Rations

[Virginia Mescher]

Re: Essence of Coffee

Virginia,

That receipt works rather well, and with a little care it won't scorch. Several methods exist to skin the proverbial cat.

Just loaded about seven pounds of Essense of Coffee into Old Whitey the Wundertruck, and soon it shall be Mississippi bound. That's a lot of axle grease.

Charles,

You will have to share your recipes for axle grease. We've tried several and they turned out pretty good, if you like your coffee strong, sweet and milky.

Have a good trip.

[Rob Weaver]

Re: Hard Soap

Soap made with olive oil is "castile soap" and lathers better than either beef fat or pig fat soap. And has a pleasant smell, also. By the way, if you like living on the wild side, and combining dangerous chemicals at high temperature sounds interesting to you, soap-making is for you.

[Becky Morgan]

Re: Hard Soap

By the way, if you like living on the wild side, and combining dangerous chemicals at high temperature sounds interesting to you, soap-making is for you.

I highly recommend making soap out in the 90-degree heat with the neighbor's cats jumping around your feet :p I'm always amused by the number of people who are horrified at the idea of handling lye, but think nothing of using drain cleaner. One big caveat for anyone thinking of trying soapmaking: use actual lye or potassium hydroxide, depending on what kind of soap you're making. Don't Use Drano.

[maineman]

Re: Hard Soap

By trickling water thru hard wood ashes you can make lye that is mild enough to make soap but not as powerful as sodium hydroxide. I learned this the hard way by emptying my grill by a boxwood under a drip edge and killed the plant by the lye the ashes produced.


"War is like prostitution, sometimes both are performed better by amateurs"

Napoleon

[KathyBradford]

Re: Hard Soap

You're right about trickling water through hardwood ashes to make lye. Pictured is a lye trough into which first a layer of straw, and then the ashes are placed. Water is run through as many times as necessary to get lye of the desired strength.

To test, use a feather and an egg. First, insert the feather into the lye water. If it comes out without vanes and looking like a stick, the lye is too strong. Next, an egg is placed in the lye water. If it floats gently, the lye is just the right strength.

In one method, the lye water and tallow are individually heated to a temperature of 120 degrees. They are removed from the heat, and carefully stirred together. In order to avoid dangerous splashing, some people stir in only one direction. Continually stir until a trace line remains in the soap for several seconds. Salt may be added to make the soap harder, but it is unnecessary with beef tallow.

Once the soap reaches the proper consistency, it is poured into a mold. When it sets up enough to hold the line, it is scored into blocks with a knife or a wire.

The saponification process takes at least three weeks. During that time, a chemical reaction occurs to sweeten the lye. If the soap is used too quickly, the unchanged lye will cause skin irritation.

It is a process best done in the cool, dry weather of late fall. Hot, humid weather can delay the process dramatically, but in the right conditions and with small batches, the stirring process can be accomplished in as little as twenty minutes.

[Rob Weaver]

Re: Hard Soap

Do you do your mixing in a big pot over a fire? If you do, what temperature do you estimate the soap is mixing at? There is a strong early tradition of only stirring soap in one direction or else it won't work, too.

[KathyBradford]

Re: Hard Soap

Rob,

Good questions! I revised the above directions, but a recipe will give you more complete directions and amounts.

The lye and fat are heated separately to 110 -120 degrees. Smaller batches (one pound of fat) require the higher temperature. Once they each reach that temperature, they are carefully combined away from the fire. All stirring is done away from the heat, as well. Cooling is part of the process that changes the mixture from a thin, watery-looking liquid to a creamy consistency.

Stirring in only one direction minimizes the chance of the mixture splashing. Lye is very caustic and can cause chemical burns on the skin. Be especially cautious not to get any of this in eyes.

There are several soap experts on this forum. Please jump in.

[Spinster]

Re: Hard Soap

I highly recommend making soap out in the 90-degree heat with the neighbor's cats jumping around your feet :p I'm always amused by the number of people who are horrified at the idea of handling lye, but think nothing of using drain cleaner. One big caveat for anyone thinking of trying soapmaking: use actual lye or potassium hydroxide, depending on what kind of soap you're making. Don't Use Drano.

:p Like so many myths in the hobby, here is another process that requires common sense, and a respect for the chemicals at hand. Like so many things, not a particularly difficult process, but yet another where reading and following directions is fundamental.

For those going into the soap making business, who choose to use manufactured lye as their first step (a fine idea when you are learning to make soap, as oppossed to learning to make lye)----you may need to plan well ahead.

As I discovered when preparing for a big indigo run last year, lye must be ordered in advance, and signed for at my local hardware store. The price has increased considerably, and I must purchase a larger amount than my normal annual needs for dyepots. I haven't checked into the full story to see if this is a Homeland Security thing, or a regional thing---designed to curb methamphetamine production by making the ingredients harder to get.

[Becky Morgan]

Re: Hard Soap

Wal-Mart and Kroger still carry Lewis Lye here in the eastern Ohio-northern WV panhandle, but a large purchase would probably require a signature. I tend to make one small (maybe six pounds) batch of soap at a time, so thus far my one-can purchase isn't a concern. Crystal meth makers have ruined a lot of ordinary purchases, from propane to Sudafed to lye and other drain cleaners...and yes, the crooks WILL use Drano, or anything else they can get their hands on. One of my favorite soapmaking stores went out of business for that very reason. Meth labs kept trying to order from them, huge amounts of various chemicals without any of the other stuff you'd think a real soapmaker would want, and they were afraid of liability.

[Rob Weaver]

Re: Hard Soap

Rob,

Good questions! I revised the above directions, but a recipe will give you more complete directions and amounts.

The lye and fat are heated separately to 110 -120 degrees. Smaller batches (one pound of fat) require the higher temperature. Once they each reach that temperature, they are carefully combined away from the fire. All stirring is done away from the heat, as well. Cooling is part of the process that changes the mixture from a thin, watery-looking liquid to a creamy consistency.

Stirring in only one direction minimizes the chance of the mixture splashing. Lye is very caustic and can cause chemical burns on the skin. Be especially cautious not to get any of this in eyes.

There are several soap experts on this forum. Please jump in.

Oh, no! Actually my wife is th e soap-maker in our family. She make several varieties and has a lot of fun at it. I'm merely the happy recipient of her efforts, and the earpiece for her frustrations. She likes to do "hot process" and has more success with it than "cold process."

[crabby]

Re: Hard Soap

Terre,
We can't obtain lye at any stores locally anymore. Red Devil was the brand most often available, but I believe that company went out of business.

I did find lye at Lehmans Hardware in 1 lb cans or in their soap making dept. in 5 lb containers.

Beth Crabb

[springkeeper]

Re: Hard Soap

From Dr.Chase's Recipes, 1867

"Chemical Soft Soap - J.Hamilton, an Englishman, and proprietor of the Eagle Hotel, Aurora, Indiana, makes his soap for house use, as follows:

take grease 8 lbs; caustic soda 8 lbs; sal-soda 1 lb; melt the grease in a kettle, melt the soda in soft water 4 gals., and pour all into barrel holding 40 gals. and fill up with soft water and the labor is done."

There are others recipes... "White Hard Soap," "Varigated Tiolet Soap," "Transparent Soap."

[Pmiller]

Opening cans on campaign

-I tried the search area & even looked through 20 pages of old post-

Might someone be able to shed some light on how the occasional food can was properly opened by the campainer. I have not been able to find a pick of any tool/device, or referance to any with my internet searches.

Many thanks

Peter J. Miller

[nick19thind]

Re: Opening cans on campaign

With a bayonet.
Many cans have been found opened this way

[Beaner]

Re: Opening cans on campaign

May I suggest a period correct original can opener. They are very inexpensive and usually can be found at flea markets. I think I paid a dollar for the one I use. It weighs maybe 5 or 6 ounces and can easily be carried in your haversack. If I remember I'll post a picture for you tomorrow.
Dave Prince
4th Texas Co. E