Dear Readers
It has been many
more months of waiting than I would have expected.
If all goes well, my
Baker Rifle will be done and shipped in the next week or so.
I did not let the
intervening time to pass in vain. First, I had to get all of the kit
necessary to fire the Baker. Patches, round ball, flints, cleaning
tools, etc. – all of these things were easy, ordered directly from
Track of the Wolf. Second, I wanted 95th Rifles inspired leatherwork
to carry all of this stuff.
I finished my
research on the Rifles style leatherwork, but before I started making
it I picked up a Pedersoli AN IX Dragoon pistol in .69 caliber. I
found a picture of an artilleryman’s shoulder holster and decided
to make my own version. I also added a Rifles style ball pouch and
kit pouch to the shoulder holster harness in order to make it more
self-contained. I picked up a repro Victorian Rifles belt (virtually
the same as the Napoleonic version) and made two more pouches for it.
I was going to use an enlisted man’s cartridge box for extra
storage, but decided to make an officers’ cartouche bag instead
(this is the style of bag that Sean Bean wears in the “Sharpe’s”
series). It took about 2 ½ hours to hand sew the bag.
I finally received
the bayonet, and made a hanger for it, but still need to get it
sharpened. I think I am going to have a hatchet edge put on it
instead of a knife edge. I figure I will be killing more blackberry
vines than Bonapartists.
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| Artilleryman's shoulder holster & pistol |
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| Cartouche bag, bayonet belt et al. |
~Regards,
Col. de Valois
