US Model 1917 Bayonet Scabbard, Museum Replica Restoration, M1917

A while back I did a blog write-up on my Model 1917 Remington Bayonet.................

http://sharky-fourbees.blogspot.com/2011/02/model-1917-remington-bayonet.html

Well since then, the bayonet has found a new home.  I passed it to my uncle who has three vintage US Model 1917 Enfields from WW1.  The bayonet fits the rifles perfectly, but there was one problem, there was no scabbard!

Original scabbards for these old M1917 bayonets can go for "insane" prices these days, so my uncle did what any good collector would do....... he found a reproduction scabbard on eBay for cheap!  Then he sent it to my workshop for a complete overhaul and "Museum Replica Restoration".  It took a few days of detail work, but the results were outstanding!  The scabbard looks and feels like it is an actual, vintage WW1 scabbard that matches the bayonet.  I sent the bayonet and scabbard back to their new owner where they are on display with the rifles.

Here is an outstanding article on the original Model 1917 U.S. Enfield rifles:
http://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2012/4/19/the-model-1917-us-enfield/ 

The reproduction scabbard had no markings, was painted OD Green over the entire surface and the wire hanger was installed backwards.  Good bones, but in need of some accurate "restoration" attention.

I started out by stripping the paint from the metal.

"Aging and distressing" the metal.

Distressing and breaking in the painted leather scabbard, including the addition of "micro cracking", just like one would expect to see on an original.

The metal was aged further with cold blue paste, and then buffed with steel wool.......a number of times.  I worked from photographs of confirmed original scabbards to get the overall appearance of the metal correct.  I then fine-tuned the wear to match the finish on the bayonet.

Then I coated the entire scabbard with my "secret funk paste" to duplicate years and years of grease, dirt and grime, working it into the nooks and crevices.......and dulling out the paint.  A few coats of this paste, with liberal buffing with a rag between coats, and the effect was perfect.

I removed and reinstalled the wire hanger in it's correct position and the scabbard was ready to go.

Not bad for a "Museum Replica Restoration"!  I think that it would take someone with an expert eye and a lot of experience handling original M1917 bayonet scabbards to determine that this is actually a replica!

Here are a few "before" photos so you have something to compare to the "after" photos that follow:

Here is the finished scabbard with the original bayonet:

Norwegian Mess Kit, Kokekar fra det Norske Forsvaret

Today's review is on a very hard to find (almost rare), mess kit from the Norwegian Army.  The newest addition to my military mess kit collection.

These Norwegian mess kits are not very common and are rarely seen for sale these days.  I was lucky enough to see this one for sale on eBay.  This is the old style mess kit that was used in the 1950's through the 1970's.  These kits are nearly identical to their Swiss Army cousins, and are often confused for the more common Swiss kits. The Norwegian kits are always painted a shade of green and the Swiss kits are black,  The Norwegian kits are also a bit shorter in the body, and have a "square shaped" mount for the hinged cup handle.

This mess kit was manufactured by the Ilovan company in Norway, in 1958.  If you can read Norwegian (or can use Google Translator), here is a great historical website that tells all about the history of the Ilovan Company:

http://www.industrimuseum.no/bedrifter/ilovan

Ilovan was a smaller Norwegian company that was founded in 1922 and closed up in 2007.  They primarily made high quality aluminum cookware for the civilian market and also filled military orders for aluminum equipment, like this mess kit.  This kit was manufactured at their factory that was located in Moss, Norway.  The factory operated from 1922 to 1968 before it was moved to a different location in 1971.

This mess kit will make a great companion to my M40 Norwegian Re-Issue German Helmet that I documented in an earlier blog entry: 
 http://sharky-fourbees.blogspot.com/2010/12/norwegian-stahlhelm-m40-re-issue.html

I am currently displaying this kit with a vintage 1953 mess kit strap from the Czech Army.  It's not exactly correct, but it will have to do until I can locate an original Norwegian mess kit strap!

Before we get started with the photo-show, here's an interesting photo that I picked up over at the official Norwegian Army digital "museum" page.......... It is a grouping of mess gear that was issued to the Norwegian soldiers in the 1970's: stove, rations, mess kit, etc.  Interesting: 

http://forsvaretsmuseer.no/Media/Images/Noedproviant-primus-og-kokekar-fra-den-kalde-krigen-Forsvarsmuseet

Now let's take a closer look at this mess kit and let the photos do the talking:

 

 

 

Using a stick for a handle extension.

Frost River Ilse Royal Jr. Bushcraft Pack & Bucket Modification

In my last couple of posts, I have been referring to  my "new bushcraft pack".  Well, I figured I ought to show it off and explain a little bit about the pack, why I chose it, and my impressions after receiving it........ in short, a bit of a review with my thoughts and musings about it.  So here we go!

I have a number of vintage military rucksacks, but I was hesitant to break them out for field use, and I was really interested in something that was new made, very rugged, and yet kept that "old-shcool" style and charm.  After a ton of research on line, and reading a ton of reviews and narratives, I finally settled on the Frost River, Ilse Royal Jr. Bushcraft Pack.

Frost River Ilse Royal Bushcraft Pack

I was very impressed with the company's philosophy and dedication to 100% made in the USA products.  When I say 100%, I mean just that...........  The Frost River Story and Philosophy

US made oilskin canvas made by Martexin
US tanned leather from  SB Foot Tannery, the makers of the leather for Red Wing Boots
Hand riveted and hand sewn by US workers in the Frost River workshop
100% solid brass hardware and rivets 

These packs are new-made to old shchool patterns and levels of quality that you just don't find in many companies these days.  The pack patterns are the tried and true styles that were refined in the fields and forests of America over 100 years ago.  A few refinements were made, but all-in-all, these packs are the same as their frontier ancestors!  They are "lifetime quality" and I expect to use this pack for the rest of my life and then pass it on to the next generation............ they are built to last, and last, and last, and are very repairable, just like the old packs.   In fact these packs are usually, "made to order".  When I ordered my pack, I was told that there would be a 2 to 3 week lead time before shipping so the pack could be made!  Someone actually held my order in hand, and then proceeded to cut and assemble the raw materials into MY pack!  Very cool!

With all of that said, I did have one disappointment when I received my pack.  When I first pulled the pack out of the package, I immediately knew I was holding my "dream pack".  When I looked a bit closer, the first thing that I noticed was that the non-load bearing  rivets looked great on the exterior side, but on the backside, they were sharp and "cheaply" mushroomed over "tube rivets".  The heads and shafts were sold brass, but the back portion was a hollow tube. These are what are called "semi-tubular rivets".

The "mushroomed" portion was sharp, with split metal "petals"....... and it looked bad....... it just looked cheap and not something I would ever expect on a pack at this price point or quality level.  Personally, I would never let anything like this leave my shop!  The rivets were "adequately" doing their intended job and were back-ups to the stitching, but why bother if they look so cheap and have sharp backs that can snag and cut?  

I believe that this type of semi-tubular rivet is meant to be set with a special punch that rolls and mushrooms the tubular end into a smooth, circular, "eyelet" type backing that works as the "mushroom" back.  These are not meant to split and tear out when they are installed!

For a few cents per rivet more, and probably for the same amount of assembly time, the job could have been done right.......... and that is exactly what I did for them.

The rivets on the left are my "replacement rivets", the right-hand rivets are the Frost River "load bearing" rivets.

I drilled out and removed all of the "mushroomed and split" rivets and replaced them with my own solid aluminum tinners rivets with brass washers. 

It took about half an hour to do the full job, and it was infinitely worth it!  Now the pack looks the way it should and is a "lifetime pack".  This is one improvement I would recommend to any new Frost River pack owner.  I have been a long time owner and user of Filson products, and you would never expect to see, and I have never seen,  this cheap riveting on their packs!  Frost River really dropped the ball on this area!  I am glad I had the rivets and the skill to make the rivet upgrade myself.

I will give them credit for the load bearing rivets.  These babies are beasts!  Big, heavy and solid.  Installed correctly and meant to last more than a lifetime!  This is what I expected on ALL of the riveted areas!

I also constructed an internal bucket to give the pack some rigidity and shape when hauling loose loads.  This is very reminiscent of the old pack baskets.  I used a plastic office trash can, and cut it down to fit.  As you can see from the shape, I made it with a long back, and a lower bucket-shelf.  

I sanded and rounded all of the sharp edges with sandpaper and then added a piece of solid cell camp-pad foam to the back.  The foam is attached with Velcro so it can be removed easily and will not slip when the unit is installed in the pack.  I used the super-sticky, peel-n-stick Velcro strips.  I used a heat gun to soften and reshape the lower portion of the bucket so it better fits the shape of my lower back.

I also added a vintage Mosin Nagant ammo pouch to the upper side side cinch strap.  This works perfectly to hold my head lamp in one side, and my car keys in the other.  These old pouches are made of "pleather" which makes them very weather resistant and nearly waterproof, and they match the pack style and colors! I have a second pouch that can be added to other side as well, if needed.

One very cool feature on these packs is the "axe tube" that lets you carry your hatchet or axe easily.  When the axe is slid into the tube, it is held securely by the pack flap that will cover it.  Here it is with my restored 1950's Boy Scout Axe (more on that in another blog posting!).

I purchased two of the bedroll straps from Frost River when I ordered the pack so I would have at least one set of matching leather straps for the bottom of the pack.  These are definitely "bedroll straps" long enough for a blanket roll, or my rolled zeltbahn tent, but not long enough for a sleeping bag. (also had to replace the rivets on these straps!).

The Frost River straps are in the foreground, not installed.

An now to finish things up, here is an album of Frost River Ilse Royal Jr. shots....... enjoy!

Padded shoulder straps.  Closed cell foam glued to the harness leather and covered in elk skin!

Frost River straps on top, Czech Army straps on bottom.