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Federal Issue Bayonet Scabbard
Price:
$85.00
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**The Best Selling Bayonet Scabbard On The Market For Overall Historical Accuracy And Craftsmanship**
Our Federal Issue Pattern 1859 Bayonet Scabbard Is Patterned Directly From An Original Held In My Private Collection. It Is Constructed Of Blackened Oak Tanned Leather With Your Choice Of Waxed Flesh Or Bridle Leather Frog (See Leather Definitions Below For Help). This Scabbard Is Entirely Hand Made And Hand Sewn With The Contractors Stamp Sproulls, Meeker & Co (New York)**. To Ensure A Perfect Fit, Please Select Your Bayonet From The Menu Above And Remember, All Of Our Accoutrements Are Oiled And Greased By Hand To Ensure Years Of Field Use. The Fit Of Your Personal Bayonet In The Scabbard Has A 100% Return And Replace Guarantee.
**Sproulls, Meeker & Co. Was A New York City Harness Shop That Turned Its Attention To Manufacturing Army Accoutrements When They Were Awarded Their First US Government Contract On September 28th, 1861 For 10,000 Sets Of Accoutrements. They Were Later Awarded Their Second Accoutrements Contract Of July 19th 1862 For 20,000 Sets. After This Contract They Never Again Produced Accoutrements. Because Of Sproulls, Meeker’s Short, Early War Manufacturing Time Span, This Makes Their Surviving Artifacts Ideal For Examination. With An Early War Manufacturer, It Can Be Almost Certain That These Surviving Artifacts Were Indeed Issued To Civil War Troops And Are Not Late War Surplus Accoutrements.**
*Definitions*
Waxed Flesh: Leather which has been blackened and waxed smooth on the flesh side of a hide. If you can imagine a hide of leather has two sides, a smooth side and a rough side, the smooth side once held the animals’ hair and the rough side was in contact with the flesh of the animal, hence the term flesh side. Waxed flesh or "Upper Leather" as it was also called was used by contractors during the American Civil War as a type of imitation buff leather. All military belting and scabbard frogs were to be made of buff leather however the sheer numbers of accoutrements sets needed at the outbreak of the war made it impractical to produce enough buff leather due to its time consuming tanning process. Waxed flesh belting and bayonet scabbard frogs seem to have been manufactured sporadically by multiple contractors between the years of 1857 to the last quarter of 1862.
Bridle Leather: Leather which is blackened and finished on the smooth or grain side of a hide of leather. This smooth side of the leather once held the animals’ hair and is the typical way leather is presented in a finished product. Bridle leather or “Grain Leather” as it was called was used by contractors during the entire duration of the American Civil War as a cheap alternative to buff leather. Bridle leather belting and bayonet scabbard frogs seem to have been manufactured in great quantity by most contractors between the years of 1857 until the end of the Civil War. It can be noted that all three types of leather used for belting and scabbard frogs (buff, waxed flesh, and bridle leather) most certainly overlapped field use during the first two years of the war.
“Frame” Your Time Of Impression!
A guide to understanding accoutrements
Pattern Of 1859 Bayonet Scabbard With Frog
By: Frederick C. Gaede
In 1859 two copper rivets were added to the scabbard, strengthening the collar’s attachment to the blackened buff frog. There is no evidence that scabbards were retrofitted with rivets and only newly constructed scabbards featured the rivets. All would have been made with frogs having the wider opening dimension.
While regulation with blackened buff frogs until 1863, in reality few scabbards were made with them and examples today are very scarce. Buff was tedious to make and supplies quickly ran out once the Civil War began. Black grain leather (also referred to as bridle leather) was substituted and starting in 1861 most Pattern of 1859 scabbards have grain leather frogs. A few scabbards with blackened buff frogs may have been seen in the ranks in 1861 or possibly early 1862, but black grain leather would have been much more common from the beginning of the War until 1863.
Because of mistakes made at Allegheny Arsenal in the Summer of 1862, samples of a scabbard with a waxed leather frog were shown to contractors and they proceeded to deliver some with such frogs between September 1862 and January 1863. The quantity was not large but the variation did exist and a few would have been seen in the ranks in 1863.
[Frederick C. Gaede]
*Researcher
*Author: “The CW Shelter Tent” & “The Cap Pouch, 1833 – 1896”
*US Army Accoutrements Consultant & Appraiser
*Former Editor of the “Company Of Military Historians”
*Member Of American Society Of Arms Collectors
*Member of the Maryland Arms Collectors
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