What's in your bag?

[Spotted Bull]

Those of you who keep a bag set up and ready to go, what all do you keep in that bag?

Show us pictures, especially those of you who don't post much!

[Bigsmoke]

Do you mean a shooting bag, or a bug out bag, or what kind of bag do you refer to.

Bull, I certainly applaud your efforts to entice people to join in conversations, get involved, etc.  It surely seems like being condemned to duplicating the task of Sisyphus, rolling that boulder uphill in Hades for all eternity.  I am trying to accomplish the same thing on The Horner's Bench.  They are a mostly silent group.

John (Bigsmoke)

[Ohio Joe]

Bull, I try to keep a horn and bag for every rifle I own, and they're pretty much all set up the same... Here's what I carry in my flintlock bags;

1 small (4fg) priming antler

2 ball blocks with dry patch & ball in them (8 holes each) (I mostly spit patch)

1 9 hole ball block with dry patch & ball in - hanging from my shoulder strap

1 small percussion cap tin with lube in for patches when hunting, along with a
small bag of 15 more balls & Patches

1 cleaning jag for the ramrod

1 Jaw Lock screw driver (very small) and flint hammer for dressing the flint

1 small home made flint wallet with 3 spare flints and leathers

1 vent pick (carried on bag strap attached to leather lace)

1 powder charger (carried on bag strap attached to leather lace)

1 ball starter in bag if needed

1 small container of cleaner

1 small container of oil

Q-tips, cleaning patches, pipe cleaners (for vent)

old small tooth brush for cleaning the lock

Beef Jerky when out hunting / or I see a long Range session

pan rag tied to outside of the bag

couple strands of leather lace

small screw driver for removing the vent if needed -or- the lock

small pair of cheap 1.50 power glasses in the small tube they come in

(I'm probably forgetting something - hope I have it (what-ever it is, if i need it)

On my belt I carry my fire starter pouch (chunk of flint / piece of old file / char-cloth

[Spotted Bull]

Joe I was gonna tell you to dump one of your bags out and take a picture but it sounds like it would take too long to put it all back!

[BEAVERMAN]

Joe I was gonna tell you to dump one of your bags out and take a picture but it sounds like it would take too long to put it all back!

I was thinking it was more like a back pack instead of a bag!

[Ohio Joe]

 

Funny thing is, I almost know where everything's at in... I think??? 

[Ohio Joe]

Joe I was gonna tell you to dump one of your bags out and take a picture but it sounds like it would take too long to put it all back!

It'd be like moving after living in the same place for 40+ years with all the accumulation...   

[BEAVERMAN]

I'm a firm believer of having a bag and horn for each of my guns, the bags for cap locks have a ball bag, tin of patches, capper attached to the bag with a leather thong, spare nipple and wrench, an old nipple primer with 4f used to clear a dry ball IF NEEDED, patch knife and short starter on the bag strap, and pencil for score cards, thats it, no need to carry the kitchen sink.

Flint bag will have the same except a flint wallet instead of capper, no nipple, wrench or primer, I prime from my horn,wallet has 4 rocks, spare jaw leathers, a combo napping hammer and turn screw made by the late great Wally Peters, same as the vent pick, and a small rag for wiping the pan.

Each horn has the proper grain powder with an antler powder measure attached to the strap for the gun.

Now when Im hunting I carry a few extra things but those are in the back pack.

[Spotted Bull]

Boy I have bunch of Wally's stuff in my shooting box, as does my wife and daughter.

[BEAVERMAN]

Boy I have bunch of Wally's stuff in my shooting box, as does my wife and daughter.

One of my best friends and rondy buddies, sure do miss that ol Texan!

[Ohio Joe]

Bull, I try to keep a horn and bag for every rifle I own, and they're pretty much all set up the same... Here's what I carry in my flintlock bags;

1 small (4fg) priming antler

2 ball blocks with dry patch & ball in them (8 holes each) (I mostly spit patch)

1 9 hole ball block with dry patch & ball in - hanging from my shoulder strap

1 small percussion cap tin with lube in for patches when hunting, along with a
small bag of 15 more balls & Patches

1 cleaning jag for the ramrod

1 Jaw Lock screw driver (very small) and flint hammer for dressing the flint

1 small home made flint wallet with 3 spare flints and leathers

1 vent pick (carried on bag strap attached to leather lace)

1 powder charger (carried on bag strap attached to leather lace)

1 ball starter in bag if needed

1 small container of cleaner

1 small container of oil

Q-tips, cleaning patches, pipe cleaners (for vent)

old small tooth brush for cleaning the lock

Beef Jerky when out hunting / or I see a long Range session

pan rag tied to outside of the bag

couple strands of leather lace

small screw driver for removing the vent if needed -or- the lock

small pair of cheap 1.50 power glasses in the small tube they come in

(I'm probably forgetting something - hope I have it (what-ever it is, if i need it)

On my belt I carry my fire starter pouch (chunk of flint / piece of old file / char-cloth

Here's a picture of the bag I use most with the items described above - in it (except the jerky right now)... I'll also note that it's a simple matter to throw a tin of percussion caps in the bag and take a caplock to the range as well... The bag is set up for .45 caliber (my preferred caliber)...

It basically measures 8.5" wide x 8.0" deep...

 

[rollingb]

What do I carry in my shootin' bags??

Nuthin' that isn't absolutely necessary to make the gun (I'm carryin' at the time) go "BOOM".

Balls 
Ticking
Powder measure
Small priming horn
Vent pick

Everything else goes in my shoulder-slung haversack,.....

Small buckskin bag of various jags/worms
Knapping tool
Turn screw
Small tin of lube
Small bag of tow
Flint wallet containing 2-sizes of flints
Small shot horn
Shot measure
12" square of linen
Small square of buckskin
Smokes'n lighter
Billfold
..... and sometimes (depending on what I'm doin'),....
A tin with flint'n steel (plus char cloth)
Jerky, or maybe a "samwich"

[Bigsmoke]

I don't have this pouch anymore, but here we go anyway.  When I got my 12 bore English style sporting rifle, I decided I needed a pouch to go with it, so I designed this one.  Basically it was about 9 x 7 x 3" carried on a 2" buckle adjusted strap.  It also had a belt loop on the back for up to a 3" belt.  You could either carry the bag on the strap or since it laced onto the pouch, the strap could be removed and the bag carried on the belt.

On the strap were two longish pockets, one for a Ted Cash musket capper and the other for a 40-200 grain adjustable Treso powder measure.  On each end of the bag was a loop for a short starter.

On the inside of the bag, there was a partition making it a full double bag.  The partition was sewn into the seams of the back panel and the gusset.  On the partition were three loops where I carried 3 "speed loaders" which I designed myself.  The tube had a slip over end on it.  What happened was I put a square of wax paper over the end and then pushed the tube into the collar, thus sealing that end.  Then pour the charge of powder into the sealed tube, push a 12 gauge lubed Wonder Wad down on top of the charge, then set the lubed patch on top of the tube, set the .715 ball onto the patch and push the ball/patch onto the Wonder Wad.  To load the rifle, you simply positioned the speed loader onto the muzzle, and with the short starter, you gave the tool a sharp rap with your hand, and presto, the powder charge has burst through the wax paper and gone into the barrel, and the wad, patch and ball are positioned about 3" down the barrel.  Amazing how good it worked.

Behind the divider panel, I carried two buckskin pouches that held two spare .715 balls and two 12 ga Wonder Wads each, a 2 ounce bottle of Ol' Thunder Bore solvent, a Number 11 cap tin with Just Good Lube in it and some loose cleaning patches.

The space in front of the panel was reserved for a sandwich.  I liked to hunt in Idaho Big Game Unit 4, up the Coeur d'Alene River.  At the "town" of Pritchart, was an establishment called Gloria's.  It was a 4 unit motel with a restaurant and store attached.  I think for $50 a night, you got the room and 2 prime rib dinners.  So, I would have one dinner to eat then, and I would have them package up the meat from the second dinner and  one or two dinner rolls all wrapped in foil.  That made a tasty lunch when it came time, somewhere on a mountain, maybe 4 or 5 miles from the truck the next day.

OK, that is that story.  My other two pouches are going to be discussed in another post.  Maybe tomorrow.

[Bigsmoke]

I developed this pouch thanks to the inspiration from the post by Spotted Bull regarding the book by Steven Hughes  Todd.
This bag was developed as the upgrade to the standard version which pretty much copied the drawing.

This is the front of the bag, which has the cutouts along with my powder horn, filled with Ffg powder.  On the strap you can see my patch knife, which I don't recall where or when I got it.

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This is the back panel of the bag with a small pocket sewn on.  Typically I would carry a Ted Cash tinder box in it with flint, steel and some tinder.  Also on the lid of the tinder box is a magnifying glass.

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Here is a shot of the patch knife and a 30 grain fixed measure.

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And finally, here is a photo of the stuff I have inside the pouch.  Probably too  much, but what the hey, it is what it is.  I will probably pare it down one of these days if/when I ever take the rifle out again.  So far, that hasn't been too probable.

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Well, that's it for now.  One more bag to go, probably see you tomorrow with another update.

John (Bigsmoke)

[Winter Hawk]

Okay, my turn!

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Let me see.  There is the bag with horn and 70 gr. measure attached, cow's hock, tin with patches, vent picks and flint knapping tool, bottle of Ed's Red, and an extension for the bag carrying strap. Below that is a ball bag, adjustable powder measure and 35 gr. measure, a little sack of flints & one with flannel cleaning patches, and two sets of ear plugs.  Next row has a ball starter, Leatherman, diamond hone for sharpening cut flints, and lastly a small sack with cleaning attachments, wood chip for dry firing and a spare piece of leather for the flint.

Not all P.C. but what I carry when i go to shoot the muzzle loaders.  I only have the one bag but for different caliber I can just swap out the ball bag and cleaning sack and I'm good to go.  Oh, and add a cap dispenser if needed.

~Kees~