Accoutrement Upgrades - The Possibles Bag, Capping and Charging

I have no argument about the type of possibles bag one chooses. After all, it is just a means to hold all of one's shooting accoutrements in one place. In fact, many black powder shooters have found serviceable bags by shopping in thrift stores and buying a hippy-style leather purse for next to  nothing. Times change, and what used to be used clothing has become "vintage" and has become more expensive to boot. Still, you can find a serviceable bag if you search garage sales and flea markets where the word "vintage" is seldom heard.

I often see that the possibles bag is not as well positioned as it could be. According to Mark Baker, the bag is best worn on the strong side slightly above the shooters' waist level. Based on his experience, the shooter's elbow can help keep the bag safe and secure when running from danger. You can then adjust the powder horn to a height that doesn't interfere with your opening the bag.

Loading From Your Bag: Ron Griffin always told me to learn how to load from the bag. I've seen a lot of shooters fumble while searching for a capper or a powder measure. The solution is easy to apply. Just attach your capper and your powder measure to a leather thong attached to the bag's strap. By anchoring the thongs at different heights on the possibles bag strap, the shooter can easily determine which tool he extracts by pulling on the proper thong.

Rifleman's Capper. Buy yours here.

The Rifleman's Capper: I've included this image of the Rifleman's Capper made by Ted Cash of Waunakee, Wisconsin. I prefer this design for percussion rifles and pistols where the nipple (sometimes called a cone) is easily accessible from the side. If you're shooting a revolver, this capper probably won't work.

Now in the world of Period Correct, an argument could be made, as with the short starter, that there is no historical documentation to corroborate its existence prior to 1838, the approximate ending of the fur trade in America. However, I did find a pair of similar cappers for sale at an antique auction house. Although there is no indication of the date of manufacture, this is proof that these cappers did indeed exist. 

Photo Source: Click here.

The Powder Measure: This photo provides a convenient segue into the issues of powder measures. The upper capper appears to have an attached adjustable measure. I can't be sure that is actually what it is, as it appears to be closed on both ends.

Before we go any further, let's remind ourselves that we should always load from a measure and never directly from the powder horn or flask. Control over the charge weight is reason enough, but there are inherent dangers of aligning an open powder horn with a pound of black powder directly above a barrel where a shouldering ember could ignite the incoming charge, sending a detonation cloud directly up the barrel and into your horn.

Powder Measures were often fashioned by the rifle maker to dispense the optimal load for the weapon. I've seen photos of measures made from a variety of materials, but those made from a section of antler are the most rustic in appearance, though not always the most practical. I have favored the fixed capacity measures formerly made by Tresco.

Buy yours here.

You can see from this photo that a lanyard hole has been provided. For the record, I standardized my shooting on a 50 grains equivalent for my .50 and .54 rifles, and 30 grains for my .50 pistols. Having the measure tethered to the bag with a simple leather strip streamlined the loading process considerably, leaving you free to concentrate on more pressing matters.

Tresco was a big name in black powder accessories at a time when almost every rendezvous had a trader or two selling their products. Nearly all of them had displays of powder measures with fixed capacities ranging from 20 grains (pistol) to 80 grains and beyond (big bore rifles).  Sad to say, those days are long gone, at least here in California, as the price of gas and the fluctuating in the supply chain make maintaining such a niche business difficult indeed. To simplify inventory, many vendors have gone to adjustable measures, eliminating the need to maintain a large inventory of fixed volume measures.

Powder charges are dispensed by volume. For example, a 50 grain powder measure will dispense the volume of Pyrodex (or other black powder substitute) that would equal the same amount of real black powder, even though the actual weight may be more, or less. This method of charging your muzzle loader will be accurate enough for most applications.

Another approach is to combine an adjustable measure with a built in spout with a powder horn with a dispensing spout. To use, you must first set the charge weight/volume appropriate to your rifle or pistol. Next, you swing the funnel to open the measure. Next, dispense the powder, allowing it to slightly overflow the measure. Finally, swing the funnel back to scrape the excess powder off of the measure. With the funnel in place, pour the powder into the barrel. Now it takes less time to actually measure the charge than it does to read this, but with practice, the process becomes smooth and effortless.

I never actually used this combination at a rendezvous primarily because a powder horn with a valve dispenser could not be verified, and to use one would be in conflict with my early nineteenth century persona. However, the concept apparently did exist. Around the time of the 200th Anniversary of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, Track Of The Wolf offered a kit for assembling a reproduction powder horn dispenser that was available to the Corps Of Discovery. The brass body casting was a bit rough and would require more effort than I was willing to commit to the project. The parts are resting in a box somewhere in my workshop, should I have a change of heart.

Madison Grant's book The Kentucky Rifle Hunting Pouch contains many photographs of original hunting pouches. It shows that the practice of using a chain or leather thong to secure one's accoutrements was common, but how common is subject to discussion. If a metal chain deteriorates more slowly than a leather thong, it is more likely to survive two or more centuries of dormancy. It doesn't mean that chains were more common, just that they were more likely to survive. I am sure that such tethers, metallic or otherwise, were more for security.

Trigger circa 1803

I have always held the expedition of the Corps Of Discovery among America's most heroic moments, and after a while realized that in spite of the wealth of information provided by Meriwether  Lewis' journals, there is much that we don't know about their equipment. The reason is simple. At the conclusion of the expedition, all of the returning equipment was considered surplus and sold on the civilian market. And it must be assumed that some items of lesser importance may  have been bartered off to obtain much needed foodstuffs. So without verification, I decided to discard accoutrements that couldn't be verified and revert to those that could.

Safety Note: Whether authentic reproduction or modern interpretation, powder measures are always made from non-sparking materials, such as brass or horn. I will be the first to admit that I do not fully understand the mechanics of static discharge, but there have been enough incidents of unintentional detonations of black powder ignited by an unexpected spark. Science or folklore, I will gladly accept  the non-sparking rule and stay with brass measures.

As a special treat for those who read this posting to the very end, I found this Townsend's video on making your own possibles bag. If you examine the photo carefully, you can see what appear to be a ball pouch similar to the one described in the last posting.

Enjoy!

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