crazy crow -oil cloth

[quinnconner]

Greetings,
Has anyone here seen it or used it yet? I was thinking about it to make a bedroll out of or maybe a diamond fly.
J.J.

 

[JWP]

I never seen or used Crazy Crow's but I did make a bedroll out of oil cloth. You've to to remember, it keeps water out but it also keeps condensation in :hmm:

 

[mmahlock]

I've seen instruction on making bedroll sacks out of oilcloth that use it only on the bottom and use ticking for the top. If you are going to use it sans tent you might want to use the ticking on the bottom. Whatever, don't forget to dry it out each morning so it won't accumulate too much moisture. Remember, you sweat out about a pint to a quart each night. :hatsoff:

 

[Desert Ratxx]

Has anyone seen any period reference to one of those sacks? I use one and love it, but I want to try something more "correct" if it exists.

 

[mmahlock]

Not exactly but I did find this from Sir John Kincaid's book Adventures in the Rifle Brigade.

... To avoid inconvenience by the tossing off of the bed-elothes, each officer has a blanket sewed up at the sides, like a sack, into which he scrambles, and, with a green sod or a smooth stone for a pillow, composes himself to sleep;...

It doesn't mention oil cloth or even a cover cloth but it does describe a sleeping bag of sorts.

I might point out that in all my reading none of the author's have ever made reference to using anything to protect themselves from rain other than their uniform jackets, greatcoats, boat cloaks, or watch coats which are all described as being made of wool. One goes on to say that the cheaper the material a great coat is made of the better it is since it is easier to ring water out of it after a rain than one made of expensive material. Go Figure. :hatsoff:

 

[Poor Private]

Which period of time are we talking about? Civil war period we have ruberized ponchos, and waterproofed ground clothes that we use in place of tents and as moisture breakers. we sometimes toss down a ground cloth toss our blanket in it the climb inside and fold 1/2 over us for sleeping and use our cartridge box covered with our coats as a pillow.... ummm comfy.

 

[Rod Lassey]

As I recall, the Goodyear patent stamp on my gum blanket is mid 1840s? These things show up pretty commonly by the 1850s.
[url] http://www.kancoll.org/books/marcy/machap05.htm[/url]

Here's what Marcy has to say about gutta-percha and india rubber tents and blankets. Bear in mind, he's talking late 1850s.

Rod

 

[Rod Lassey]

By the way, I should have added that I use a square chunk of oilcloth that I made for a bedroll/shelter tent. It's painted with red ochre linseed oil paint---otherwise known as plain old red barn paint, and available at any lumberyard. It also is my pack cover, when I pack in on horses. It's getting a little ratty now, and I'm thinking I should get some russia sheeting and make a new one.
[url] http://furtrade.org/6quart.html[/url]

There's a good article on oilcloths in the fur trade in the Spring '88 issue of the Museum of the Fur Trade Quarterly.

Rod

 

[Desert Ratxx]

Thanks for the info guys. I've seen references before to using the oil sheeting but I have not ever found an early reference to an actual "sleep sack" set up. I think most of the mountaineers wrapped up in whatever they used to cover their pack saddles, as long as the plews were covered first that is.

 

One goes on to say that the cheaper the material a great coat is made of the better it is since it is easier to ring water out of it after a rain than one made of expensive material. Go Figure. :hatsoff:

Which one? You gave a good reference for a bedroll and left us hanging on the greatcoat! Is it the same source?

If you dig into the processing of wool you will find that there is a point of diminishing returns in the density of weaving. Wool demands some amount of loft, just like down, so that the fibers can trap air and do their insulating function. Woven tightly, as they are in the best weaves, they loose a bit of warmth. Fulling, to tighten the weave of finished fabirc, was also an expensive part of the process. they were trading durability for warmth.

The more expensive goods also had more of the natural lanolin leached from the fibers during processing. The cheap goods had more oil in the fibers and extra lanolin was sometimes added to wool that was exptected to be exposed to wet conditions. The garmet was not waterproofed, each individual fiber was waterproofed. They did not expect the wool to simply soak up water and retain part of its insulative strength, like we do, they expected the wool to actually shed water. Washington stated this in one of his orders for a greatcoat, with a hood, able to shed a good shower of rain.

Extra oil in the fabric was offered as a bonus by outfitters right up until the 1930s. Kephart talks about camp clothing with added lanolin in the late 1920s.

The wool we have access too today is a sad excuse for what they used for 5,000 years before acrillics and gortex.

Back on track now:
An oilcloth bedroll is a bad idea. You will wake with your blankets soaked with presperation and condensation from your breath. I have actually seen ice freeze on the INSIDE of a waterproofed bedrool cover.

I prefer to use the oilcloth as a tarp shelter. That makes it a bit more versitle as a shelter and cover for equipment. You can also make it from lighter weight fabric since bedrolls generally take a beating on the trail.

Do not go to a lose weave canvas though, go to a tighter weave light cotton or balloon silk that is waterproofed. Several of the suppliers offer an "oil cloth" made from ripstop nylon that they treat to look like canvas. I do not know if this is what Crazy Crow is offering.

 

[mmahlock]

I can't seem to put my finger on it exactly but I remember it as a part of a letter the George Simmons wrote to his parents with instructions on what to outfit one of his younger brothers with before he left England for Spain to join the Army. :hmm:

 

[mmorgan1730]

Panther Primitives sells oil cloth by the yard and they have diamond flys already made up. I've used it at rendezvous for four years and it still works great.

 

[ameling]

The oil clothe CC is selling is the same stuff lots of other vendors are selling. It is made from Egyptian long-strand/fiber cottom, and treated with a modern chemical for "waterproofing". Just go to most any event and look for a darkish green diamond shelter. It is mostly likely made from the same material. The material has been available for many years, in that "forest" green and blue - but you could occasionally find it in black.

CC has just started selling it in "spanish brown" - a RED color like that barn red. This color has been well documented over many time periods, where the green and blue have less of a good trail behind them. The black color is also well documented in certain areas.

That particular modern interpretation of "oil clothe" (without being made using linseed oil) is a very good material. Great stuff. But then it must meet your particular level of historical interpretation - as to availability of cotton in your time frame, use of a tarp/bedroll, and available historical color. A personal choice each must make for themselves.

Just my humble thoughts to share, and best used in conjunction with your own research.

Mikey - yee ol' grumpy German blacksmith out in the Hinterlands