C&B Revolver rigs

[AtlLaw]

Ain't nuthin ever easy... 

Tryin to figger out the bestus way of carrying my 36 and 44, I dug out an old belt and got a couple of cheap "Slim Jim" holsters.  Naturally I figured I'd carry 'em both at times...

Then I started thinkin...

With this cap and ball stuff you can't just stick a bunch of cart-a-ges in your belt loops...    You gotta carry powder, I got one a them pretty brass flasks, and caps, but if you wearing 2 different calibers, you got to carry 2 sizes of balls and overpowder wads!  And where the heck do you put that darn lube I been worrying myself sick about! 

Now I seen The Outlaw Josie Wails 15 - 20 times and I don't remember none a this stuff hangin off his gunbelt!

I decided I'll only carry one at a time, but the way I see it, I still need to tote all the stuff I need to reload on my belt.  Does anybody do this or do y'all just shoot yours at the range? 

[Elijah Gunn]

I've thought about this some myself. I did see a rig at Dixie Gun Works site a while back . If I remember right, it was a belt with  a slim jim holster,  knife sheath, and a pouch for the flask , balls, and other stuff.
 I finally just ordered my 1st holster for my navy from Track Of the Wolf. I'm getting a plain brown civil war style that has the flap. I like the idea of the extra protection that flap gives the pistol.
In Josie Wales he carried 3 braces of pistols,because of the time involved in reloading. (plus how much powder, ball ,and caps are you gonna lose trying to reload while on horseback?)
I intend to get a pouch of some type for the ammo. In it will be a cylinder type flask made of plastic (it's light, and I don't think black powder will make it corrode the way I've seen it do to my metal flask), inline cappers, a container of lube (Gatofeo recipe) ,and another with wads. Now when it comes to the balls, I wonder if anyone has ever thought of or heard of some kind of dispensing container. I'm thinking something along the lines of those change makers that vendors wear. Just flick the lever, and 1 ball at a time is dispensed. The only other things in it would be a set of screwdrivers only for that pistol, nipple wrench, a rag,and a cleaning rod with bronze brush,and jag.

[fistmil]

The rig I use most of the time when afield with my 51Navy is a Bianchi military flap holster. I like the full flap holster for 2 reasons:
(1) the gun can't fall out, (2) the flap keeps leaves, twigs and dew  from getting in the gun. Below is a photo of my rig and 30 year old Navy.

[bedbugbilly]

AtlLaw - all that stuff could sure weight a guy down - make you hope you don't fall into a mud puddle an drown!  You have to remember that there is a big difference in "reality" and the TV shows.  Originally, combustible cartridges would have been used both during the Civil War and after - if you could afford them.  If not, I can't help but think the use of a "possibles bag" was continued by those who couldn't afford the combustible cartridges.  I've shot longguns for years - both flint and cap and have always used a possibles bag.  I do the same for my cap & ball revolvers.  You don't need one that makes you look like Davey Crockett with a big powder horn hanging down.  I use a cap  pouch on my belt.  Everything else I carry in a possibles bag.  Flask (the powder kind), leather ball bag, the over the powder felt wads go in to a inside pocket, an old musket cap tin with lube for over the balls, a folding knife to pick off stuck caps, etc. and anything else I think I might need - earplugs, nipple pick, etc.  The bag is a "utility" item and it doesn't have to be fancy.  It can be made up of leather or even sewn up out of pillow ticking.  I've even made them out of canvas and painted them with black latex paint to give them the "tarred" effect.  You just have to "tailor" it to fit your requirements.  The dirtier it gets, the better it will look as well.  I can find no documentation that a possibles bag was utilized likke this but it makes sense that when men stopped walking and carrying rifles and moved on to riding horses and carrying c & b pistols, some of the older practices carried on.  Remember that not everyone could afford the best of everything - I'm sure that some utilized their coat pockets for the same use of carrying their pistol supplies.  I'd love to hear more from others on this.  Play with different ideas and see what works best for you.  Good luck!  bedbug

[AtlLaw]

Below is a photo of my rig and 30 year old Navy.

Yup, that's kinda what I figured would be needed.  What about lube or do you only use the over powder wads?

combustible cartridges would have been used

Anybody tried "packaged" componants along the combustable cartridge idea?  Or combustable cartridges themselves?   

I can't help but think the use of a "possibles bag" was continued by those who couldn't afford the combustible cartridges.

I always carry a possibles bag also!  I've got one for BP and one for modern rifle hunting.  That fact that my hunting partners call it my "purse" aside, maybe a stiff leather, smaller version with belt loops...   

I'd love to hear more from others on this.

Me to!     Getting some good ideas here!

[Flint]

When shooting cap & ball in a CAS match, I don't bother with lube.  Wonder Wads under the balls will do.  If you remove the cylinder you can wipe off fouling between stages.  I load the cylinders off the gun on a cylinder loading stand, and more than one if you can get spare cylinders.  Load the cylinders at home the night before the match.  Just make sure the cylinders are free of oil etc.  I clean, degrease. then dry them with an air compressor.  If you check all the nipple flash holes before loading, there is no need to fire caps to clear them at the range, and if you have several spare cylinders, that gets expensive, cap-wise.

Flask, balls and wads can be carried in the cart, and a loading stand mounted there will mean you don't need to carry them around on your body.  A capper can be carried in a pouch, pocket or on a thong.  I did get a cylinder pouch for the belt, it holds two, so a fired cylinder can be put there and a loaded one installed in the revolver, particularly handy if you're shooting a Remington or Ruger.  A cylinder pouch is also handy even if you shoot a conversion, as you can leave the cylinder out of the gun until you reload.

[fistmil]

When afield, just walking the woods, I wear the rig shone in the photo. In the leather pouch I carry 10 round balls and 10 wonder wads. I start with a loaded gun (5 rounds and one empty). This gives me a total of fifteen rounds. That's plenty enough, and much more than that would require field cleaning the gun. I carry the percussion caps in a straight line capper on a leather boot lace around my neck. I also carry a multiplier in my pocket in case I have to remove a stubborn fired cap.

[FourBee]

My Rig consists of  a pair of .44cal holsters, 2 small leather bullet (round balls) pouches from Cabelas black powder revolver section, and their revolver leather powder flask holder on a heavy duty leather belt.   In one bullet pouch there is a package of 100 lubed  wads, a snail capper, and a tin of caps.  The other bullet pouch carries nearly a box of .454" 100 round balls.  The Colt Flask fits perfectly in the Leather Flask pouch.   It works well for me.............................

[fistmil]

Anyone try any of the western shoulder holster rigs for cap n ball revolvers. I think they would provide easier access to the gun when sitting, especially in a boat or canoe.

[coyotejoe]

I got this idea from one of the Comancheros in "The Outlaw Josie Wells", although I modified it considerably. The movie rig had the holster mounted on the front, which would seem to make it very awkward to enter the pouch. I used a left handed holster mounted backward on the back of the pouch.
I originally made this up for cowboy shooting, thus the shell loops on the strap held .44/40's for my '73 and the loops on the pouch body held 12 gauge shells. The pouch itself holds powder flask, balls, wads, lube, capper and extra caps, all with room to spare. I wear it on the left where my '51 Navy sits butt forward for a handy crossdraw while my '60 Army goes on the right hip. If you delete the shell loops it is a very easy rig to make, in fact you could just attach a commercial slim jim holster to a commercial pouch.