Spencer tool

[5judge]

Accumulating my kit and accoutrement to compliment my newly-acquired M.1860 56-56 carbine, I acquired a Spencer-specific gun tool from Dixie gun works ($25 less expensive than S&S's). An hour of cleaning age-hardened grease off and breaking the pivoting blade free left a very tight tool with no pitting and almost all its bluing intact. Question: what is the hole at the blunt end of the appendage for? I believe I've seen a replica with a string lanyard attached there, but that doesn't seem right.

[irish9th]

From 2 other pics I saw the hole was for a piece of leather hide kinda like a key chain. Also that is the Spencer Rifle tool not the carbine tool
 Both Dixie and S&S sell original Rifle tools. Good luck finding a non dug carbine tool. Use the Spencer book to see the difference in tools. I gave up on trying to find my Spencers history just no records out there. I have purchaseed 20 original 56-56 rounds. Considering firing one. Joe

[Jobe Holiday]

irish9th -

In attempting tp fire an original round you may be disappointed. Don't be surprised if it doesn't go off, or if it does there may be a delay in ignition. First, it's not uncommon to find battlefield recovered cases, and complete cartridges, showing evidence of having been turned in the chamber and having had the hammer dropped several times. The problem originally was due to the way the priming compound was spun into the rim. It didn't always fill the entire rim and the hammer could drop on a "dead zone." That is why the Henry Rifle had a double firing pin. It struck at 3:00 & 9:00 on the case rim to double the chances that it would fire the first time. As for a delay in ignition, that would be due to decomposing fulminate in the case rim. I saw a guy fire an old rimfire pistol one time....he pulled it up, squeezed the trigger....the hammer dropped and nothing happened. He held it there for about 3-4 seconds and then dropped his arm to his side. About 3 seconds after that the darned thing went off and planted a .41 caliber slug right next to his foot!

Jobe

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[5judge]

        Back to the Spencer tool. I've read a tad on the subject, but not enough to be dangerous. One does wonder why one would go to the trouble of manufacturing two concurrent tools (rifle/carbine) to service the same take-down functions. And, if so, why have rifle tools survived in abundance when alleged carbine tools (servicing many times the number of carbines manufactures) have not? Could the "carbine" tool variant tool be a post war modification of the wartime "rifle" tool, as was done with some Sharps and musket tools?
        My carbine is an early 1863 delivery, so I'll run on the proposition that rifle tools, if rifle tools they be, were issued-out at least with these early carbines. Certainly the fitted screwdriver blades are a ready help.
        And, as to that pesky hole. I can't recollect any of the myriad of other CW era gun tools having one. Spencer boxes, at least through some of the Blakeslees, all had impliment pouches, and it's just hard to envision cavalrymen clanking around with gun tools dangling about their persons from lanyards. Is there anything in Spencer assembly or disassembly that the hole would aid?

[St. George]

The full-sized Combination Tool is thought by most Civil War collectors to've been the only tool issued for all Spencer arms.

The shortened ones are thought to be conversions of percussion musket tools for Post-War issue for the many converted Model 1860 and Model 1865 Carbines.

The hole is for a leather thong - as has been mentioned.

You'll see them on the Springfield Armory conversions of the Model 1863 Combination Tool, as well as on the tool for the Palmer Carbine Combination Tool and for the Remington Rolling Block Pistol and carbine tools.

Springfield Armory converted a helluva lot of 'new' tools from pre-existing ones as a measure of thrift and to keep the Armory viable.

Vaya,

Scouts Out!