Tarring your own Canvas

[bc381900]

Once you have been reenacting for a while, you will notice that sometimes the best, most authentic, reproductions you can obtain are made at home. If you have a "fdo it yourself" attitude and don't mind taking the time to do things right, you may enjoy this post.

Tarring your own canvas is easy and you can tar yards of it at a time. That way, when it is finished, you can cut your patterns for haversacks, knapsacks, kepi bill, housewives, etc, right out of your supply.

You will need:
Linseed Oil
Japan Dryer (shaves off about 12 hours of drying time)
flat black, oil based paint
Wallpaper sizing

Grab the amount of canvas you would like to paint and wash and dry it. This will contract the weave and allow it to take the sizing and tar a little better.

Lay it out flat and with a paint roller, liberally coat one side with the wallpaper sizing. What this will do it prevent the tar from seeping through the canvas so you have one tarred side and one "canvas colored" side. Add 2 or 3 coats of the sizing to ensure a good seal in the weave of the canvas.

Once all that junk has dried, mix the paint and linseed oil together. I use more linseed oil than I do paint at about a 2 part oil, 1 part paint ratio. Using more oil will make the canvas more flexible. You will see alot of haversacks and knapsacks that sutlers sell have cracks around where the fabric has to bend (top of flap and around where the strap is sewn to bag). This is because they use more paint than oil. Once it is all mixed up, add 3 or 4 splashes of the Japan Dryer (you can buy it at Sherwin Williams). This will cut the drying time in half if not more.

With a paint roller, coat the canvas with tar on the same side you coated with the wallpaper sizing. Do it in coats adding a new coat every 2 hours. 3 coats should do it. Don't go past 4 coats because it will be just too thick and when you go to sew it together, you will need a jackhammer and a nailgun to make way for your needle.

After the last coat, store it somewhere with little dust or dirt and let dry for a day or two.

I hope this is useful for some of you. Happy Reenacting!!!

-Brad Clay
Buffalo Guard
Pridgeon's Shenandoah Legion

[WestTN_reb]

Another thing to consider is the cloth itself. If you examine original items, you will notice that most of the cloth used for "tarred" items is drill weight (8 oz.) or lighter. Some is almost muslin weight. Wal-Mart 10 oz. duck canvas is far too heavy. Pillow ticking weight cloth is the heaviest you want to go.

[Ross L. Lamoreaux]

I will also add that a great amount of experimentation is needed to perfect the art of period paint. You'll probably have to do several runs of a different mixture, as one recipe for paint may work in upstate New York, but dry completely different in Georgia or Florida. Humidity levels vary greatly and will affect paint performance and drying, japan dryer or not. The more you study originals, the more you scratch your head, as there is no "one right way" or "one right cloth". It greatly depends upon the article, the contractor or maker, and even what part of the war and for what side. Just one for instance, I've seen original Federal haversacks made from linen, cotton, cotton drill, and light canvas, and all with different paint make-ups and varying shininess. Some items were heavily starched before painting, others were not. You just have to look at every original item when you get the chance and keep learning. You are right though, with a little "do it yourself" attitude, you can make alot, but not all, of the equipment, accoutrements, and clothing of this era.

[Eureka Independent]

Hi All,

Ross, good points!

One thing I will add is that the heaviest cloth that is "tarred" Aka painted or enameled cloth. I have seen in the "Russia" sheeting used in US Knapsacks.

In some foreight knapdacks uimported to the US of the period ( French & German examples I have examined) the cloth is a tadd heavier but is still "Russia" sheeting, at the heaviest 10 oz per linear yard.

It is good to see folks working witht eh correct recipe's and getting away from latex.

Most definately after the paint is dry, hang it in a open area & let it cure for 2 weeks at a minimum. Depending on humidity in your area, let the cloth cure longer. Just remember the higher the humidity the longer it should cure.

Once cured the cloth is absolutly safe .

I have been working with period linseed oil based painted cloth and oil cloth on a professional basis since 1994 & never had a problem in all that time with the paint.

Most definatle practce with the paint to get your mixute the way you want it & have fun with the process. There are also other colours one can use for floor cloths. A mid green is my favorite ;)

Hope this helps

Don S

[3rdUSRedleg]

Kinda off topic but with the same reference to
period paint mixtures.

This is from the Ordnance Manual (http://www.artilleryreserve.org/Examples/Ordpaint.pdf) on that very subject.

I hope that this helps with anyones research.

[mtodriscoll]

Looks like all the paints mentioned in the PDF are for buildings.
Or did they not have one paint for buildings and another for cloth gear?

[3rdUSRedleg]

Looks like all the paints mentioned in the PDF are for buildings.
Or did they not have one paint for buildings and another for cloth gear?

Sir;
This was added for purposes rendering linseed oil based paints in general.
As for cloth vs buildings, I guess you will have to try it to know.

I do know that the olive drab mixture is used before "priming" the canvas
for Ordnance Covers, or "Cannon Tarps" as some call it and the 2
5x5 canvas pieces stored in the battery wagon.

[toybee]

can this be used for ground cloths or ponchos? Anyone have and advice on making ponchos?

[Bill_Cross]

Anyone have and advice on making ponchos?
Yes: don't.

Ponchos were not an issue item. They did exist, but they're not PEC (plain, everyday, common). They're waaaay over-represented in the hobby, as if a lot of dead cavalry had been found in a store in Gettysburg, PA.

You do NOT want to use painted canvas for a ground cloth unless you are hauling it about in a Ford F-100. It will weigh 2x a proper gum blanket, and is waaaaay too heavy. Using cotton drill or other lightweight fabric will make the thing just about weigh-out at gum blankie weight. Marching more than about 50' with anything heavier and you'll go period (i.e., throw it away).

If you want a poncho, get a gum blanket and some j-clips. It's what the boys of 186X did. You hook up the j-clips when it rains, then put them back in your pocket once the sun comes out.