Help with Civil War Pikes

ncrebelobx

Cadet
Joined
Aug 17, 2018
Hi Guys.
I wonder if you can help me , I make items for 1/16th civil war figures out of metal and wood, knives, chairs , tables and ect , and sell them.
Right now I want to try making some pikes , but I am having trouble IDing the wood the pikes are made from. The pics of Civil War pikes I have seen online are not really helping , either the pike is not close enough to the camera to tell what kind of wood it is , or the wood is so dark from years of dirt, that it looks like walnut .
The books I have looked at just talk about the history of the pike, and never tell what type wood its made from so, im stuck .

Thanks
 
I guess I’ve always assumed that the wood would be either oak or hickory. Someone will probably be along with some answers for you. In the meantime, I’ve posted a couple of pictures from some pikes that I have from that era (or earlier). I can assure you that the dirt has been cleaned. Don’t know if it’ll help you or not. Good luck!
544343BA-BC36-4FF3-81D3-A14263A749F4.jpeg
B1E43DD0-6A08-4AA2-B414-183B1980D524.jpeg
 
My apologies for not promptly responding to your inquiry. I am not an expert; however consulting Confederate Edged Weapons by Albaugh, pg153, he quotes a Richmond Examiner commenting on Feb.27th, 1862 on pike manufacturing "The specimen we have seen is a formidable infantry weapon , about eight feet in length, including the spear head. The staff is made of ash." Further on Mr. Albaugh states that the state of Georgia, under Gov. Brown would accept pikes made of "ash,white oak or hickory with heads of well tempered steel." I hope that this adds some further light. Yours, H

Pike 1.jpg


pike 1A.jpg


Pike 2 (L) Pike 3 (R).jpg


Pike 2.jpg


Pike 3.jpg


Pike 2 (L) Pike 3 (R).jpg


Pike 2.jpg


pike 1A.jpg


Pike 1.jpg
 
I know someone with a pike collection. All the wood is dark, but with handling, wood darkens because of the oils/grease transferred to it from the human hand.
 
Thanks guys for your help, just ran across a pike that was on sale on The Horse Soldier website, looks like the pike in the pics above in pic 3 -4 " the top on in the pic , Confederate "Georgia " pike .
Pole 8 ft, I have found info listing the pole at 6ft as well , with a steel or brass collar with a 11 5/8 by 1 5/8 double edge blade.
This will help a lot in making my 1/ 6 sale civil war pikes to sell , just need to find out if there was something on the bottom end of the pole.
 
The pikes in my collection have metal butt collars which allows the wood of the staff to protrude. Being naval pikes, this supposedly helped to protect the wooden decks. Being curious, I pulled out my, “Swords & Blades of the American Revolution”, by George Neumann. In his chapter of “Stately Polearms”, he says, “Total length averaged 6 to 8 feet, and the base of its staff had an iron-covered point (“butt cone” or “ground iron”). The staff was generally of ash, but hickory, walnut, and other local woods were also employed.”

Hope this helps a bit.

Best of luck in your endeavor
Post a picture of your completed project.
 
Thanks to everyone who helped .
Got done making my 1/6th scale Civil war " Georgia " pike last night .took me 4 hours , with a bit of cussing lol
 
This subject intrigues me ever since I read about the use of pikes at Shiloh and I have tried to find further discussion on this site concerning the use of Pikes by way of the serch function, but not alot of luck. What is the suggested resources for reading about this subject?
 
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