My parents found this shell in a field ~ 45 years ago, and we have had it in our possession ever since. What I'd like to know, is where it came from, what the insignias mean, and maybe how much it may be worth. Thanks Drag
That could quite possibly be the fuse port. And until you KNOW the bloody thing is safe, you have to consider it LIVE. You're living with a bomb.
It's a British war time artillery shell. It can be identified through the copper bracelet at the button and the crown . (Is it George VI , it's hard to see?). The insignia is a Regiment . Someone may be able to able to identiftY the unit . Can you read what's on the motto? According to the size I'm thinking of a 105 Caliber (to be confirmed) . As others said before, make sure it is harmless before you touch it.
Its been thorugh various house moves, and has been in our living room for almost 10 years. I don't think its much of a threat. Nobody around here would be stupid enough to throw it. There doesn't seem to be any decipherable words on it. If you need any other pictures feel free to ask.
Previous comments about caution etc should be heeded, but I'm actually woondering if this isn't a solid-shot shell in any case. Black paint was used to identify solid and shrapnel shells ( this doesn't look like shrapnel - it's a one-piece shell ). OTOH, the green stripe denoted TNT or Amatol during WWII. The nose isn't visible in the photos - does it have a fuze ? If not, and if it's very heavy, then I reckon it's solid-shot. It looks more WW1 vintage than WWII, but King George VI was of course the Monarch during WWII. I'm wondering if it was a Mess ornament of some kind...?
Slightly off the topic, but perhaps germane: I was stationed at NAF Sigonella, Sicily. The housing unit is built on an old German ammo dump some Brits scrambled just prior to Husky. Shells are still appearing in the orchard next to the base, and on the golf course built there. One fine day we got a call from a spouse who said her son had found something odd and could we check it out. To cut to the chase, the young man had found a 40mm shell and put it in his rock polisher to clean it up. *insert much hair-on-fire here*
Martin I'm not certain at all about George VI, it could well be an earlier crown and a WWI shell. A more detailled picture and possible some of the text on the motto would help out . The mess relic idea would make sense. I doubt all shells would have been decorated like the one we see here. A two digit date would possibly be visible at the bottom (like 17 or 44 etc..)Also the caliber would be mentionned at that place. A small engraved arrow would confirm the British army.
Deactivated bombs: a) are left so that such that there is a clear view through the fuse port showing that the entire interior is empty; or: b) a ball bearing or rock is placed in the interior before resealing it to clearly indicate the interior is empty. You state family members found this shell. Family members would clearly state that the bomb had been deactivated properly if this was the case. The shell you display appears to have its fuse removed only. See diagram: File:BL15inchAPMkXXIIBNTShell1943Diagram.jpg - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The weight you state for the shell is consistent with a fully loaded HE (High exposive) bomb of this size. Example: the SB 4.2" HE Streamlined Mortar (106.7 mm, 9.07 Kg.) - one of the most common used by British (and USA) forces from 1942 through the Korean War. (The smoke version weighed 10.2 kg.) See Page 195: http://books.google.ca/books?id=MuGsf0psjvcC&pg=PA194&lpg=PA194&dq=SB+4.2+inch+Mortar&source=bl&ots=K4XAueTHbL&sig=BArV0dP-AKZaEJI2sTRbV2Rdsfs&hl=en&ei=_Ri_SrWgNJL4sgPp5PBL&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2#v=onepage&q=SB%204.2%20inch%20Mortar&f=false See also: http://www.tpub.com/content/inspectionprocedures/SB-742-1/SB-742-10135.htm http://nigelef.tripod.com/ammo.htm http://www.answers.com/topic/shell http://www.4point2.org/hist-93.htm http://www.mortarsinminiature.com/photoShop.htm The explosive main components of many bombs become increasingly unstable over time. An electrical spark could detonate the shell. So could a playful pet, visitor, an inadvertent bump... Contact your local armed services or police to have the item inspected. Judging by what I have seen above, it is live. > Its been through various house moves, and has been in our living room for almost 10 years. I don't think its much of a threat. Nobody around here would be stupid enough to throw it. A group of local children found a shell in a former training area. They tossed it back and forth for several kilometers as they road their bicycles home. Unfortunately, the shell eventually proved to be live. Nuff said. As the 4.2" inch mortars are quite common, they sell for GBP 5.00 on Ebay et cetera. Documentation proving Certified Deactivation is required for shipment.
Before you get too worried and rush off the the Police Station, judging from the photos, weight and dimensions given it is a more-than-fair bet that what you have is in fact a late-WW1/inter-war period vintage QF, 18-pr Shot Mk 3.T shell, an armour-pircing solid-shot round fitted with a tracer ( which has been removed ). The same type of shell was reintroduced in lighter weight during WW2 as the 17pr Anti-tank gun Mk1. However, the solid shot was quickly replaced by capped and APCBC rounds which were still solid ( ie no explosive charge ). When you take this one to the Police Station, you won't see it again. However, a replacement should be fairly easily picked up from any large militaria fair for circa £25-£50 depending on condition.
Question: Where was it found? (Country, area.) In or near WW1 battle or training grounds? Try asking the British Ordnance Collectors Network British Ordnance Collectors Network - Inert Ordnance from WW1, WW2 and more - Inert Ordnance Identification And Militaria Collectors Resource I had not heard of a solid shot version before, though in WW2 solid shots were made in many versions for training purposes and anti tank. (But one would expect the training version to have a practice fuse for the nose section.) Might have done so in WW1 and the intervening years as well. Note: This shell has a green band above the driving band: which identifies that it is filled with amatol or trotyl (TNT.) The armour piercing / anti tank version I am aware of was High Explosive. Likely a shrapnel shell (these were painted black) as a) one would expect to see more damage than a few dents seen on this one's nose on a case hardened armour piercing round, (or a solid shot) b) solid shot / anti tank / armour piercing rounds were not likely to be brass / copper cased as this one appears to be. Shrapnel shell manufacture; a comprehensive treatise on the forging, machining, and heat-treatment of shells, and the manufacture of cartridge cases and fuses for shrapnel used in field and mountain artillery, giving complete direction for tool equip (Though a solid shot shell would not have one obviously,) the QF 18 Pounder had a nose fuse, (the one shown has a base fuse / Primer fitting) and the shrapnel version weighed 8.4 KG (18,5 Lbs.) Would the solid shot not weigh considerably more? (Me having no information on it...) Ordnance QF 18 pounder - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Typical of Wikipedia to only give details of WW1 ammunition....although quoting an extensive bibliography, they omit Ian V Hogg's 'British And American Artillery Of WWII' ( A&AP ) which is where I found the information in my earlier post. This confirms the weight of the 18pr solid-shot as 20lb.
Nice item .my opinion its a 25lb armour piercing shot that has a tracer element ,now removed .the AP shot for the 25pdr weighs 11.3kg . .but if you or anyone has any doubt to what an item is get it checked professionally ,,quick id,s are ok on line if you just want the basics..e.g its a projectile ,,but for positive id theyre not a guarantee of safety attatched pic shows a couple of 25lb shot i have owned in the past,sorry for pic quality and the blue paint is incorrect,the AP shot was usally black with the white top and the red band to indicate the tracer element,ive seen them in two sizes one a bit shorter than the other ,i cant remember which is which but i believe one was for armour piercing shot and the other was just a practice shot just adding this the badge looks very much like the Royal Horse Artillery badge and the above letters CC ??? There was a "CC Battery Royal Horse Artillery" theres quite a bit scattered on the internet about this Bty some here Men of the Desert Rats
