doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Historically, what was "greased cloth"?

Baize perhaps? An open weave that would hold a lot of solidified grease.

Many modern day BP cartridge shooters do mix their own lube.

A popular commercial product is called SPG after the initials of the 'inventor'.

The shooters and rifles are capable of very fine accuracy.

Brings back a lot of historical memories of the Indian Mutiny. I suspect the greased cloth of the 1870's was identical to the Grease cartridges of the 1853 .577 Enfield Rifle Musket. The Enfield cartridges were "overland with a thin mixture of beeswax and mutton tallow for waterproofing." Here are the references (from wikipedia but there are thousands of references to this) - note the mention of saliva too:

Pattern 1853 Enfield rifled musket
The two weapons which used the cartridge supposedly sealed with pig and cow fat
The rebellion was, literally, started over a gun. Sepoys throughout India were issued with a new rifle, the Pattern 1853 Enfield rifled musket�a more powerful and accurate weapon than the old but smoothbore Brown Bess they had been using for the previous decades. The rifling inside the musket barrel ensured accuracy at much greater distances than was possible with old muskets. One thing did not change in this new weapon � the loading process, which did not improve significantly until the introduction of breech loaders and metallic, one-piece cartridges a few decades later.

To load both the old musket and the new rifle, soldiers had to bite the cartridge open and pour the gunpowder it contained into the rifle's muzzle, then stuff the paper cartridge (overlaid with a thin mixture of beeswax and mutton tallow for waterproofing) into the musket as wadding, the ball being secured to the top of the cartridge and guided into place for ramming down the muzzle. The rifle's cartridges contained 68 grains of FF blackpowder, and the ball was typically a 530-grain Pritchett or a Burton-Mini� ball.

Despite no discernible reason for a change in practice, some sepoys believed that the cartridges that were standard issue with the new rifle were greased with lard (pork fat) which was regarded as unclean by Muslims and tallow (cow fat) which angered the Hindus as cows were equal to a goddess to them. The sepoys' British officers dismissed these claims as rumours, and suggested that the sepoys make a batch of fresh cartridges, and greased these with pig and cow fat. This reinforced the belief that the original issue cartridges were indeed greased with lard and tallow.

Another suggestion they put forward was to introduce a new drill, in which the cartridge was not bitten with the teeth but torn open with the hand. The sepoys rejected this, pointing out that they might very well forget and bite the cartridge, not surprising given the extensive drilling that allowed 19th century British and Indian troops to fire three to four rounds per minute. British and Indian military drills of the time required soldiers to bite off the end of the Beeswax paper cartridge, pour the gunpowder contained within down the barrel, stuff the remaining paper cartridge into the barrel, ram the paper cartridge (which included the ball wrapped and tied in place) down the barrel, remove the ram-rod, return the ram-rod, bring the rifle to the ready, set the sights, add a percussion cap, present the rifle, and fire. The musketry books also recommended that, "Whenever the grease around the bullet appears to be melted away, or otherwise removed from the cartridge, the sides of the bullet should be wetted in the mouth before putting it into the barrel; the saliva will serve the purpose of grease for the time being" This meant that biting a musket cartridge was second nature to the Sepoys, some of whom had decades of service in the Company's army, and who had been doing musket drill for every day of their service. The first sepoy who rebelled by aiming his loaded weapon at a British officer was Mangal Pandey who was later executed.[25]

Thank you, gentlemen. Your comments are helpful. If you use any internet search engine like duckduckgo.com, google etc the best "greased cloth" results you will get are a few photos of old Purdey and Lancaster gun case labels, where the millboard card wad and the "greased cloth" are explicitly mentioned. While I thought that lubed felt wads would be the equivalent of greased cloth, my guns get terrible accuracy with the felts. So scratch that idea. Whatever it was, it was a known thing and it worked well. Those people lucky enough to have pulled apart original BPE rounds seem to have dismissed the two wads found inside, or not really analyzed them. Recently I ordered and used actual millboard in lieu of the regular vegetable fiber wads most of us use. Millboard in 1888 was used for bookmaking and also as the over-powder wad in black powder cartridges. It is much stiffer than the vegetable fiber wads, though bendy enough to not act as an obstruction in the barrel. As the felt wads have always let me down, I have gone back to using Dacron pillow stuffing over the millboard, because something must take up the air space in the shell, and unlike the felt wads, the Dacron rounds are really high performers. Now I wonder if I dipped the Dacron in some sort of natural grease, would it in effect basically amount to the "greased cloth" of yore...By the way, in my flintlock I have been using bear grease on the round ball patches, and it is fantastic. Best lubricant I have ever used.

[img:left]https://www.morphyauctions.com/jamesdjulia/item/52999-5-402/[/img]
our own Captain Curl:
[img:left]http://rbsiii.com/PaperPatchedBullets/index.html[/img]
and one more: [img:left]https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot/purdey-sons-an-exceptional-450-3-1-4in-blac-999-c-f784f9ba8a[/img]

Wife just bought some Bees Wax Cloth to preserve food...not cheap. I'm wondering if it might work in muzzle loaders? It seems to have the right ingredients:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07X28GG5B/ref...0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

I have seen it promoted, but have not tried it for both greasing the patches for a ML rifle & the filler wads for black powder shotguns a 50/50mi of Beeswax & Mutton Tallow. Mutton tallow is said to have a much longer life than most animal tallows/lards without going Rancid.

Beeswax and mutton tallow were apparently the ingredients of the 1853 Rifle-Musket paper cartridge...tear open the cartridge and dump the powder into the barrel. The bullet adhered to the paper sort of but looks like you removed it...but the bullet had the beeswax and tallow on it and rested on top of the powder without a card.... and viola.

Since I don't have mutton tallow...I just might steal one of wife's new Bees wax cloths ("made of organic cotton, sustainably harvested beeswax, organic jojoba oil, and tree resin" ) and cut some holes in it...or better..cut off a couple of inches and just claim she was shorted by the company or something.



1855 British loading-firing drill:

Prepare to Load.
1st. At the word Load, seize the firelock with the right hand immediately under the cock, the forefinger touching the back part of it, the thumb between the stock and barrel, pointing up, the firelock kept steady.
2nd. Quit the butt with the left hand, and grasp the firelock firmly with it, the little finger as high as the shoulder.
3rd. Bring the firelock down in the left hand, and place the butt quietly on the ground, six inches in front of the body, with the barrel to the front, and perpendicular; carry the right hand at the same time to the pouch or ball bag, and draw from it a cartridge; the firelock to be held at the full extent of the left arm.

Load.
1st. Bring the cartridge to the mouth, holding it between the forefinger and thumb, with the ball in the hand, and bite off the top, elbow close to the body.
2nd. Raise the elbow square with the shoulder, with the palm of the hand inclined to the front, and shake the powder into the barrel.
3rd. Reverse the cartridge (keeping the elbow square) by dropping the hand over the muzzle, the fingers in front of the barrel, and place the bullet into the barrel nearly as far as the top, holding the paper above it, between the forefinger and thumb.
4th. By a turn of the wrist from left to right, tear off the paper that remains between the forefinger and thumb, dropping the elbow into the side at the same time, and seize the head of the ramrod with the second joint of the forefinger and thumb.

Rod.
1st. Force the ramrod half out, and seize it back-handed exactly in the middle, the elbow square with the shoulder.
2nd. Draw it entirely out with a straight arm above the shoulder, turning it at the same to the front, put it on the top of the bullet, turning the back of the hand to the front; the ramrod is thus held between the two forefingers and thumb, with the two last fingers shut in the hand.

Home.
1st. Force the bullet straight down till the second finger of the right hand touches the muzzle; elbow close.
2nd. Press the ramrod lightly towards you, and slip the two forefingers and thumb to the point and grasp it as before.
3rd. Force the bullet steadily straight down to the bottom, bringing the elbow down with it close into the body.
4th. Ascertain that the bullet is resting on the powder by two slight taps, avoiding all sharp strokes.

Return. 1st. Draw the ramrod half out, catching it backhanded, with the elbow square.
2nd. Draw it entirely out with a straight arm above the shoulder, turning it to the front; put it into the loops, and force it as quickly as possible to the bottom, the forefinger and thumb holding the ramrod as in the position immediately previous to drawing it.

Cap.
1st. Make a half face to the right, by raising the toes and turning on the heels in that direction, the right heel in front of the left, the left toes pointing to the front, and the right toes pointing to the right; bring the firelock at the same time to the right side, with the left hand at the swell, and hold it in a horizontal position, the front rank pressing the side nail against the right hip, the rear rank four inches above it; the right hand holding the small of the butt, and half cock the piece, thumb resting on the cock.
2nd. Advance the forefinger to throw off the old cap (after having fired). Carry the band to the cap pocket, and take a cap between the forefinger and thumb. Put the cap on the nipple, and press it down with the flat part of the thumb ; fingers clenched. Then carry the hand to the small of the butt quietly.
As Front or Rear Rank ---- yards.

Ready.
1st. Adjust the sight; with the forefinger and thumb of the right hand place the sliding bar even with the line which indicates the required elevation for the distance named; after which, raise the flap steadily from the top; the fingers of the hand will then resume their former position behind the guard, the thumb resting on the cock.
2nd. Cock the piece, then replace the thumb on the small of the butt, at the same time (as a front rank) the right foot will be carried six inches to the rear of, and in line with, the inner side of the left heel; (as a rear rank) the right foot will be carried nine inches diagonally to the right, and in rear of the left heel of the man on the right; fix the eye steadily on the object, and incline the body forward from the heels.

[Editor's Note: Sights varied on each model of musket. The 1842 musket had a block sight good for about 150 yards. The Pattern 1851 Mini� Rifle Musket had a graduated backsight to 1000 yards; and the pattern 1853 had graduated backsight to 900 yards.]
In firing by companies, the sliding bar will generally be set to the correct distance before the firing commences; the soldier will then be required to raise the flap only, and cock the piece at the word Ready; but when the squad is exercised in slow time, it will be advisable, for the sake of practice, that some arbitrary distance should he given. Whenever no distance is given, the soldier must judge for himself the distance from the object he is to aim at.

Present.
1st. Bring the firelock at once to the shoulder, pressing the centre part of the heel-plate firmly into the hollow of it, with the left hand, which must grasp the piece at the swell, the right hand holding it at the small, the right elbow slightly raised (but not so much as to impede the aim of the rear rank 'man), the muzzle inclining to the bottom of the object and the forefinger of the right hand extended along the side of the trigger guard; at the same time shut the left eye.
2nd. Raise the muzzle, slowly and independently until the foresight is aligned through the back sight with the object the right eye is fixed upon; at the same time placing the forefinger on the trigger.
3rd. Pull the trigger with the second joint of the finger 'by a steady pressure, without the least jerk or motion of the band or elbow, keeping the eye still fixed on the object.
4th. Bring the firelock down to the capping position, at the same time bring the right foot to the position in which it was placed before coming to the ready; shut down the flap, count a pause of the slow time, and come to the position of Prepare to Load.

And all that whilst being shot at! The Thin Red Line in action. Lagopus�..

Thanks for the lead on new material , Argo, and for that nice painting. I�ve been experimenting with a heavy 0.023� canvas soaked in bear grease and then with a dab of Old Slickum on top before the pp bullet is seated. It�ll take four pieces compressed to equal the 0.07� thickness common to greased cloth of the 1880s. The original greased cloth was described as �perforated � and green. One thing i have learned is the felt wads do not help accuracy. Strangely.