How did folks maintain firearms in the tropics during the 18th century?

[Packrat]

A: Rangoon oil was not so much a cleaning agent as a rust preventer. As far we know it was developed by the British Army, and was certainly in use by troops 150 years ago. It was a tenacious oil with a very slow evaporation rate, and its purpose was to keep arms free of rust in hot, steamy jungle conditions.

 

[Uncle Miltie]

I live in Florida, on the east coast. The summer humidity and the salt air must be dealt with. Winter doesn't have anymore humidity than my beloved Virginia mountains. Concerning guns, mine are all on the walls, not in a safe. No rust in 6 years but I do tend to tend to them occasionally. Of course I realize FL is not the tropics.

I commuted to work by bicycle in Ft Lauderdale for many years. April through October average temps of 92-95 F, high humidity and frequent torrential downpours. Trust me it is the tropics!

 

[user 56333]

I live in Florida, on the east coast. The summer humidity and the salt air must be dealt with. Winter doesn't have anymore humidity than my beloved Virginia mountains. Concerning guns, mine are all on the walls, not in a safe. No rust in 6 years but I do tend to tend to them occasionally. Of course I realize FL is not the tropics.

You probably have the benefit of air-conditioning systems to keep the humid air cool and moving, something they didn't have in the 18th century

 

[The Damned Yankee]

My Confederate great grandfather kept a diary. After one fight he mentions a kettle of hot soapy water for cleaning rifles.

Sounds like interesting reading. Have you ever considered publishing that diary?

 

[tenngun]

Probably at least daily taking it down and oiling all metal, cleaning the wood, keeping a tompion in the barrel to keep insects/etc. out of the bore. Very prompt and religious cleaning after an use. Humid air conditions played havoc. Probably the actual care routine wasnt too much different than ours now, but certainly in practice care was much more frequent and detailed. I have read that in the 1800s, metal was sometimes varnished , frequently heavily waxed to protect it. Even in the early 20th century here in northern NY (a notoriously wet environment) it wasnt unusual to varnish blued arms. Looked like hell. I have seen a number of arms so treated. I have heard the powder was stored for longer periods in lead cylinders with a fitting lead top, sealed with wax.
I love reading of early explorers/hunters, and unfortunately few of them detailed the simple to them daily care routines of thier trips like you inquire about.
Nowadays with my flintlock in typical wet fall conditions....if it is raining...we stay in. You didnt hunt in the rain, and battles were frequently postponed if raining (even native americans chose not to fight in the rain...bow strings went to hell when wet). If a light drizzle, maybe hunt, if I am going to be sheltered. At the end of a wet day, the arm is discharged/load pulled, and a thorough drying and cleaning, leaving the arm near the fireplace to thoroughly warm and dry out before assembly if possible. It will not be loaded until immediatly before the next hunt. with reasonable care, no rust after decades of use.

Although I would note that a bess was expected to give about twenty years of service. The French alone sent more muskets to America than Washington had soldiers. In colonial times during emergencies it was often found that many of the guns in storage in colonial armories were unfit for service
War ships and regiments had an armorer/ gunner, who‘s job it was to keep small arms functioning
At sea ships armorer kept a ‘gang’ busy with the work.
Most of us are ‘gun nuts’ and back then a civilian that put up the pennies and used his gun as part of his life was probably a bit more picky.
A rich man who did hunt may well employ a game man who’s job it was to keep the guns in tip top shape.
Joe Blow with a gun for militia duty may not have been the best care giver. Much like the deer hunter who hasn’t had a gun in hand since last deer season.

 

[The Damned Yankee]

You didnt hunt in the rain, and battles were frequently postponed if raining (even native americans chose not to fight in the rain...bow strings went to hell when wet). If a light drizzle, maybe hunt, if I am going to be sheltered.

In Ben Franklin's auto-biography, while leading a militia group to build a fort, he mentions that the Indians were much better at getting their firelocks to discharge in the rain than the colonist. DY

 

[The Damned Yankee]

My guess is probably not very well at all. I'll opin they used them until they didn't work at all any more then got new ones.

Your guess is influenced by the fact we currently live in a throw away world. There is plenty of documentation that guns were repeatedly repaired. Even after new arms were issued, older arms were repaired, updated and reissued to other units lower on the food chain, reserves, provincial militia, invalid corps or sold to trading companies. DY

 

[Rifleman1776]

Your guess is influenced by the fact we currently live in a throw away world. There is plenty of documentation that guns were repeatedly repaired. Even after new arms were issued, older arms were repaired, updated and reissued to other units lower on the food chain, reserves, provincial militia, invalid corps or sold to trading companies. DY

OK, I did say it was a guess. I've never researched this particular issue.

 

[The Damned Yankee]

I'm curious to know what methods folks used to keep their guns working in tropical conditions during the 18th century.

Crableg, back to your original question. While most of us would love to have a definite answer for this, we can only speculate as (mentioned before) much of the daily mundane activity is not documented.
Many of the muskets, (and earlier guns) in use by the naval forces were finished for sea duty. This being, to be serviceable in humid salt air! Many of these had painted / lacquered barrels & stocks. These terms "painted" & "lacquered" very in interpretation and application. They could mean anything from an actual paint or lacquer to a "tar" (not the road tar we think of today) or a combination there of. Yes, some stocks were painted BLACK as well as shades of red or yellow! (and lets not leave out the blue painted guns in Virginia!) The idea was initial protection of the wood and metal parts.
As for regular maintenance, again we wish we had it in writing. We must conclude it was done as other military units maintained theirs, on an ongoing daily basis with tallow & brick dust for scouring, tallow or oil for lubricating, tow (or rags) for wiping. A tampion was used to plug the barrel to keep out rain and may also have been used during storage. Perhaps something akin to a cow's knee or oil cloth was wrapped around the lock? Again, speculation.
The above was arrived at by research and years of reenacting. If you have any Rev War or similar time period activities in your area, I encourage you to visit them and talk with the reenactors. You can read, you can shoot flintlocks or hunt with them (but NOT in the rain! ha, ha.), but unless you get out, get wet, get dirty and use your gun and equipment, you lack the understanding of the daily struggle. Hope it is helpful. DY

 

[Coot]

British naval Arms went through a period of using tar to protect the outside of the barrels.

I believe that the barrels were painted with japan black rather than tar. Many British navy cutlasses from the late 18th & early 19th c have japan black or traces of it on their guards & grips.

 

[The Damned Yankee]

I believe that the barrels were painted with japan black rather than tar. Many British navy cutlasses from the late 18th & early 19th c have japan black or traces of it on their guards & grips.

Coot, thanks, "japan black"! I could not think of the term as I was a hunt'n and a peck'n at this. Again the "tar" was not what we think of today. It was used on many things especially on ship, wood and rope. Was thinner and dried not as sticky. DY

 

[jefair1]

I think some are missing another point about the barrels. The ships were also made of wood. The USS Constitution has planking that is over 200 years old.

 

[nagantino]

Ireland and Scotland would be a difficult terrain in which to maintain a muzzleloader because of the bone chilling winter damp. And both countries were subject to rebellion over the years, so I guess they had their difficulties also.

 

[Mike in FL]

I got 69 years in the mountains, but I reckon I will have to spend the next 69 here. 'Cept I can sneak back for a few weeks in the autumn. Did you know you could fit 4 of these little gray squirrels down here into one VA squirrel? All I gained here huntin-wise is hogs, and as far as I know you can't make ham jerky.

 

[user 56333]

I think some are missing another point about the barrels. The ships were also made of wood. The USS Constitution has planking that is over 200 years old.

And tropical waters were notoriously rough on wooden ships, which is why East Indiamen rapidly adopted copper sheathing on hulls when it became available. Point stands, the tropics are hard on equipment, be it wood, cloth, metal, etc.

The USS Constitution doesn't reside in the Indian Ocean.

 

[Flint62Smoothie]

Most likely in the tropics, you were military or well off.

True - French territorial law dictated that any large land owner had to have 1 musket for every 10 slaves. And each ship bound for French territories had to have at least a dozen arms on board to be sold to such landowners.

Hardware - Note French arms are often in brass or iron mounts of the same model, where the brass mounts were expressly noted for shipping to tropic territories.

Rot - People are forgetting what causes 'dry rot' is getting wet - drying out - getting wet - drying out, repeat. That is what causes the mold spores to form. Keeping the wooden powdah kegs dry in the 1st place would have been the order of the day.

 

[Bullit]

Coot, thanks, "japan black"! I could not think of the term as I was a hunt'n and a peck'n at this. Again the "tar" was not what we think of today. It was used on many things especially on ship, wood and rope. Was thinner and dried not as sticky. DY

Is that something like a creosote? One of my dad's professions was commercial fisherman. He used to dip his nets in this creosote like stuff to prevent rot. Worked really well and made them stiffer, which in turn made them easier to handle in and out of the water. Once it dried though, it would not rub off and get all over your clothes like creosote does.

 

[Coot]

Japan black was a popular protective finish for utilitarian items. It is a lacquer or varnish with a high bitumen content that dries quickly to a hard finish.

 

[Gunny5821]

What I wonder is how in the world did they get by at all without Ballistol or
WD40? How did their guns shoot at all without Moose Milk? It's a real mystery.

And if they would have had access to Crisco, all problems solved. "Crisco CLP, Cleaner, Lubricant, Preservative".

 

[Gunny5821]

Frankly I love that you mentioned Bolivia in this post!!! I grew up in Bolivia! Most of my time was spent in the jungle regions. Yet I did travel with through much of the country. I don’t ever recalling seeing a firearm for sale or on display that was pre-cartridge era. Even in the museums I have visited.
Mauser showed up on occasion as well as some lever action Winchester’s. My older brother actually bought a Winchester 1893 down there. Is it hot and humid yes. Is the rainforest damp yes. Yet there’s still plenty of dry times to get the gun clean and dry. You must remember that even into the 80s they were still indigenous groups hunting with traditional bows and arrows in the jungle. Yes at that time shotguns and 22s were prevalent. Yet there were also some groups that did not have any firearms.
As far as caring for a black powder firearm….. frankly, I would say it would be no more challenging than caring for one let’s say in central Ohio or Indiana in the humid summer.
Aaron

I wonder how those indigenistas kept their bows and arrows from rotting?