ball blocks

[Stumpkiller]

Hey look! we now have dated examples for ball blocks that makes them PC clear back to 1735,
Stumpkiler, put an early date on one of those short starters and that issue will be settled as well :wink:

Shazam! What a great idea! If Ben Franklin can come up with daylight-savings time, bifocals, a urinary catheter, swim fins and the lightning rod while we were still colonies how hard could a stub starter be?

 

There actually is a ball block in a museum some where than has a 1757 date on it just like the pictured ones. The problem is the museum has some disputed items under display so the historical purists will not accept anything from this collection. They are looking for a paper trail that mentions ball blocks and short starters. They
always find something wrong with the ones in collections. It is a very sore topic in some groups.

Perhaps because people won't let it die? Let the debate begin again. :shake:

 

The only thing correct about The Patriot movie is that the British did invade South Carolina in 1780. The rest is hollyweird hogwash.

Your second negative post in this thread. First the block, now the movie. Two out of two! :shake:

Do you have anything to "contribute"? We have enough sour grapes, thank you.

 

[Grizzled Roberts]

I was not putting out sour grapes on the loading block. The loading block is the first step in making a cartridge box. A board with holes in it.
I have no doubt that loading blocks were used. It would not take a 1776 rocket scientist to figure this out. There are too many loading blocks on original hunting pouches for this to be doubted
In my opinion. I was pointing out that some groups did not accept loading blocks and the reasons they did not accept them.

I will fess up to the negative comments on the movie. Any student of the Southern Revolutionary War will tell you the same thing. The movie showed Cornwallis with the entire British army facing the entire American army. There must have been 4 thousand actors on the field. and many big cannons on both sides.

In truth Tarleton ( not Cornwallis ) hit the field
with most of the British Light infantry under 1000
men. Dragoons, British Foot soldiers and the 71st Highlanders. The British also had the only cannons
on the field two small brass " grass hoppers".

The Americans on the other had had between 800 - 1000 men. 280 Delaware Continentals and 200 former
Virginia Continentals. The bulk of Daniel Morgan's army was Militia which just showed up to fight and are not in the records.

Cornwallis was not there and Tarleton did not die
there. He died in England some 30 years later.
There was not two big British and American armies
on the field.
If you want to really find out what happened at Cowpens I would suggest reading...

A Devil of a Whipping by Lawrence E. Babits
and...
The Road To Guilford Courthouse by John Buchanan

In summation, I believe they had loading blocks and short starters.
The movie The Patriot was Historical BS!
Some may judge my comments on this movie as negative but my words are backed up by actual documentation and are the truth. When BS pops up
on this subject ( the Southern Campaign ) I try to stomp it out. If this be negative so be it.

 

[Goldhunter]

He's a question concerning blocks: Do any of you find that then you push the PRB out of the board, the lube has been rubbed out of the patch?

I've got a few that I've made and can't seem to get the right diameter. They are either too tight (forces lube out of patch at the contact point) or too loose (not enough tension to adequately hold the PRB in).

 

[Grizzled Roberts]

I make sure my patches are soaked through and through and not just a surface coat. I have never had this problem. What is your patch lube Sir?

 

[tg]

I found a combo of beeswax and Bear oil or olive oil worked well, but I gave up on the blocks not being able to really validate them in the 1760's I also found that with a smoothbore I can load as fast with loose balls and pathces in the bottom of the bag.I think blocks were used but likely post Rev War, the stuff on or in existing bags is pretty hard to date to the time the bag was made, lots of things are like this many who like something lean toward believing, others require more evidence, I look for easier ways of doing things that are valid.

 

[omarick1948]

I watched the Patriot movie as entertainment and not as a judgement documentary for facts!..I like loading boards!

But hey!..That's just me! :wink:

 

[Glenfilthie]

I am intrigued by the loading block myself because I have never seen them or used them. How many of you fellers regularly use them? This could be a fun little project but it would be nice if they were practical...

 

[mazo kid]

I am intrigued by the loading block myself because I have never seen them or used them. How many of you fellers regularly use them? This could be a fun little project but it would be nice if they were practical...

I like to use mine for woods walks, etc. For other matches, balls are loose in bag or in a pouch to keep them somewhat contained and ready.

 

[Grizzled Roberts]

Once you work out the mechanics you can easily get two shots a minute with a loading block. 3 shots when your hot! They are excelent for speed loading matches and Seneca runs. I like them for hunting also because hunting is not a 20 round trail walk. There is no need to carry a Ranger
compliment of 60 rounds for hunting, just a few in the block!
:thumbsup:

 

[Goldhunter]

I use Moose snot and the pre lubed TC patches (wonderlube I think).

 

. . . .The movie The Patriot was Historical BS!
Some may judge my comments on this movie as negative but my words are backed up by actual documentation and are the truth. When BS pops up
on this subject ( the Southern Campaign ) I try to stomp it out. If this be negative so be it.

It's a movie - get over it! :shake:

 

[bwhoffman]

It's a movie - get over it! :shake:

I spose everyone forgot the concept behind the "A team".

"Only in Hollywood"

 

[Grizzled Roberts]

Lets see here Mr. Davis. you first attack my posts as negitive and ask if I have anything to contribute. So I mention the actual history of the subject movie and provide sources. You now say it's just a movie and to get over it. Movies are not good sources of historical fact, this has been stated over and over again on these forums.
This was kind of the basis for my post. You are right is is just a movie. But this movie butchers the actual history of the Revolutionary War in my area. Too many people in this country take what they see on TV and the Movies as fact without checking the data. I will not be getting over this. :nono:

 

[paulvallandigham]

Hllywood has been butchering history for as long as its been around, so its nothing new. There are fools out there, true, who believe what they see in movies is " true " history, so we get lots of people who believe Oliver Stone's JFK, as the truth about who and how the President was assassinated, even when there are plenty of known facts- not conjecture-- that indicate what Stone's script wrote could not have taken place.

I understand your ire at bad history, particularly when its close to home. But, I have gotten over it. The people who would believe this is the actual history of these battles are so stupid their opinions just can be ignorred. Trying to correct the deficiencies in their education would take too much time.

Accept the fact that movie are just entertainment. After all, Mel Gibson got an Oscar for "Braveheart", and that movie butchered Scottish history all over the place, Too! maybe if he does a historical movie on Australia, he might get it right, but you can't expect an "Aussie" to have any idea what the history of other countries are to be accuracte enough to play them right. I thought " The Patriot " was a comination of Disney's " The Swamp Fox ", and the battle at Yorkstown in 1782.

 

[gjkershul]

I had the same problem and ended up using a dremel tool to open 1/2 inch holes a bit to get good tension. I thought about using a 13mm metric drill for .50 cal but never followed through.

Have any of the machinists out there tried straight shank twist drills over 0.50000 to make bullet boards for .50 cal?

 

[Coot]

I have just used a rat tail file to open up any holes that are too tight. A bit of sandpaper wound around a dowel will also do the trick.

The above gives rise to an interesting question. Today, things like drill presses, a multitude of inexpensive bitts in many sizes and rat tail files & sandpaper are readily available to many of us & we can knock off a couple of bullet blocks in an hour. How would the "simple backwoods man" who only had such very basic tools as an axe & saw & knife make the precisely sized holes that it takes to make the bullet block work?

 

[TANSTAAFL]

Generally any dense hardwood will do, old wooden chair slats are a good source as well as some shipping pallets.

I make them up of different designs and some guys can get quite creative.

Here are pics of three I made up few years back.

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[skunkskinner]

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What?