How were (are??) Sharps cartridges/ammunition carried?

[Naphtali]

During the Civil War Sharps 1859/63 rifles and carbines were used by both sides. How was ammunition carried? From a previous query I discovered that ammunition was issued only as [paper] cartridges and only as packets of these cartridges. Packets, I anticipate, were handled differently from loose cartridges unfired from a packet. Possibly mounted soldiers carried ammunition differently from infantry?

And how were musket caps carried and placed on nipple? The obvious ways are loose in a pouch or loose in a tin. But these methods appear to conflict with the purpose for issuing cartridges - that is, speedy reloading. Currently available cappers for musket caps of which I am aware hold small numbers of caps when one thinks of firefights.

[Blair]

Naphtali,

This is the simplest explanation I can offer you.

Sharps Carbines used a 20 round cart. box. This equals to two Arsenal packs of ten rounds each.
Sharps Infantry Rifles used a 40 round cart. box. this equals to four Arsenal packs of ten rounds each.
Caps maybe maintained in a separate cap pouch (like used with muzzle loading Rifle Muskets) or in the mechanical (Automatic) cap magazine compartment manufactured into the lock plate. Called the "Lawrence Pellet Primer System".
I hope this information offers you some insight into the areas of research you may need to investigate to get the, full and rather 'more', complex answer to your question than I have offered you here.

[Naphtali]

. . . Sharps Carbines used a 20 round cart. box. This equals to two Arsenal packs of ten rounds each.
Sharps Infantry Rifles used a 40 round cart. box. this equals to four Arsenal packs of ten rounds each.
Caps maybe maintained in a separate cap pouch (like used with muzzle loading Rifle Muskets) or in the mechanical (Automatic) cap magazine compartment manufactured into the lock plate. Called the "Lawrence Pellet Primer System". . . . Many thanks for your reply. Regarding the cartridge boxes, how were cartridges distributed - that is, were they just dumped in catch-as-catch-can, or dumped in to lay horizontally, or inserted into loose holes or other container-like device to keep them separate (analogous to severely stretched out cartridge loops on a gun belt), or some other way? I suspect "just dumped in" is the way most put cartridges into carrier boxes. I cannot help thinking that having cartridges sufficiently separated to allow quicker grasping in proper breech insertion position would have been quicker, especially in cold, wet weather.

I thought that the Lawrence Pellet priming system had been abandoned early in the war in favor of simpler, more reliable musket caps. Was there available a relatively compact musket cap dispenser that held a battle's supply of caps - say, 40-75 caps? Again, I'm thinking of the difficulty of affixing caps in lousy weather with a whole bunch of folks shooting at you. The fewer motions I would need to complete a reloading sequence, the happier and safer I would feel.

[Blair]

Naphtali,

You left out the most important part of the information I gave you.
Quote,
"I hope this information offers you some insight into the areas of research you may need to investigate to get the, full and rather 'more', complex answer to your question than I have offered you here."

You Sir, "need" very much to RESEARCH this information for yourself.

[Ken Hansgen, 11094]

Napthali, Good questions. Sorry we don't have all the answers. (I do hate it when I have to get those caps out of my pouch and cap in the cold when my fingers are numb!)

[Dave Fox]

I believe you'll find mounted troops generally carried their Sharps cartridges in leather boxes sized to contain a wooden insert drilled to accept 20 linen or paper cartridges. Circa 1863 a universal box was adopted by the U.S. Army so wooden blocks drilled for any carbine cartridges would interchange in the same box. Confederates often used captured material. Some Confederate-made carbine boxes contained tinned iron tubes to hold cartridges for U.S. or Richmond-made Sharps carbines.

As I recall, the U.S. infantry boxes for Sharps rifles came in two patterns. Both were the approximate size of the .54 calibre M.1841 rifle box. The earlier pattern had two removable tins, rather like the standard infantry boxes of the period, except the uppers each contained ten tinned tubes to secure loose cartridges while the lower compartment held a ten-round packet. The second pattern was alike, but the upper portions were wooden blocks drilled for ten cartridges each. I've never heard of a purpose-built C.S. Sharps infantry box. Only a few thousand Sharps rifles were built during the war in the north, all NM1859s, and only the tinist handful of Richmond C.S. Richmond Sharps rifles exist. Confederate infantry use of Sharps rifles was thus very rare.

The government continued to acquire Sharps primer pellets to the war's end and all M.1859. '63, and '65 model Sharps were manufactured to utilize them.

[Naphtali]

I believe you'll find mounted troops generally carried their Sharps cartridges in leather boxes sized to contain a wooden insert drilled to accept 20 linen or paper cartridges. Circa 1863 a universal box was adopted by the U.S. Army so wooden blocks drilled for any carbine cartridges would interchange in the same box. Confederates often used captured material. Some Confederate-made carbine boxes contained tinned iron tubes to hold cartridges for U.S. or Richmond-made Sharps carbines.

As I recall, the U.S. infantry boxes for Sharps rifles came in two patterns. Both were the approximate size of the .54 calibre M.1841 rifle box. The earlier pattern had two removable tins, rather like the standard infantry boxes of the period, except the uppers each contained ten tinned tubes to secure loose cartridges while the lower compartment held a ten-round packet. The second pattern was alike, but the upper portions were wooden blocks drilled for ten cartridges each. . . . AHA!


My saddle/holster maker, Wes Daems of 7X Leather in Ennis, Montana, does not have such a cartridge box in his catalog. Since I am uncertain what search terms to use, are such cartridge boxes currently available? Not only am I curious about their appearance, I am considering purchase.

[Blair]

Which of these two most basic types of cart. box is it you are looking for?

Examples of the Carbine style box are relatively easy to find. (Google search CW Carbine Catrtridge box)

The Sharps Rifle or Infantry style box is going to be a bit more difficult. A Google search under that topic may also help?

[Dave Fox]

Most every maker of replicated CW leather manfactures carbine boxes. As aforementioned in this thread, a Google search will turn up many. C&D Jarnigan produces an example of the Sharps infantry box.

[verg]

Dear Friends,

Duvall just entered production of the 40 round box with the tin cylinders in the top compartment.

http://duvallleatherwork.com/-strse-111/Union%2Cfederal%2CCavalry%2CCarbine%2CCartridge-Box%2CSharps%2CSharps-Carbine-Cartridge/Detail.bok

Regards,

John

[Southron Sr.]

One of the problems that the U.S. Cavalry had with the Sharps Carbines was that in the pre-war West, Cavalry patrols covered long distance on horseback. The paper cartridges in the cartridge boxes of the soldiers tended to break open from the constant jostling the trooper received when on horseback.

The U.S. Army simply solved that problem by replacing the paper Sharps cartridges with linen Sharps Cartridges. As one can imagine, the linen cartridges were much stronger and could take much rougher handling without breaking open.

As I travel to Skirmishes in an automobile rather than on horseback, I make my Sharps cartridges out of paper! I shoot a Pedersoli Sharps Carbine in N-SSA competition and make my paper cartridges out of Ladie's Hair Curler papers. They are the right size and always combust 100%. I even got them "On Sale" at a beauty supply wholesaler and paid something like $ 8.00 [plus tax] for 10,000 papers.

I normally load 40 grains of FFFg Schultzen Black Powder behind my lubed and sized Pedersoli Sharps bullet. I pack my completed cartridges in small, rectangular cardboard boxes that hold 25 rounds per box. Then those full boxes are stored in G.I. ammo cans that hermetically seal. I have fired Sharps ammo I made up ten years ago and it still shoots wonderfully accurate.