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The Seven Deadly Pins – U.S. Rod Bayonets 1833-1903

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The Seven Deadly Pins – U.S. Rod Bayonets 1833-1903 The Seven Deadly Pins-U.S. Rod Bayonets 18351903 Peter S. Wainwright Bayonets started about three and a half centuries ago as simple belt-knife blades mounted in tapered handles which plugged into the bore of a musket. These gradually replaced the long pole arm, which for many years was the principal weapon of the foot soldier. Plug bayonets had some obvious disadvantages. First, the blade would likely remain stuck in the object of one's aggression if it had not fallen out of the bore earlier. Also, one could not effectively fire or reload with the plug in the muzzle. Advantages were that the reach and use of a shoulder arm could be extended, even when empty, thus making it a dual-purposeweapon, and the ever-handy belt knife also now I had an additional use. We have in recent years reverted to a short belt-knifehayonet, though its handle includes a groove ghttering if aftixed while on parade, and it worked rather well and catch that mates with a rail under the barrel. In between, in hand-to-hand combat as a short sword and also for the search for dual-or more-purposes followed the bayo- nonofficial purposes. Nevertheless, it was extremely muzzle- net for all of its history through many mutations and is an heavy, affecting point of aim, accuracy, and handling of the important part of the story of "the seven deadly pins." principal weapon (Figure 2). In fact, the U.S. Marines The long-established angular or offset socket bayonet, apparently ground off the bayonet rail from the model 1870 which followed the plug, was a big improvement in that it did Remington Rolling Block Rifle so that the muzzle would not obstruct the bore and it stayed in place when used; accommodate the lighter, handier socket bayonet in combat, however, the bayonet and scabbard were added expensive but they left the stud so that the barrel could still hold the pieces of equipment that had little intended dual use, saber type for "show time." The U.S. Navy "Plymouth" rifle although the blades were easy to insert and withdraw. accommodated both "official" saber bayonets (Figure 2.10 Soldiers discovered unofficial uses for bayonets such as and alternate bowie bayonets, each for different purposes. I barbing the blade tip to spear fish and roast them over the With the advantages of such hindsight we should coals or placing them point in ground so the upraised socket forgive Captain John Hancock Hall, earlier of the Portland, could serve as a candle holder. Beyond that, the bayonet was Maine, Light Infantry, for inventing, and several successors ' a fairly useless piece of equipment except when employed for employing a total of seven times over a 70-year period, rod on the muzzle of the firearm, where the combination became bayonets, herein called "the seven deadly pins." very long and awkward (particularly in confined areas such as R. T. Huntington, in his book Hall's Breech Loaders, I a barracks) unless the bayonet was removed and put in its states: "The rod bayonet is probably Hall's own idea." In scabbard. 1832, before Hall had developed the dragoon carbine, a With costs, utility, and weight in mind, governments British officer visiting the rifle works noted that Hall demon- attempted to make dual-use implements out of bayonets by strated a rod bayonet that he had fitted to a rifle. Huntington shaping them as entrenching shovels, saws, spikes, swords, relates that a set of trials held on 19 June 1832 compared bolos, and bowie knives, often with unintended conse- several breech loaders. The board found Hall's breech loader quences (Figures 1 and 2). For example, an entrenching tool with rod bayonet-the first of the "seven deadly pinsM- (CC) was not a good bayonet for either penetration or "superior to the other arms for military use." withdrawal, and if left fixed in place while shoveling would The fact that both of the first two models of the Hall's likely bend the barrel of the musket or rifle. Carbine, the 1833 and 1836, were for U.S. Dragoons (which A case could be made for the sword or saber bayonet to were mounted infantry rather than cavalry) justified supply- somewhat justlfy its expense and weight. It was flashy and ing each man with a bayonet, although jouncing around on a Reprinted from the American Society of Arms Collectors Bulletin 80:17-24 Additional articles available at http://americansocietyofarmscollectors.org/resources/articles/ U.S. Dragoon carrying a U.S. Mod. 1836 Hall (Harper's Ferry) Breech-loadingPercussion Carbine with Rod Bayonet. 80/18 According to Norm Flayderman, Hall's Model 1833 breech-loadingpercussion carbine (Figures 3 and 4). is important historically as the earliest percussion weapon adopted officially by the U.S. (or any other) government, and the earliest breech loader so adopted. The bayonet device is also ~musualand of special interest, and quite in advance of its time. Captain L. Beall of the 2nd Regiment of U.S. Dragoons Figure 1. Dual- ur ose ba onets: AA. Model 1873; BB. Model 1819 registered several serious complaints regarding the Hall Hall; CC. Model f878 DD. ddel1898; EE. Model 1880; FF. Model 1892 Carbine. His letter of 12 March 1839 concluded with this observation: "The bayonet springs has (sic) become in such a horse made a conventional socket bayonet (Figure 1.BB) and state from the rust that it was almost impossible to spring scabbard, such as the one employed on Hall's Model 1819 them." The Model 1836 rod retaining device was similar to flintlock rifle, more of an impediment than a valuable that of the Model 1833 but employed a stiffer spring because instrument. The rod bayonet solved that problem but tended of the loss of rod bayonets (Figures 5 and 3). to raise the bullet's point of impact and introduced other With numerous complaints from the field, an ordinance concerns. board reviewed the arm but failed to discuss the rod in its While a ramrod is less of a must for a breech loader than report of 18 December 1839 to Secretary of War Joel R. for a muzzle loader, it was still desirable with the wiper/jag Poinsett. The secretary, however, had his own ideas: screwed to the back end because the black powder and soft lead in use at the time built up quite a bit of residue in the Approved, but the attention of the Board is directed to the barrel, eventually affecting accuracy. However, as with many bayonet of the carbine-is it necessary? Is it used in any other compromises, a ramrod bayonet did not offer the best of service than ours? Is it not cumbersome and calculated to either world. The need to harden the bayonethod was hard injure the bore? on the barrel, and among other drawbacks, the wiper was Lt. Colonel George Talcott of Ordinance took the hint from easy to lose. Thus the bayonet feature was dropped in favor his big boss and on 23 January 1840 told Simeon North: of a cleaning rod on subsequent cavalry models. It is probable that the bayonet will be suppressed and a Captain Hall was indubitably a firearms and tooling cleaning rod substituted at no distant day as it has been found genius. He shared with his fellow but better-known New inconvenient in the service and the spring is often lost- Englander, Eli Whitney of Connecticut, the dream of mass- thereby rendering it worse than useless. producing firearms with completely interchangeable parts. The above was made official in an ordinance board report of 3 He had succeeded in selling the U.S. government on adopting March 1840: "To substitute for the ramrod-bayonet a light its first flintlock, breech-loading rifle, the Model 1819, but steel rod like that of the Musketoon. ." The rod bayonet thereon employed the standard socket bayonet of the period was not again in production for 40 years. with the exception that the bridge front sight notch had to be Of the approximately 158,000 rod bayonet shoulder offset because of the center location of the flintlock. arms produced for U.S. troops from Models 1833 through 1903, with the exception of the Models 1836 and 1888, a disproportionately low number still exist for several reasons, which we will discuss as we proceed. The 9,183 Hall Model 1833 and 1836 carbines made by Simeon North and Harpers Ferry, respectively, were for the First and Second U.S. Dragoons, mounted infantry dispatched to the remote reaches of the west or the dismal southern swamps of the Seminoles. Many men and Hall-North 1833 carbines did not return intact from such far-flung and rugged duty. There were orders for replacement parts in the field, including triangular rod bayonets which may have escaped from their retaining springs. Because of these and other Figure 2. Sword or saber ba onets:. GG. Model 1905. HH. problems previously reviewed, a number of Model 1836 Socket/Sword; II. bierrill Ardery Sword;JJ. Model 1k47 Sappers Musketoon Harpers Ferry Halls were not issued but were later sold as Figurcs3 and 4. Model 1833 ~a~~d. Fim~5 and 6. Model 1836 H~U(H~~~ ~~~1. Ei@w~7 and 8. Model 1880 spdgaed. 9 ad10- Model 1882 ExpcrimenW ~~riflgfi~1~~ surplus once supplanted by the "improved" Model 1840 and rifles known as the Model 1884, similar to previous with cleaning rod only. This accounts for the higher survival standard models but utilizing a new and improved BwYington rate of the Model 1836, the second of "the seven deadly rear sight.
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