The Saga Of Jumping Billy..............

Anyone who knows me, knows that I am a collector of almost anything and everything. Someone once told me that my taste are somewhat mercurial. I get hot and heavy into various things, then cool off only to branch off into other areas with the same enthusiasm. But having said that, I have one heck of a good time going from interest to interest, then sharing with my friends.

Back when I started doing Revolutionary War reenactments, one of the things that fired me up were the reproduction artillery pieces that I saw in the field. Sometimes I even served on several gun crews that were short of members. Nothing is as much fun or gets as much attention as a field piece, either a 3 pounder or even a 6 pounder going "bang" at the proper time.

Now for a short history lesson. Artillery in the time of the Revolutionary War, was a bit different than what we have today. Most field artillery was used like we today would use a heavy machine gun, as close infantry support weapon. Most of the cannons used in this time period were smaller so that they could stay up with the quickly advancing troops. Swivel guns, 3 and 6 pounders were the norm. (so named after the weight of shot fired) Any larger, and the combined weight of the gun tube and carriage would make it impossible to move it any great distance or with any speed in the field. Larger guns were used on ship or in fortresses or fixed defensive positions. They were also used in assaults or sieges on fixed defenses such as Yorktown.

I had always wanted a big gun, but it was sorta like it was on the bottom of my wish and want list. There were other items I could afford easier or wanted much worse. Then, a few years back, that changed. A good friend of mine told me he was looking for a shotgun to give his son to keep around the house as a self defense gun. I had a couple of old police riot guns that I was willing to let go, so I asked him what he had to trade. He suggested a few odds and ends which didn't throw any sparks but then he said "I've got a swivel gun" I developed "lock on" and told my buddy, "let's talk. " After a haggling session that would have made two Armenian rug merchants proud, we came to an agreement of gentlemen and my friend ended up with a police marked Remington 870 and a reasonably priced Tex-Mex dinner, and I ended up with a Swivel gun w/ carriage, as well as a Sergent's Halberd. The halberd was tossed in to "sweeten" the deal, plus I am the only kid on my block that has one. I am a fool for sharp pointed things and this is the ultimate in that field.   *grin* The only minor problem is that with it's 8 foot length, that I can't move it around in the house very easily nor lean it up into the corner or store it very easy.  

The swivel has a 11/4 " bore and the tube is about three feet long. It came on a weird sort of carriage, but my buddy told me that it was a French design and historically accurate. (famous last words) I accepted it at face value, and planned on taking it to my next Royal Navy reenactment. That happened about three weeks later. We went to an event hosted by a Scottish Highland unit doing a Highland Games/Jacobite Rising event. We were invited to provide the highlanders with something to shoot at. We of course, went to uphold the dignity of his majesties lawful government as well as to show the royal standard. Pretty soon, we (The Navy contingent) were calling the event "The Great Jacobite Turkey Shoot."

On the first day of the event, we took our post on the battlefield. I set up my new swivel gun, bursting with pride and trying to think of a proper name for this fearsome weapon. Many names ran through my head, Retribution, Sudden Death, Thunderer, and so on. This lasted until the swivel's first shot. At that point, I discovered that as cool as the gun looked, with it's elevating carriage. It just didn't work. We fired the gun and because of it carriage it flipped over on it's back. This was with a simple blank charge, no projectile. I looked at my brand new gun, picked it up and set it back up. We reloaded it, and touched her off again. Once more, the gun did a back flip and landed upside down. But this time, people were watching and one of my shipmates yelled out, "Damn, did you see that thing jump?" So, at that point, two things were decided. First, I didn't think it would be too wise to fire it any more until it was a little bit more stable. And second, this weapon would be forever more known as Jumping Billy.

I took Jumping Billy home and set it in  my workshop until I could do some figuring on the carriage. A few months later, I thought it might be fun (and of course educational) to fire a live shot out of her. I took her down to the creek loaded a modest powder charge and about one pound of buckshot down the bore. Mindful of how the gun acted with a blank charge, I weighed the wheels down with sandbags and cinder blocks. I then touched her off. There was a big boom, a lot of smoke, the sound of branches, twigs, and other odds and ends crashing in the woods where the buckshot went. Also Jumping Billy lived up to it's name, it was as if I hadn't put any extra weight on the gun. When it fired, it ended up doing doing a triple somersault with a half twist backwards, ending up on it's back. The Bulgarian judge gave it a hard 9.7. So once again back to my shop it went.

Some time later, my messmate, Mr. Grimes told me that he was doing some cannon work and would be willing to work up a new stand for the swivel. I told him I would be willing to swap some leather work for it. We came to a agreement of gentlemen and Mr. Grimes took custody of the gun tube this past week-end and hopefully I will have a shooting swivel gun to play with soon.




          

A Semi-Old Warhorse Casts It's Spell On Me............

Back in the dawn of recorded history when I was a young pup, I spent most of my time running around, keeping the world safe for women, children and little animals by enforcing laws and and keeping order. I even had a off-duty gun that I was particularly proud of. It was "gasp" a 9mm. I had put a great deal of thought into it's selection. It was a Smith & Wesson model 39. The same weapon that the Indiana State Police carried. Eight shots in the magazine, one up the spout, that beautiful Smith blue job on the slide, the hard black on the aluminum frame, the slight reddish tint on the highly varnished grip panels, man it was gorgeous. It was easy to carry, it fit my Bianchi X-15 shoulder holster, it shot any type of bullet without a bobble, it was everything a person could want. I am talking stone cold sexy.

Only one problem, I couldn't hit a barn with it even if I was standing inside the barn. No matter what I did, no matter what ammunition I used, no matter how I shot, I just couldn't hit a bull in the tit with a tin cup with that pistol. I eventually traded that weapon off because as someone once said, "Only accurate weapons are interesting" Seeing the need to keep a 9mm in my stable, I picked up a Chinese Tokarev with a 9mm conversion barrel. However I could not shoot it any better than the Smith & Wesson. Again, it was traded off.

So that's where the collection stood (well other than a beat up Broomhandle Mauser which is worthy of a post all it's own) until a few weeks ago. I was struck by a itch to do some trading and was talking to a buddy of mine and we came up with a trade for a Browning High Power in 9mm. Now it wasn't a "true" Browning High Power. It was a Argentinian pistol made on F.N. Machinery but it was well put together and it seemed to be solid. My friend told me that he was having some failure to extract issues with the weapon. Now they had Browning H.P.s in my day (Frank Serpico carried one) but they were what you might call, your higher priced spread. Brownings traditionally were the most expensive weapons out there, even beating Colts. They just didn't fit into the average cop's budget. I figured that I would never be able to afford one but here was my chance to come damned close. We made the trade and I took the old girl home.

The first chance I had, I ran a box of Winchester WB through the weapon. As my buddy said, there were a few failure to extracts, so I sat down with my punch set and took out the extractor to look it over. The operating spring for the extractor was very compressed and a big wad of cosmoline also came out of the slot. I cleaned the slot and spring and gently used the blade of a screwdriver to open up the loops of the spring. I then reassembled the weapon and bless Moses, that pistol shot like a house afire. (For my non-southern readers, that means GOOD) Even better, I found that I hit just about everything that I set the sights on. Man I was impressed!!!!!! I have ordered a new spring that I will put in and test before trusting it to carry, but once that is done, I wouldn't have any concern about packing it.  This is a 9mm that I am going to keep for a very long time and you can take that to the bank (Unless I get the overwhelming urge to do some swapping again. )  

Defender's Day and 10 years after 9/11.......

Since I have been so focused on making things down in my shop, I have been shamelessly ignoring this blog but then I found this post I lost for a while.  I figured that I might as well post it, if for no other reason to fill up space. I wrote it way back in September. 

I spent the weekend of September 10/11 at Fort McHenry in Baltimore MD. We are quickly approaching the 200th Anniversary of the War of 1812 and I have sorta "drifted" into portraying a common seaman of that period. I had a great time talking to the public, showing off the weapons of the age of fighting sail, sewing on a period hammock and doing my knot work, as well as visiting with my fellow "living historians".

Since Sunday was the 10th anniversary of 9-11, I couldn't help but think of the reaction of myself and everyone I knew on that date, and compared it in my mind with what others had experienced and felt at other times of crisis in the history of our country. An event which no doubt had the same effect on people 195 years ago was the British attack on Baltimore. To properly put yourself in that time and place remember that England was the primary world power in the early 1800's. She had forced Napoleon to abdicate the French throne and had forced him into exile. Britain had also fought a war with America since 1812 that had not gone well for the Americans. The coast of America had been blockaded by the Royal Navy and for all intents and practical purposes the Chesapeake Bay was a English pond with the Royal Navy landing parties and raiding at will all along the coast. On August 20th 1814 a large British force was landed at Benedict MD, it's target, Washington. The Americans attacked the advancing British at Bladensburg on August 24th. The battle was a unmitigated disaster. The majority of the American forces broke and retreated from the British with such enthusiasm, that one observer stated "They ran like sheep chased by dogs" This battle was nicknamed by the British "The Bladensburg Races" The British then marched into Washington unopposed. The burned the White House, The Capitol and several other public buildings. The also burned the Washington Navy Yard. Then having nothing else much to accomplish, they marched back out and went back on their ships.

So now, this same Royal Navy has just appeared in Baltimore Harbor. The population had time to build defenses and seemed to have built up a bit of a fighting spirit. The British had landed troops and there had been a battle at North Point, which had been a British victory, but had cost the British forces a very bloody nose. (The British commander Major General Robert Ross was K.I.A. By American marksmen) The trenches and fortifications the Americans had built around Baltimore had given the British Army a bit of a pause. It was decided to give the Royal Navy the chance to take the city. The main point of defense for the harbor was Ft. McHenry commanded by Major George Armistead. Major Armistead was a well trained professional, who had fighting spirit enough for two men. Sometime before the appearance of the British he had ordered a new flag for the garrison. He stated that he wanted an American flag so large, that there would be no difficulty for the British to see it any time of day or night. The flag he ordered was 42 feet long by 30 feet high. It had 15 stars as well as 15 stripes and was made of wool bunting. It cost the government $405.90. Remember this was in 1814 dollars. Major Armistead while he had the will to fight and defend the city, there was a secret that only he knew. The fort's bomb proofs in which he stored the garrison's gun powder were not as bombproof as they should have been.

On September 13th, 1814 the British Bomb Vessel Volcano weighted anchor at 05:00 and started to ease in the direction of the American fort. In consort with the Volcano was the bomb vessel Meteor as well as the Rocket ship Erebus and the schooner Cockchafer The largest cannons that the fort mounted were the 24lbs. which had an effective range of 1,800 yards and the larger 36 lbs. which had a range of 2,800 yards. The British Bomb Vessels with their 10 in. and 13 in. Mortars could fire a 200 lb. explosive shell up to 4,200 yards. The rate of fire for these weapons was 45 to 50 rounds per hour so the British could stand safely out of range of the American guns and given enough time and luck could pound the American defenses to dust. These huge weapons did however a weak point. A fuse was lit in the projectile when the weapon was fired. The gunners attempted to cut the fuse length so as to time it to set off the shell's explosive charge just before it impacted into the target, spraying metal fragments around. This method was VERY unreliable and a good number of the shells exploded anywhere from mid air to minutes after landing. (One shell fell into the fort's magazine and sat there with it's fuse burning until a defender dumped a bucket of water on it, putting it out and preventing an explosion.) Soon the first 4 ships were joined by 3 other bomb vessels, the Terror, Devastation and Aetna With this much firepower, it was thought that Ft. McHenry would fall fairly soon after the attack commenced.

At 06:30 the Volcano fired a few ranging shot to discover that she was still out of range so she advanced further, less that two miles from the fort. At 07:00 the Meteor commenced firing, then the other bombships joined in. Along with the bombships, was a fairly new development, the rocket ship Eribus. The Congreve Rocket was a new addition to the armament of the British forces. It consisted of a large iron tube with a wooden stick attached to the side. Different warheads were attached depending on the target, the warheads were explosive, incendiary and anti-personnel. Unlike the bombships which had to be braced, reenforced and modified to stand the enormous recoil of the mortar's firing, a ship to launch rockets only needed at most a few holes cut in the upper decks to allow the rockets to protrude. The rocket could be launched with fairly large warheads, 24, 32, 36 and 42 pounders were used.

The rocket however did have several things that prevented it's whole hearted acceptance. The Congreve was very much like a modern bottle rocket that has been fed a LOT of steroids. It was insanely inaccurate, we are talking minute-of-town accuracy. It had a nasty habit when being used by ground forces to come back on the troops that were firing it. It's fusing was very similar to that of the mortar shell, so there was no telling when the explosive charge would go off. They were also dangerous to any ships that launched them. The rocket when fired, emitted a shower of hot gas and sparks, not something that a wooden ship, loaded with canvas sails, hemp rope, tar and other combustibles would do well with. But since the rocket was approved, it was used.

Major Armisted and the garrison of the fort hunkered down for a long day. They attempted to boost the range of their guns to reach the British ships by elevation and boosting the powder charge, but all that accomplished was to dismount three of his big guns due to excessive recoil. (The guns were not permanently damaged and were remounted.) Knowing that he was wasting his shots, he ordered his gun crews to stand down, take cover where ever they could find it and only fire their guns once in a while to let the town know that the fort was still holding out.

All day and the following night, the British shelled the fort. It was estimated that over 2000 shells were fired at the fort with an estimated 700 to 800 rockets. The men in the fort's garrison just sat there and took it, one compared his feelings to that of a pigeon who's leg has been tied to allow someone to shoot at it. Another bird served to boost the morale of the garrison. In the midst of the shelling, a rooster mounted the fort's parapet and began to crow as if in defiance of the British. One of the defenders yelled out that if he and the rooster survived the fight, that he would treat that bird the finest pound cake in Baltimore.

On a few occasions, the British ships thinking that they had silenced Ft. McHenry's guns advanced within the range of the American guns. This was taken advantage of by the Americans at around 3:00 that afternoon. Three of the bomb vessels and the rocketship weighed anchor and eased toward the Fort. Closer and closer they came until they were within a mile and a half of the fort, at that point, the Americans opened up with everything they had. The Devastation took a hit in the port bow which sprung timbers and started a serious leak. She took another that went through her main topsail. The Volcano took five straight hits, none of which caused serious damage. After meeting this rebuff, the British ships withdrew to outside the American's range once again. With that, the British command structure began to think that the effort that they were expending wasn't worth the possible cost. Baltimore was the first vigorous defense that the British had met and it wasn't something that they were used to dealing with. The British also had their eye on another prize much more valuable than Baltimore. The city of New Orleans was the next target of the British. They would need every man and ship to both take that city as well as pack out all the loot that they expected to gather there.

On the morning of September 14th after a diversionary attack which was not followed through on, the British fleet ceased fire on the Fort at 04:00.

In the British fleet were some Americans who had been caught up in the attack while negotiating the release of an American civilian arrested by the British. One of these Americans was Francis Scott Key a lawyer from the area. Key was against the war, on many occasions spoke of how Baltimore deserved what it got, due to it's pro war jingoism. But during that long night he had had a change of mind and heart. He decided that he was an American and he and his fellow Americans prayed that the fort would hold out. The cease fire caught Key by surprise and he didn't know what it meant, He with the help of a spyglass saw Armisted's flag flying all the proceeding day. During the night, the British cannon fire indicated that the fort still held. As dawn broke, Key and the others strained to see if they could see the flag, through the overcast and mist of the morning. Then an easterly breeze came up and Key could see once the mist was blown away Armisted's flag flying over the battered fort. Key was overcome with emotion and being an amateur poet, pulled out a old envelope and started writing down his thoughts. Of course, you know where THAT ended up.

Back to my original thought. I suspect that the British capture of Washington and burning of White House and Capitol had the same effect on the American people that 9/11 had on us. Fear, uncertainty, confusion, finally turning into anger, fury, a sense of digging in and getting the job done, and eventually victory over great odds. It always seems that that's the way the American character is. After taking a good slug in the chin, we pick ourselves up, dust off, wipe away the blood, grin, spit on our palms and proceed to wax the a*s of anyone that monkeys with us. That's why I believe that no matter what happens, America and it's never stoppable spirit will continue, no matter what.

Oh yeah, two other things. First of all, the brave Anti- British rooster DID get his pound cake. Nothing like a man who keeps his word.

Also, Major Armisted who worked himself so hard preparing for the fort's defense that he fell ill after the battle. Due to contiuing poor health brought on by this overwork, he only lived more four years, dieing in 1818. Armisted had four brothers who also served in the war. One of these brothers moved down to North Carolina. This brother, had a son who followed his uncle into military service to build a life long army career. He was a student at West Point who was asked to leave the school after breaking a mess plate over fellow cadet Jubal Early's head. This son, was appointed to the army even after his incident, had a very steady career, regular promotion and was well thought of by his fellow officers and superiors. In 1861, when his home state of Virgina left the Union, he could not and would not serve in a Army that would be fighting against his family and friends and invading his home state. He took command of Virginia troops and again was known for his competency and professionalism. He was made a Brigadier General under George Pickett and led his troops in the Pettigrew-Pickett assault on Cemetery Ridge at Gettysburg PA. on July 3rd 1863. He was badly wounded and died on July 5th in a Federal field hospital. This officer's name was Lewis A. Armisted. So in one of those twist of history that I find so fascinating, the nephew of the defender of the Star Spangled Banner died fighting against that same flag almost 49 years later............

Dick Clark 1929 -2012

It just passed over the wire that Dick Clark of American Bandstand fame, died today. Another cultural icon of my youth is gone.

There is no way that I can imagine Rock & Roll, the true music of America and what it would be without the contribution of Dick Clark who was there at it's birth as well as it's continued growth.

May he rest in peace, for all the joy and pleasure that he brought to people over the years

Light bringer Follies..............

Two quick observations while I am out of my shop.

I find the unraveling "scandal" involving the Secret Service very interesting. IF the allegations are true, the agents were in the wrong and should have the book thrown at them. But, I would bet that something like this would have NEVER occurred with either of the two Bush administrations. (I remember something similar with the Secret Service occurring during the Clinton Administration) If you don't have any respect for your boss, or your boss doesn't have any respect for you, I would suggest that it would be difficult to WANT to do the right thing. I was always taught that you lead by example and the current administration has NOT done this, I am ashamed to say. If I were a Secret Service agent, I must admit it would be very hard for me to take a bullet for the light bringer.

This is a quote that I saw on the Fox Nation web site and also on fellow blogger Drawn Cutlass page. It's from former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton:

"I understand the Obama administration is trying to make the argument that foreign policy is a strength of theirs, using the killing of Osama bin Laden. But the way I would look at it is this: Osama bin Laden was killed while Obama was president–he wasn’t killed because Obama was president."

It's The Law..............

I've had a few folks ask me about my new photo on the blog. It is a picture of Sheriff C.J. Perry and his posse from St. John's County, Florida sometime around the early 1900's. Sheriff Perry is the wide gentleman with the white shirt broad brimmed hat and carrying what appears to be a Single Action Army Colt. This photo was taken just after they had returned from a successful manhunt for an murder suspect.

Requiescat in pace.................

Recently heard the very sad news that fellow blogger Newbius passed away. Much to my regret I didn't know him well, having only met him at the Charlotte N.R.A. convention and at Jay G's birthday party. I did however, read his blog whenever he wrote on it. I think I picked up a good feel for what kind of man he was by reading his words. Newbius struck me as a man who had a very strong sense of right and wrong, and was not a person who brooked fools easily. But he was also generous and forthright and had a highly developed sense of humor. At Jay G's party, he kept on lifting Jay's new knife every chance he got, which amused me beyond belief watching those two.

It seems that one of the saddest things about when someone dies, is that the living that are left behind the majority of the time always have regrets. Mostly about what they didn't say to the departed, what they didn't get around to doing with the departed and so on. I admit, I wish I had gotten to know Newbius better, to drop him a note to say I enjoyed his blog or even ask him about the art and mystery of pizza making. I just hope that I can learn from this and start saying what needs to be said and doing what needs to be done before it's too late. Ms. Nancy of "Excels at Nothing" blog started the Newbius Meme and I would like to join in. Here's my three:

Ms. Nancy of the world famous "Excels at Nothing" blog.

Even if I didn't know and love Ms. Nancy in person, I would still follow her blog (and no doubt still love her) *grin* She has a slightly quirky world view which makes me laugh and is one of the most generous and giving woman I have ever known. With sweet daughter tossed into the mix, it's a winning combination that I cherish and value.

Ms. Brigid of "Home on the Range" Blog.

I like so many other southerners love the English language. Someone who speaks well or better yet, writes well stands pretty high in my estimation. Brigid is pretty damned high up there. She can paint a vivid and colorful portrait of almost anything with just a few well chosen words. She also has had her share of hard times and shares them with her readers, not in a "poor, pitiful me" mode, but rather in the "well, the ice is a little thin there, you might want to watch out where you step" or " I got burned, but I made it through, you can too" mode. I can honestly say that I always feel better about life in general after reading her post, and add to that she has a wicked sense of humor that comes out every now and then. Her blog is well worth a stop by.

Jay G. of "MArooned" blog

I consider Jay G. my blog step-daddy. When I first ventured into this strange world of blogging Jay's blog convinced me that sometimes it is a good thing to do what is right, and let the chips fall where they may. Another thing about Jay is that like Wyatt Earp said about "Doc" Holliday "I like that old rip, he makes me laugh" I never thought I would say that about ANYBODY or ANYTHING from the commonwealth of Massachusetts. *grin*

There of course are many other bloggers I follow and enjoy, and I will get around to letting them know, but these folks are the tops on my list at least for now. So folks, do yourself a favor and let your favorite blogger know that you appreciate what they do. I am sure that Newbius would appreciate it.