Packing Knapsack

[Charles Reynolds]

Ok Guys & Gals
Somewhere on the internet I found a series of photos of equipment laid out and how to pack it. Anybody have any ideas where I can find them?
Thanks

[skamikaze]

http://www.sykesregulars.org/

they usually have that kind of stuff

[Charles Reynolds]

Thanks that what what I was looking for.

[tenfed1861]

If you have a double bag,here's how:
In the pouch that rides on your back,put your blanket in there.Fold the blanket in sections of 3,then fold that in half.Then just slip it in.If you have a shelter half,put that in there as well.It should be able to fit in one of the nooks.You can carry it on the bottom to give your pack alittle form.
In the outer pouch,put your personal items,extra clothing,extra ammo,ect.You will need to experiment how to put the items in there.It can be alittle tricky,but everyone will have their own ways.
Fold up your groundcloth and put that in between the bags as you close it up.It will put the cloth out of the way,but give you quick access to it in case of bad weather.
As far as on top,only a great coat should go on top in cold weather.Some men did carry blankets on top,but they might have done this aas a carry over from the wooden frames they carry.If you carry a blanket on top,it will cause strain on your shoulders.Only a great coat should go on top.
One the buckles,carry your muckets,cup,personal size coffe pot,ect.
Hope this helps some.
Cullen

[Parault]

Thank you Tenfed. I am always looking to not only lighten, but to pack in a comfortable way that I can wear my pack for a weekend

[Parault]

Thank you skamikaze. That site has some very interesting and helpful pages

[CivilWarBuff1863]

http://www.sykesregulars.org/

they usually have that kind of stuff


That's how I packed my knapsack from the Sykes Regulars site.

[reb64]

.If you carry a blanket on top,it will cause strain on your shoulders.Cullen


to avoid strain from the blanket, assuming it is flopping or dragging backward, make it ride forward and straight by finding a stick straight as possible like a dowel rod. push through blanket strap, then center loop of knapsack and then through far blanket strap. this prevents blankets flop.

[skamikaze]

What i generally do is fill the rear bag with more stuff than the bag that rests on your back. This gives the blanket a boost forward and it stays right on top of the pack at a comfortable ride.

[bob 125th nysvi]

put your blanket inside your shelter half (in a double bag knapsack) in the bag that goes against your back, like your supposed to.

It wouldn't drag backward.

I've said it time and again, those aren't 'blanket straps' those are "greatcoat straps".

The pack is designed to carry the blanket and shelter half that puts the heavy stuff on the bottom where it won't unbalance the load.

It seems to me that we go to lot of trouble and tricks to undo something we've done wrong instead of doing it right in the first place.

I'd suggest you get yourself a copy of 'KNAPSACK AND HAVERSACK PACKING 101' by Kevin O’Beirne and pack it right instead of going through all kinds of gyrations to make it work.

[skamikaze]

... how do you prevent "greatcoat flop?" :)

I tried it the "right" way with a greatcoat on the straps and got the same result as a blanket, worse even. My greatcoat is even bulkier than the blanket and had more drag.

I know that the regulations call for the greatcoat on the straps but having tried both I really prefer the blanket, especially since there are few times that I really need to (or an actual soldier) would need to carry the greatcoat on campaign. Whereas the blanket is an essential no matter what the temperature.

I did use the syke's regulars page to learn how to fold the coat so im hoping i did it right. I could be wrong though.

[3rdUSRedleg]

I simply run my sholder straps through my greatcoat straps, that keeps the coat or blanket in place just fine.
Nice thread btw for beginners.

[bob 125th nysvi]

... how do you prevent "greatcoat flop?" :)

I tried it the "right" way with a greatcoat on the straps and got the same result as a blanket, worse even. My greatcoat is even bulkier than the blanket and had more drag.

I know that the regulations call for the greatcoat on the straps but having tried both I really prefer the blanket, especially since there are few times that I really need to (or an actual soldier) would need to carry the greatcoat on campaign. Whereas the blanket is an essential no matter what the temperature.

I did use the syke's regulars page to learn how to fold the coat so im hoping i did it right. I could be wrong though.

the belt straps. Seems to work on me but then I have a tall frame and am fairly large and can carry a lot of weight. And average load is a smaller percentage of my weight than for an average size reenactor.

As per AoP regs (after 1862) I usually leave the greatcoat home so a light oilcloth goes on top.

[medicalcadetcorp]

sorry for posting so late, but how do you pack a Federal Hardpack?

[2nd_mi_johnny]

sorry for posting so late, but how do you pack a Federal Hardpack?

At home in a crate where it won't cause me great back trama on the march

[Pvt Schnapps]

I just looked over this recently and noticed that there was a reference to the straps atop the knapsack being the same as overcoat straps.

The truth is that soldiers in the civil war carried their overcoats both on top of the knapsack and folded inside. The Regs can be read either way.

A reference to the DC militia at the beginning of the war indicates that overcoat straps were obsolete. The following comes from Cornell's MOA site, from the Century Magazine in 1864. "Fly Leaves from a Soldier's Diary" is an account of service in the 3-month First Regiment, District of Columbia Volunteers. In this passage the author describes the aftermath of their initial attempt to issue "camp and garrison equipage":

"Sergeant Files hustles everybody about, exposes several shamefaced impostors, who have more than everything, and by the timely announcement that Smallweed’s deficiency consists of two over-coat straps, which are no longer used in the service, restores comparative quiet."

Still, the army did buy overcoat straps during the war, but I believe these were issued separately for storing coats in barracks (they seem to have been boxed up during the summer months). The proper way to pack the great coat, and evidence that there was still confusion, is laid out in the advice column of The United States Army and Navy Journal for December 24, 1864, by the Commandant of West Point, who states simply "The overcoat is now carried inside the knapsack."

In 1862 the army experimented with knapsack weight and determined that if soldiers kept their spare clothes to a minimum, and used them to cushion the back against a knapsack load of hardtack, they could carry 8-10 days of rations with them. I've attached the report for reference, but perhaps its greatest importance is to remind reenactors that the decision to carry a knapsack in lieu of a blanket roll was not a lifestyle choice, but something of a logistical requirement.

[Mint Julep]

to avoid strain from the blanket, assuming it is flopping or dragging backward, make it ride forward and straight by finding a stick straight as possible like a dowel rod. push through blanket strap, then center loop of knapsack and then through far blanket strap. this prevents blankets flop.

Can you provide any wartime examples of this practice?

I used to do this years ago, but it was pointed out as being a modern hiking trick and not known during the Civil War. I've never seen a reference to the practice, nor a photo to support it or an original knapsack that shows that kind of wearing (other than the I & C, which was constructed with a stick in it).

[Artyman]

Well. I read here that some think, and have documentation to the effect, that knapsacks were left bare on top, that blanket rolls were used instead of knapsacks, and experiments were carried out...and so on. This might be all well and true, but....

All through the war when you read narratives regarding the routed enemy being pushed back several miles, the diaries usually mention that the ground was littered with discarded knapsacks! (and other stuff, like bodies and wounded). Further, period photos show many knapsacks on the march, usually with something rolled on top...could be a blanket or a great coat. Of course, there are pics of blanket rolls too (like the three captured Confeds at Gettysburg). In the end it's like listening to a guy (as we have) state for a fact (which they do) that all Confeds wore slouch hats while he is looking at a period photo showing half the pictured Rebs wearing kepis!

In todays army, sargeants love to hastle the men over trivial things...like how to pack a pack. I'm sure that was true then as well. I can envision the young green recruit, tediously rolling his blanket onto his knapsack, only to have the sargeant come buy and tell him to put it inside his pack, then after he does, the next sargeant comes along and orders him to put it on top of his pack. For us today the answer is to look at the photos. The camera doesn't play politics...we see it both ways.

I like the movie "Charge of the Light Brigade" (Trevor Howard version) where the troopers are setting up their Sibleys. Each time one officer (Lord Cardigan) comes through the camp he tells the men to pitch the tents close together, then the next officer (Lord Raglin) comes through and tells them too pitch them further apart. The poor men (including the hapless Quartermaster) reset the tents several times. I'm sure there was a regulation, but neither officer seems to know it...or doesn't care! Anyone who has done military time can relate to this...whether or not the movie scene actually happened in real life.

Packing a knapsack will in the end be a sum total of all the facts brought into play at the moment it was packed...which will include whether or not he had a knapsack, what he had to put in it, where he had to go with it, and what he did with it during the march. There will be times where the men will be ordered to leave their packs behind, and sometimes even be able to return to them after the battle. Many were marked so they could be reclaimed, with names and company info. In any case, the soldier will pack his knapsack to his advantage...and will learn very quickly what works and what doesn't.

A scenerio like this maybe...I have a knapsack. I would like to have a wooden framed one, like I had in 1861, but instead I have the one I picked up on the field after a battle. I went through it and kept what I needed, and pitched the rest, combining my stuff with the found stuff. I will pack it with the skill of three years of marching, and will carry it South as we retreat from place to place. As I get weaker in the trenches around Petersburg I will eventually be ordered to move out to the West. I won't have gone very far before my sore feet and weakened body won't be able to carry the knapsack, but the Feds are close, we can't stop to rest, so I finally just toss it into the ditch. Eventually all I will have left is my rifle and a few cartridges in my pocket, a canteen, some caps folded into an old piece of paper. Some guys will have even less. I will sleep that last night in the open field in the damp grass, so tired I could sleep everywhere. In a day or two I will be surrendered along with everyone else, and will begin my long march home. I come across the spot where I dumped my pack the week before, but it's gone now. I look like a scarecrow, disarmed, coatless, infested...and have only one thought. Home Sweet Home. The song runs through my head as I walk. Then I see it...back in the woods, a discarded knapsack! I dig through the brush, pull it from the thorn bush, and start to go through it. It wasn't mine, but it has a blanket in it and a revolver! Three hard crackers, though moldy and covered with ants, become the first meal I've had since the surrender. I put on shirt it contained, take the blanket and wrap it around my shoulders and return to my quest, leaving the knapsack and the pistol where I found it in the brush. I'm done with guns! Still, I'm a little better off now than I was five minutes ago...but its sure 'nuff a long way home!

Harry