field striping a 1861 Springfield rifled musket

[fedhead]

Can anyone help with first person accounts or official military records on removing the barrel and other metal work in the field for cleaning, all references would be greatly received but when on campaign would be most intresting. Federal or Confederate please, i have some from the CRRC VOL 2 and other references but i need to cross reference them

thanks

[Daniel]

Re: field striping a 1861 Springfield rifled musket

I would recommend "The Ordnance Manual For The Use of The Officers of The Confederate States Army." This was a reprint of the 1850 United States Army manual. It has sections for the Preservation of Arms In Service and detail instructions on Taking Arms to Pieces. If a person wants to take care of his musket, there is no better period source to my knowledge. My reprint was from Morningside.

Dan Stewart

[Silas]

Re: field striping a 1861 Springfield rifled musket

How about a scan of the US 1862 edition? Go to http://books.google.com/books?id=wwY...page&q&f=false then go to page 199. The instruction at the bottom of the page is of value to the current discussion.

[Curt Schmidt]

Re: field striping a 1861 Springfield rifled musket

Hallo!

Just an aside...

"Field stripping" is a relatively modern thing.

The Manual states:

"A soldier should never dismount the band-springs, guard, side screw, washers, cone, and cone-seat screw, except when an officer considers it necessary. The breech-screw should never be taken out only b an armorer, and never in ordinary cleaning. The lock should not be taken apart, nor the bayonet-clasp taken off, except when absolutely necessary in the opinion of an officer. If proper and regular care be taken of the arm, this will be very seldom necessary."

;)

Curt

[Brandon Ledvina]

Re: field striping a 1861 Springfield rifled musket

If proper and regular care be taken of the arm, this will be very seldom necessary

I understand that they would have taken care of their muskets but I would have to guess that they would have to take them apart from time to time, especially after firing. How many times have you come home from an event where it was raining and it takes a long time to clean. Now imagine not taking it apart after a few good rains. I would have to guess that there would have to be a good amount of rust under the barrel, etc.

Although I am sorry I can not give a specific example I have to use my experience which I would guess would be very similar to theirs. Just my two cents.

[Marine Mike]

Re: field striping a 1861 Springfield rifled musket

The manual states that you remove the lock, the tang screw, barrel bands and barrel. Everything else stays in place. That is the butt plate and screws, trigger plate and screws, band springs and the lock plate screws and washers. You also do not remove the cone. You do not disassemble the lock.
The lock is to be walked out so you don't tear the wood around the lock area.
The tompion is to be used as part of the tear down to assure the barrel is removed from the stock breech first so you dont tear/break the wood around the breech and tang area. This will be sufficient to tend to the bottom side of the barrel.
Camp maintenance for the lock should include the use of a toothbrush to remove the crud and rust from the tumbler/sear/spring area of the lock.
Now some words of warning. Most reproduction musket wrenches will need to be ground down to properly fit the screws on your musket. The steel in most of these is soft so you can pretzel them by overtorquing a screw. This may be a problem on first disassembly of your musket but after that it may be the perfect way to not over torque when you reassemble. Your gum blanket, shiny side down, is a great place to do your disassembly as it keeps the small important items like lock screws and washers from getting lost in the mud, muck and the grass. Remember that your company armourer for replacement parts is an internet order and possible great number of week away.
Do your first disassembly in the quiet and comfort of your home as some of the reproduction muskets need a tuning to be taken apart. One of my muskets did not have sufficient wood removed from the channel making it difficult to remove the bottom band without hammer and block of wood. I took out the ridge at the bottom of the barrel channel that was creating this problem and can now disassemble with only the musket wrench.

[Coatsy]

Re: field striping a 1861 Springfield rifled musket

Mike, That is very sound advice for cleaning a musket for the modern day reenactor. But the use of a toothbrush caught my eye. I assume that you mean one of the reproduction bone/horn tooth brushes, and that got me thinking. Would a soldier use this "luxury" item to clean his musket instead of his teeth? I've read accounts that the men were ordered to have a toothbrush as with the California Column's orders:

http://books.google.com/books?id=62UpqBawyUMC&pg=PA23&dq=civil+war+toothbrush+arizona&hl=en&ei=dJfnTeDuFsjq0gG_89ybCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CC4Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false

Also I've never read a first hand account of this, I did a quick check on Google Books using "Civil War Toothbrush" to see if some leads would pop up, but I didn't find any specific references. Do you know of any first hand accounts that include using a toothbrush to clean a musket?

[Brandon Ledvina]

Re: field striping a 1861 Springfield rifled musket

You also do not remove the cone

If you were only cleaning your musket for cosmetic reasons I don’t think it would be that important but, if you were firing your musket I would think this would be necessary. We are talking about a 61 Springfield which I don’t know how many times I hear people complain about how much they misfire. Every time I shoot mine I take the cone off and rarely have an issue. While cleaning there is typically a decent amount of buildup that needs to be broken up otherwise it will start misfiring after so many shots, not to mention corrosion from the powder. Even though it is in the manual I wonder how much this was ever enforced. One other issue is the side screw. I would assume it would fall under the cone category.

[Jim Mayo]

Re: field striping a 1861 Springfield rifled musket

We are talking about a 61 Springfield which I don’t know how many times I hear people complain about how much they misfire. .

The originals were designed and manufactured much better than the junk we have today.

[Marine Mike]

Re: field striping a 1861 Springfield rifled musket

Coatsy, I was thinking period tooth brush and I did a leap of faith of repair/reuse/repurpose. Soft wood is mentioned with a rubbing compound of Flour of Emery is in the link provided by Silas. I've had three muskets brought to me at events this year because the sear failed to engage half cock and cock from the junk accumulated since it was pulled from the original packing case. A toothbrush and other non period remedies were used to clean and lubricate without lock disassembly. An Authentic would know and practice the maintenance process so this condition would not have occured in the first place.
Brandon, I was repeating the regulations. My repro M1855 does the same as yours unless I do something outside of the 1862 procedure. The cause is as Jim mentions and that is the flash channel of the repro is not cut the same as an original.
Also my experience is the lock side screws and washer tend to fall out after lock removal which is why I encourage tear down over something that will help you find the missing bits. The regulations say otherwise.
True sperm oil is not available but a psuedo soy-based sperm oil is from Dixie. I don't know how well it works. I use olive oil for protection and lubrication which I've been told is sweet oil. It works better than all the other things I've tried.
Finally, be in the habit of doing your own arms inspection before the unit inspection. Your inspection is safe operable condition and checking for loose bits like lock screws. The unit inspection will be concentrating on safe operable condition, not loose screws.

[Brandon Ledvina]

Re: field striping a 1861 Springfield rifled musket

Thanks Mike and Jim for clearing that up. I know what you gave was from the book and always a good place to look but I was just giving my own experiences. Although I have looked at and handled originals I have never taken the cone off and I guess I just assumed the this area was at least close to the originals. I know that was probably wishful thinking and a little stupidity at the same time.

[Curt Schmidt]

Re: field striping a 1861 Springfield rifled musket

Hallo!

The previous "tradition" was a carryover from the era of the longrifle and "jaeger" rifle where the gun tools and patches were carried under the "butt trap" or "patchbox."
For military rifles, one of the earliest of such arrangements were the Pattern 1800 Baker rifles and the U.S. M1803 rifle- the M1803's "butt box" being for "the wiper, flint, and rag..."

In addition the U.S. M1841 and M1855 rifles were issued with a spare cone stored in a hole drilled into its implement box.
With the advent of the M1855 Rifle-musket, interchangeable tools were permitted to a degree not previously known. Two of the older traditional tools, the wiper and the ball screw, were simplified, and the screwdriver/cone wrench was made more versatile by adding a third screwdriver blade. Another new tool was the "tumbler and wire punch" changed in 1861 to the "tumbler and band spring punch" along with a "universal wiper" and a tompion. Soldiers taking their guns apart seems to have been cautiously frowned upon, so initially the "punch" tool was issued ot NCO's only, but with the 1861 Ordnance Manual that policy was amended for officers, non-commissioned officers and soldiers to be instructed and practiced on the manner of mounting and dismounting (strictly defining what should and should not be mounted/dismounted- all of which seems to have been accepted slowly...)

So, basically, in the U.S. system, each soldier should have a screwdriver/ cone wrench combo tool and a wiper, each squad of ten a band-spring and tumbler punch, and a spring vise (carried by the NCO).

And the "implement pouch" for the "Springfield" was intended for the "implements" which did not stop men for carrying them elsewhere... ;-)

From Rules for the Management and Cleaning of the Rifle Musket, Model 1861, for the Use of Soldiers (applies to the Springfield Models 1855, 1861, and 1863, and more generally to the Enfield Models 1853 and 1858), under "Rules for Cleaning":

It is not essential for the musket to be dismounted {disassembled} every time that it is cleaned; for, after firing it in fine weather, or when there has been no chance for the wet to get between the barrel and the stock, it can be perfectly cleaned in the following manner.

Put a piece of rag or soft leather on the top of the cone, and let the hammer down upon it; pour a gill of water into the muzzle carefully, so that it does not run down the outside; put a plug of wood into the muzzle, and shake the gun up and down, changing the water repeatedly until it comes out clear. When clear, withdraw the leather, and stand the musket on the muzzle for a few moments; then wipe out the barrel (as given in the second rule for cleaning {see below}), and also wipe the exterior of the lock and the outside of the barrel around the cone and cone-seat first with a damp rag, and then with a dry one, and lastly with a rag that has been slightly oiled. In this way, all the dirt due to the firing may be removed without taking out a screw.

2nd. Screw the wiper on to the end of the ramrod, and put a piece of dry cloth, or tow, round it, sufficient to keep it from chafing the grooves of the barrel; wipe the barrel quite dry, changing or drying the cloth two or three times.

3d. Put no oil into the vent, as it will clog the passage, and cause the first primer to miss fire; but, with a slightly oiled rag on the wiper, rub the bore of the barrel,... and immediately insert the tompion into the muzzle."

Curt