

New member
I'm a pretty religious firearms cleaner, or, as some might say, obsessive. That's probably a good thing, because even my old, old, old guns are in good shape. But this morning, I got to thinking, which is usually a bad thing when it involves me.

Back in the day, what did the black powder shooters do about cleaning their weapons? Now, I know that a fella riding out on the range probably shot his gun very rarely, but what about, say, Civil War soldiers? How often did those rifles see a brush? Now, obviously it happened, because I've got my great great grandfather's rifle and it's in pretty good shape. Given where it's been, it had to see some serious use.

Did these guys sit around the fire with a kettle of boiling water, waiting to swab out their barrels after a battle? And if some trapper in the hills out west did fire off a few rounds from his Lightning, how soon did he clean it?

It's these little tidbits of history that keep me awake. I'm glad I thought about it this morning and not last night.
 

Did these guys sit around the fire with a kettle of boiling water, waiting to swab out their barrels after a battle?

I will bet they did.
That is exactly what the troops did in WW2.
If there was firing during the day, at night the troops would get a boiling pot of water and put some soap in it. They removed the bolt, put the muzzle into the water, and ran a patch down the bore a half dozen times.
Then, ran some dry patches, and then cleaned as usual.
 
robhof

Have 2 cousins that were at the battle of the Bulge and they are meticulous about cleaning their weapons and stated that no matter what happened during the day; they cleaned their weapons that evening, before anyone got any sleep.
 
during the revolutionary war they would clean their weapons a night. They also used the camp fire to melt led and cast balls for their weapons
 
I'm a Civil War buff. On at least two occasions I have read accounts of a kettle full of hot soapy water used to clean the guns.
 
My great grandfather and his bros were in the Army of Northern Virginia. I have a vault of letters that were handed down to me of them writing home. They wanted money, boots and one asked for a horse. He got mad because they sent him a prized mare! and he said it was for eating not for show or ridin. I swear. Also, they talked of gamblin and partyin w/ladies in Richmond. They talked about wantin to come home. Not one letter speaks of the guns they had or how they cleaned or loaded them. So-that was a great question. You might want to ask a re-enactor. But--I did find my g/grandads old revolver when I was young. I remember it was brass and in awful shape. Have no clue where it is now. I doubt they cleaned them very well back then. But some did I'm sure. I heard in battles, theyd just thow them down on the ground and pick up a fresh one from a dead soldier. The revolvers were probably swabbed out with oil. But you got to remember they didn't fight everyday---
 
That's very cool Hardy.
"partyin w/ladies in Richmond"
GI's well never change.

If folks back in the day took as good of care of their firearms as folks do today there would be a lot more excellent specimens around.
 
And in desperation...

One of the things I have enjoyed about Bernard Cornwell as an historical writer is the intense research he puts into his books. He is the author of the Sharpe's Rifles series about the British army in the Napoleanic wars.

He asserts that one of the reasons that the rifle was not in more common use during that era was that the musket -- as a smoothbore weapon -- was easier to ram bullets into once powder fowling built up. Massed fire was better thought of than aimed at that point in warfare, despite the improvement in range afforded by the rifle, which was well known and understood. The relative slowness of loading a rifle made it less popular to military planners of that era.

Anyway, per Cornwell, the riflemen of the time -- when embroiled in active combat -- used urine to quickly swab out a bore that had become too tight for loading. A desperate measure, but likely quite effective. One presumes, of course, that the company sergeants of the time required a more conventional cleaning once the tactical situation permitted.
 
I have seen references to 19th century troops "washing" their guns.

Look in the collections and museums, you can see a lot of neglected guns, a lot of well cared for guns.

Ned Roberts said his Uncle Alvaro taught him that when making camp hunting or on a trip to feed his horse, clean his gun, and lay out tomorrow's breakfast. Then eat supper last.
 
If folks back in the day took as good of care of their firearms as folks do today there would be a lot more excellent specimens around.
Click to expand...

I think they did. The problem arises after the guns were obsolete or not needed anymore and put away. Then maybe somewhere down the line taken out and fired by someone not familiar with their care just to see how it felt to shoot gramps old gun and put away again not properly cleaned. A lot of the old guns ended up in hot, humid attics wrapped in old newspapers. Not the best storage idea but that's what happened to a lot of them.
 
Obviously, in the heat of battle, guns would have to be loaded & shot dirty, but, because these guys depended on thier guns for thier lives, I bet they would have got a good clean whenever possibile. I can also almost guarantee, the soldiers would pick up guns like thier own on the battlefield, so they had spares and extra guns.... in those days, if your gun failed, you quite possibly would die! :eek:

I bet the guns got the best attention at night or in between battles:D
 
IIRC, the .30 cal ball ammo used in WW2 used corrosive primers. That's why weapons had to be scrubbed out. Wasn't bullet lube in the Civil War animal fat? The animal grease used by the British on their ammo helped set off the Sepoy rebellion in India about the mid-19th century so ours was probably the same. Imagine the mess black powder and fried bacon would make in a barrel.:barf:
 
Yu got me interested in them letters. I'll do just a few excepts that might change some thoughts on the south. Here is an excerpt (verboten) Did I spell that right?:) From 1 of the letters I have, I thought this might interest you. If you like, I'll delve more into all the others . I might just find some gun/loading and cleaning info. But not yet. Maybe this thread isn't the proper place for this. The Smokin Gun was gracious enough to post WELCOLM HARDY--Maybe antebellum, historical, antiques etc. can go there. Anyway, here's from one at Petersburg,VA ( of course just part of the full letter):

Camp at Petersburg, August7,1863

..."We are camped at the edge of Petersburg, and we are having a glorious time. Hundreds of pretty girls visit our Regiments every evening to see the dress parade. I have formed the aqaintance of several, and find them to be nice people. The people about this place think there was never such a brigade as ours, especially the Ladies; but I am fearful that we will not remain here very long..... Lincoln is raising 300,00 more men to be immediately brought in the field... "

"Give my love to Mother. Rememember me to all relations and friends. Also give my kindest regards to all the pretty girls. Now with many kind wishes to yourself, I remain your affectionate son"
Haywood

" Let me beg you to send me some money. I hate to ask for it, but I have some debts in the Regiment which I am anxious to pay, and not be able to so with what little I draw from the Confederacy. I want $50 dollars."
Good bye."

So, at least there were sometimes in Petersburg , it wasn't so bad.
wbh/twin
 
Here is an excerpt (verboten) Did I spell that right?
Click to expand...

No. Do you mean verbatum :confused:? Verboten is German for forbidden :eek:

Generally, when camp was set up, a large pot was put on to boil water that was used for washing, laundry, and gun cleaning. Lye soap was used in both Union and Confederate camps, which partially explains the dark bores of Civil War era weapons - the lye had a tendency to blue the metal.

Ref: How the Colt Navy .36 Revolver was Gunsmithed and Fired in the Field During the Civil War by D.L. Rhea
 
It is so cool you have those letters Hardy, so many were destroyed. Old letters like that rarely mention war and fighting so as not to scare the home folks. If anything much is said it's watered down and generalized. They do give a different perspective and an insight to how they thought and felt back then which is so much different from the way we think. A lot of people can't grasp why/how they did some of the things they did. Reading the soldiers own words helps you understand how they felt. Winter camps were usually devoid of battle as neither side could effectively move around in the cold. So lots of letters were written mostly speaking of boredom(soldiers lot). Also one should go to a museum and see some of the things soldiers made during winter camp or while in prison. It will amaze you the talent and patience some of them had.
 
I'd be surprised if the actual methods of cleaning firearms was a topic spoken of in letters with any frequency. During that time I think it was pretty much a common, regular duty, kind of like going to the bathroom or washing the laundry- not much to write home about.
 
Thanks for sharing that piece of history, Hardy. Those old letters are like a time machine! I'd love to see more - we have many of our family letters, going back to the early 1800s, but none from the Civil War. Either my great great grandfather didn't write or they were lost...either is equally likely, since he was not a prolific writer.

On the other hand, I feel pretty fortunate that neither he nor his descendants ever threw much away!
 
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