A Dozen Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Personal Impression: By Cal Kinzer

Re: A Dozen Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Personal Impression: By Cal Kinzer

Obviously everyone has there own opinions and each unit there own practices, but I think the last point of the non-descript soldier is an excellent point. This is a great place for one to start on a better impression for free.

[Bob 125th NYSVI]

Re: A Dozen Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Personal Impression: By Cal Kinzer

We may want to revise part of this. At least for eastern Federals.

CRRC2 makes a fairly persuasive argument for the use of some hat brass and corp badges. Their documentary eveidence seems to support that a majority of the soldiers ahd something (although definitely) not everything on their hats.

The secret is to have appropriate stuff on your hat for the scenario. It really isn't that expensive to have multiple Corp badges of company letters or even regimental Numbers for your hat.

[RJSamp]

Re: A Dozen Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Personal Impression: By Cal Kinzer

#13 LEARN THE BUGLE CALLS and utilize a bugler at all events.

[cap tassel]

Re: A Dozen Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Personal Impression: By Cal Kinzer

"I have yet to see a period photograph of a bluedEnfield. (If anyone has one, I’d like to see it!)" - Cal

Cal's the type of guy I avoid. ;)

[YoungCampaigner]

Re: A Dozen Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Personal Impression: By Cal Kinzer

Hello All. I think that the fundimental facts in Mr. Kinzer's article were very good. However, there were several things that I did not like about his article. First of all, Mr. Kinzer makes far too many generalizations. It just doesn't make any sense to say that ALL soldiers got rid of their gaiters before the middle of the war. Just like today, nobody's tastes and preferences are the same. If some gent thought that gaiters looked good on him and were useful, he would have kept them until they wore out.

The other thing that bugs me about Mr. Kinzer's article is that he says several times that something looks bad. Yes, gaiters may look bad, but if they are authentic, that is more important. People thought differently about how things looked in the 1860's than they do now. It sounds like Mr. Kinzer is saying what looks good or bad by today's standards. Please forgive me if I am wrong. I may just be misunderstanding the meaning of Mr. Kinzer's words.

[HOG.EYE.MAN]

Re: A Dozen Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Personal Impression: By Cal Kinzer

Guys,

This is basically an example of how to set yourself apart from the mainstream as a generic authentic, without specific unit research. We all know how un-authentics dress at mainstream reenactments, so this should not be a big surprise. When Cal wrote this, he was not referring to EBUFU events with heavy unit research. I would say this is a "how to" for the progressive reenactor, plain and simple.

I think his basic point still holds true today, and is good advice for a generic reenactor.

[paulcalloway]

Re: A Dozen Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Personal Impression: By Cal Kinzer

This was cutting edge stuff about 15 years ago. It's here more out of nostalgia than anything else.

[Rick Keating]

Re: A Dozen Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Personal Impression: By Cal Kinzer

I wouldn't put a lot of stock in much of Mr. Kinzer's research as it is, as Paul pointed out, opinion heavy.

While he may be correct on a lot of points there are the units like 2nd Wisconsin, 24th Michigan and others that shoot his theories right in the posterior.

One thing I've discovered in 24 years in the hobby is... there are no absolutes! The other replies in this thread point that out quite succinctly. I think the evidence is available for us in the surviving photos, relics, museum displays, diaries, etc.

One thing I've enjoyed over the years is always being able to learn something new. "A Dozen Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Personal Impression" is no substitute for research, research, research.

Rick Keating

[Craig L Barry]

Re: A Dozen Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Personal Impression: By Cal Kinzer

Mark Jaeger is right on the money as far as he went, charitable in fact. It is interesting how cyclical the conventional wisdom is in the hobby. For my part, I just wish Cal had recommended retro-verting (to borrow a Curt-Heinrich Schmidt term) those Enfields by making some historical feature improvements to them vs "burnishing the metal parts".

Overall though, there is some good common sense advice mixed in with all the rest.

[7thNJcoA]

Re: A Dozen Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Personal Impression: By Cal Kinzer

I agree with you here That is what I said in my post. You need to research YOUR unit as much as possible! But this thread is in the editorial section which is heavy on opinion so as much research is not required. If this was in the reseach section it would be a diffrnet story but it is well placed here!

[Beaner]

Re: A Dozen Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Personal Impression: By Cal Kinzer

I'm going to chime in here also. You may want to look photos of the Iron Brigade. There is brass on their Hardee's, gaiters over their shoes, and their diaries and journals state they dropped their packs at the Luthern Seminary on the way to Mc Pherson's Ridge at Gettysburg. The 24th Michigan were required to wear their Gaiters, Hardee's with Brass and feathers by their commander. I agree the 2nd Wisc. dropped the brass and gaiters prior to Gettysburg, but, saying dropping all this to improve your impression is just another reenactorism. I would recommend doing proper research concerning the unit you wish to portray and then decide how to fill out your kit.
Dave Prince
4th Texas Co. E.

[7thNJcoA]

Re: A Dozen Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Personal Impression: By Cal Kinzer

when it comes to the gaiters..... You really need to research your unit to find out about how long they lasted. Paul is correct in saying that most units would dump this calf wrappers in a heart beat; however I know of two units the 6th and 7th NJ that wore thier gaiters all the way unitil the fall of 63' which at that point were scraped mainly becuase no fresh supply was available to the new soldiers coming in. They are indeed a great item for that early war impression for a unit that was know to wear them. When you hit an 1863 and later event they should be indeed as Paul states burned! This is inded a debatable article but the points are well made and the article is well placed in the editorial section! My point I always make to people in the hobby is the plain soldier impression and the short hair! I see as many of you have those ponytail hippies and the guys with more brass and exotic items. The simple fact is when you put gear in your pack, put in on and jump up and down if its too heavy you wont want to march with it! There are great aricles out there as well as first hand accounts on how to PACK A KNAPSACK in period fashion ECSP the federal double bag. Take note the straps on top can be used for a blanket but are meant for the great coat the blanket goes with your shelter half inside.

[paulcalloway]

Re: A Dozen Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Personal Impression: By Cal Kinzer

However, I would submit that Mr. Kinzer's piece relies a lot more on "opinion" and "feelings" than documented sources

Mark -
That's why we put this article in the Editorial section rather then the Research section. As the section description states, this is Heavy on Opinion.

[markj]

Re: A Dozen Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Personal Impression: By Cal Kinzer

Hi,

Nothing personal towards Mr. Kinzer but, frankly, a significant portion of his writeup appears to be, to put it charitably, "debatable." Let me pick just three items of his to discuss:

Regarding (3) hat brass, etc., please throw me a bone. I'm not sure what Cal means by his hat brass comments. I haven't read the article he references but I would likely take issue with some of it. Circumstances, of course, varied, but Indiana troops sure as heck were issued hat brass, numerals, eagles, etc. when available. Why do I know this? Take a look at 1st Sergeant James F. Cantwell, Company G, 80th IVI:

http://www.80thindiana.net/80webste.htm

In fact, an 84th Indiana QM-issue listing I found at the Indiana Historical Society, dated September 1862, also specifically states that hat brass was concurrently issued to the regiment, along with its uniforms, before it deployed. Another, unpublished, c.1862 image of two men in Company I, 32nd (1st German) Indiana that I just received today shows at least one of them wearing the letters "32" on the front of his forage cap as well as a badge of some kind directly above the numbers. Doing this was actually close to what Para. 1521 of the Army Regulations actually stated (i.e., company affiliation was to be designated by "yellow metal letters in front"). The 1865 report of Indiana QMG Asahel Stone also flatly states that small quantities of "Bugles, Hat," "Bands and Tassels," "Eagles," and "Feathers" were even issued to Indiana Legion (state militia) units.

As stated above, "Bugles" were indeed "not regulation" but this was simply a case of the Regulations not keeping up with widely adopted "de facto" custom. There was plenty of confusion and dissatisfaction when it came to the Regulations as they existed: indeed, I've found at least two published letters bitching about the significant disconnects between "what was said" and "what was done." Using Kinzer's observations as starting point, I would argue that a slavish adherence to the Regs by reenactors is, in my view, almost as bad as "farbidity" since enlisted men and commanders at times had to finesse and make up things as they went along where there was no guidance. Therefore, it seems apparent to me that, in the case of hat/cap brass, troops logically adapted the provisions of Paras. 1515 and 1516 (dealing with officer and enlisted hat brass) for forage caps as circumstances required. Period images of New Hampshire troops regularly show their caps adorned with bugles, company letters, and regimental numerals. The bottom line is that, when it came to hat brass, some troops wore it constantly, others never did, and many of their commanders didn't care one way or another.

Lastly, Kinzer's comment about looking like "a real soldier" struck a nerve with me. How, precisely, do we define "looking like a real soldier?" I'm sure those troops in nearly-spotless Heavy Artillery frock coats who marched to almost certain death at Cold Harbor considered themselves to be just as much "real soldiers" as the the crustiest privates in the Army of the Cumberland. I guess we have to be really careful about "projecting" our sensibilities on people who lived 140 years ago. They were similar to us in many ways yet, in others, completely different. And what constitutes a "real soldier" to us may not have been to them. If I'm missing Cal's point, then I apologize in advance.

Regarding (4) "burnishing of Enfields," Geoffrey Walden would undoubtedly take issue with him, as per his on-line article, having personally examined hundreds of original Enfields. Stripping bluing from rifles was indubitably practiced...but it wasn't UNIVERSALLY practiced as Mr. Kinzer infers. This charming little custom, for what I've read, even varied from regiment to regiment within brigades.

As for (6) "wearing knapsacks into battle," Mr. Kinzer's conclusions are, again, highly debatable to put it kindly. I'm not sure if he looked very deeply into the "Official Records" or other period documentation: I did this myself about a year ago and discovered at least 60 different AAR's alone in the "OR" specifically mentioning that packs were either dropped before going into action or simply left behind on wagons in the rear. The dates and locations of these reports varied widely so "dropping packs" was NOT an "early-war thing" and the size of the sample indicates it was a common habit. Troops certainly did, on occasion, wear their knapsacks into battle (as shown in that famous photo of Confederate dead by the Hagerstown Turnpike at Antietam) but that doesn't mean it was universally practiced. If your First Sergeant, Captain, and Colonel all tell you to "drop packs," and rounds are zipping over your head, what are you going to do? Argue with them?

Mr. Kinzer's piece does contain interesting and useful information and, again, I want to make clear that my comments are not personal in any way, shape or form. However, I would submit that Mr. Kinzer's piece relies a lot more on "opinion" and "feelings" than documented sources. I would posit that the overall picture is a lot more complex than we all would initially think.

Respectfully,

Mark Jaeger

[JimKindred]

Re: A Dozen Inexpensive Ways to Improve Your Personal Impression: By Cal Kinzer

I have known Cal since the late 70's and I have always been proud to call him a friend. His advice given here in one form or another has been around at least that long. Too many in the campaigner movement think they are on to something relatively new but they aren't. This struggle for authenticity has been going on for as long as many of them have been alive.

Equipment and clothing have changed tremendously over years unfortunately in many cases the attitude and the desire is what is lagging behind. Years ago you were limited by both your attitude and gear but now with all the improvements it is only the approach to the hobby and the attitude that hold people back.

Take what Paul has posted here and use it if you haven't already, you will find your impression improved greatly with no monetary investment.