Oliver Pattern Water Bottle and Holder and Challenge Details

I have been fortunate to receive an original Oliver Pattern bottle carrier to study and measure. The bottle with it is an antique bottle that fits perfectly, as do my own bottles. I'll use this post to illustrate it. What I said under the heading Oliver Pattern Belt and Accoutrements can otherwise stand.

These measurements and photographs below give all the information anyone might need to try their own reproduction. I invite everyone who's handy to give it a go and send me your pictures. I will post them as a group and we can see what we can come up with collectively. If this idea takes root we can try the same with the Oliver pouch or a Ross scabbard and frog.

The leather used in construction is about 3/32", but the base circle is closer to 1/4" which allows for the angled stitches to get lost in a slice around the perimeter.

Good luck with the challenge!

November 17:

Here are some up-date photos of patterns and measurements to help with the challenge!

The first thing I'd suggest is to find a bottle. It should be about 9 1/2" high with its shoulder at 6 1/2".

The diameter should be 2 1/2".

I fitted a piece of scrap leather around the bottle to get the circumference and gave myself a 1/4" seam allowance with the expectation I would trim back the finished seam. It was a good thing I gave it this much because the leather shrank a bit after I wetted it to score the line around the edges.

Here's the pattern I formed off the original. The numbers 1 to 6 refer to stitching order.

Here I've laid out the pieces. The long strap is 12" to the buckle and then 1 1/2" doubled back. It's 3/4" wide. The buckle on the original is a brass roller buckle with a steel tongue. 

The belt loop strap is 6 1/4" long.

Here, below, are the first pieces laid out and the stitch holes poked with my sharp awl. I have cork flooring upside down on my table. It makes a great surface for cutting and poking. I also use leather contact cement. It saves me from all angst. It's hard enough doing this without a helping hand.

Then I wetted things, scored my pieces ( which might have been better done first ), and bent the straps up to their proper places. I left it to dry over night. The needle which I left on the damp leather, inadvertently, left a blue rust line. The first mark on the next 100 years!

I glued the straps the next day, pricked, and sewed them. The buckle area was a dog. The keeper wraps around the whole strap and all is sewn through. My stitch colour should be yellow and my stitches should be machine done.

After this I folded the leather down the middle and sewed to within 1/16" from the edge. I used glue again as one might use pins on cloth.

Once it was sewn I stuffed my bottle in and used the rounded base to draw a circle for the bottom on my 1/4" leather.

Here's the round bottom with a 3/8" hole in the centre. This let's air out when the bottle is put in. The photo below shows my sharp knife cutting a slice 3/16" from the edge and at 45 degrees. This is to hide and protect the stitches.

In the next photo I've pushed the disc from the top to the bottom after applying contact cement. Now I'm starting to sew with my sail maker's needle. This is not an easy job either but the glue saved me. I wonder if originally they stuffed the carrier with a piece of cylindrical wood to hold the form. That would certainly help. Though all other stitching is machine done it is clear that this was a hand done aspect of the job. Since the Boer War was not an industrial war like WWI it was no great problem to have someone stitch away for a couple of weeks on the bottoms. Making these reproductions is certainly a way to make one scrutinize a piece for details and appreciate the labours.

The finished bottom is a little rough, but the stitches vanish. One wants to keep the corner square. I wetted everything again and used a wooden spoon to push things as I wanted them. Once again it struck me that a wooden form would be a great asset...it would give you something to work against. I love using my antique number set in the wet leather, especially when I put in the present date.

 

Here's the finished pair. Now I must make a stopper.

I have word that a bottle carrier reproduction is now available. For those interested in purchasing a reproduction check the What Price Glory site listed in the link below.

         

                                  http://onlinemilitaria.net/shopaff.asp?affid=1497

Oliver Pattern Valise

Oliver Pattern Valise in use

I've written about the Oliver Pattern Valise in the posting on the Oliver Belt and Accoutrements. What I wish to add here are some photographs of the new What Price Glory valise that is almost ready for sale, and some observations on the use of Oliver Pattern equipment in Canada in 1914.

This photograph below shows the Oliver Pattern equipment in full use in the Boer War. What a collection! These valises are stacked!  On the other hand the men are wearing blanket rolls and their mess tins attached to their belts. Is this the marching order? Will the valises be shipped by wagon along with the large white kit bags?

I bring this up because all the photos I've seen taken in WWI show only the cape brace holding a smaller kit bag to the shoulders and the blanket/greatcoat/groundsheet rolled and attached to the belt, and presumably slung from the yoke and braces.

This photo shows four soldiers from Kingston's 21st Battalion in the winter of 1914-1915

Here on Salisbury Plain is a similar set-up, below, in 1915.

It seems from the photographic evidence that the valise disappeared as an item on active service.

And marching somewhere in England in better conditions:

And here's another approach: the ammo pouch is worn to the right side, The very white haversack is worn beneath the belt, and the blanket has its ends held together with a small strap.

Of course none of this gear ever made it to the front, so valise or not there was no fighting done under the restrictions of the equipment.

All this is guessing and surmising. I would love to have someone in the know tell me what was what.

The Valise

What I do know is the nature of the valise itself. Two years ago I went to a collector who generously allowed me to spend three hours measuring and photographing his Oliver Pattern gear. It is from this research that WPG was able to reproduce the missing links to their reproduction equipment. The valise was from 1899.

The Oliver Valise measures 14"X 9"X 4 3/4" and is made from a brown canvas lined with a finer cloth and edged in leather. It has two internal pockets and two external leather cartridge pockets. 

The top edge is rimmed in leather which also serves to reinforce the back attachment lugs. It is a very heavy duty item that would hold an elephant. 

There are three straps, two of which pierce the flap as though to cinch up the contents. Then another strap actually closes the flap. The buckles are 7/8". A smaller pair of buckled flaps doubles the protection against lost items across the open top.

Everything is absurdly secure to the point that the straps and flaps get in the way of easy access. But you have to love it for its Victorian eccentricity. I would suggest that it might make a handy shoulder bag if one were to make a shoulder strap with clips to attach to the lugs. The back side also has a loop for the belt.

Keep watching the What Price Glory web site. This valise will be up for sale very soon!

      http://onlinemilitaria.net/shopaff.asp?affid=1497

Belt straps for Blanket Roll

These straps are copied from the drawings in "Tangled Web" , the Bible of Canadian webbing. They are a part of the system to by-pass the valise.

I believe the "D" ring is for the brace attachment point, but I don't know how the rectangular loop is to be used. A belt can be passed through the leather loop between the two attachment points.

Here's how they seem to work with a roll.

I've made another stap to go around the middle of the roll. It has two rectangular loops worked into it. To these I can strap the mess kit.

Note the loose cape brace in the photos above and below. This would take a kit bag.

One of the criticisms of the Oliver gear was that there were too many small parts which could be lost, rendering the system unusable. From my mucking around with this system and using it at commemorative events I can see why it was rejected. The 1915 variations are a big improvement, as are the 1916 changes, but it's such a relief to throw on the P'08 canvas wbbing in the end.

Next I'm going to revisit the Oliver water bottle. I have just received one to study and I can pass on all the measurements to anyone who wants to take a stab at making their own. When you see how little water it can hold you will understand why the Canadian troops smashed them in protest on arriving in South Africa.

 

Oliver Pattern Valise and Seven Button Tunic

For those awaiting the chance to buy the Oliver Pattern Valise and The Seven Button Tunic the wait is almost over. What Price Glory will soon put these online. I will update this post when they are ready. In the mean time keep watching the WPG site. They are also coming up with reproduction Canadian buttons and badges. Many thanks WPG!

For those of you interested in this equipment keep checking the site by clicking on the link listed below.

    http://onlinemilitaria.net/shopaff.asp?affid=1497

Two days later:

I have received some items which are not yet available but here are some photos to whet the desire of any enthusiast:

Here, first, are the collar dogs. The one to the left is the reproduction from a well polished original while the one on the right is an original in its real form. The second photo shows the reproduction cap badge. 

Next are some photos of the Oliver Pattern valise copied faithfully from an original of 1899 which saw service in the Boer War.

The seven button tunic is as seen in the past photos.

These items will all be addressed in turn shortly. Also my new blog on Great War artifacts and Great War reproductions will be of interest.

greatwarartifacts.blogspot.ca 

greatwarreproductions.blogspot.ca 

http://onlinemilitaria.net/shopaff.asp?affid=1497

Leather Satchels - Part three

The leather satchels I've been developing have gone through their test-runs over the past year and have done what I wanted them to do. I can hold everything I want to on a daily basis and they have become richer with each passing week. 

Now the models I've sent to Ashok have been worked into three sizes and two styles. The sizes are small, for a normal 3-ring binder and an iPad; medium, to take a 13" laptop; and large, for a 15" laptop.

The styles all have inner and outer sleeves to fit the laptops, but style 2 has an additional long pocket for wallets, cheque books and rulers....or whatever. (See below). The leather is tanned brown buffalo of 6 ounce weight while the strap, which broadens to 2" in the centre, is 9 ounce leather. Buckles and studs are solid brass. This is a satchel your grandchildren will get to enjoy in the future.

  I am posting information on these and how to purchase them in a new blog. Look for me at:

                              timssatchelsandleathergoods.blogspot.ca.  

             Thanks for following me this far, 

         

                                                            Tim Soper