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big bullet thingy

cathy01 · 2008-10-20 18:27:35

Hi all, our charity shop received a donation of two big bullet shell thingys, really heavy with a load of numbers on the bottom of them.One has 1951.Has anyone any idea what theses are (I thought they where Vases for flowers). And more important how much are they worth and where would we sell them. thanks a million, Cathy…

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20-10-2008 7:27pm

#1

cathy01

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Hi all, our charity shop received a donation of two big bullet shell thingys, really heavy with a load of numbers on the bottom of them.One has 1951.Has anyone any idea what theses are (I thought they where Vases for flowers). And more important how much are they worth and where would we sell them.
thanks a million,

Cathy

I have posted this up somewhere else on the site , here te link.Any help in finding out ino on these would be great.
thanks,cathy

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=57638257&posted=1#post57638257

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#2 20-10-2008 7:55pm
minidazzler

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They are Artillery shells. Can't read the bottom of it due to the amount of Light so can't tell you much about them!

They can be used as Vases and look quire nice as such!!! Very nice looking too. I would think you could get at least €40 as a set, if the right buyer came in!!!

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#3 20-10-2008 8:12pm
cathy01

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Hi ya, thanks for the reply.
The numbres written on it are
Bullet thing No 1
B with an arrow going through it
NP but the p is coming out of the N, if that makes sence?
1/52 40 mm and L/60on the end its like a disc thing with the B with the arrow going through it and 5201

The other one has1951 and lots of other numbers, ECC,S4 in a square, 12 MKN4 2-52 2 it 35 0/5 .
I have put them beside a copy book so you have an idea of their size.
Hope that helps, Thanks again,

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#4 20-10-2008 9:50pm
concussion

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They are shells used in Bofors 40 mm L 60 light anti-aircraft gun.
First came into service in the 1930's and became the most widely used AA gun of WW2, being used by both Allied and Axis armies. Used by the DF until 2003 or so when the EL 70's were introduced.

They're nicely polished, a quick rub with Brasso will bring them up very well, don't know how much they're worth though, they've been around around 70 years by now.

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#5 20-10-2008 9:55pm
Manic Moran

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I'll lay money the one is off a Bofors anti-aircraft gun. The 40mm L/60 is a bit of a giveaway.

40mm is the diameter of the bore. The open end of the shell casing should be almost exactly 4cm in diameter. The L/60 means that the gun barrel is 60 calibres in length, in other words 60x 4cm = 2.4m.

Ireland until a few years ago used the 40mm/60 as its standard AA gun, it has since been replaced by the 40mm/70, which is a very similar gun with a slightly longer tube. It is an extremely common weapon, the Bofors 40mm pre-dates WWII and is still being used today. It has also been used as a gun on naval vessels, found on Irish minesweepers and some current vessels (P21-23). As the cases are ejected, they usually bounce off the side into the water, so if fired near shore it's not impossible to find them washed ashore or found by divers. The picture above is of the 40mm mounting in a C-130 aircraft.

Bofors is a Swedish company, and NP is the headstamp code for Norma Projektilfabrik, a Swedish ammunition manufacturer. It could well be that the NP you refer to is the headstamp code, indicating Swedish origin. I have a feeling that the other round is actually of British manufacture, though I can't link a headstamp to any of the codes offhand.

In terms of what they're worth, I'm afraid it can only be described as 'whatever someone is willing to pay for it'. They're made of brass, and not particularly expensive to manufacture. However, they are hard to find unless you hang out at army ranges or war zones. I think the estimate of E40 for the two probably isn't far off.

NTM

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#6 20-10-2008 11:09pm
Skyhawk1990

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Hey Moran as a matter of interest is that the interior of an AC-130 Gunship?

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#7 20-10-2008 11:55pm
Manic Moran

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Yes.

NTM

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#8 21-10-2008 10:10am
concussion

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I'm not having much luck with the 1951 cartridge in terms of manufacture etc. As MM has said, the other one is of Swedish origin. Would you be able to upload more photos of the bases, the 1951 headstamp is difficult to read and I'd like to get a better look at the Swedish one as the primer looks very similar to that on the 40/70 cartridges we use at the moment.

Commons questions:

HANSARD 1803–2005 → 1950s → 1951 → April 1951 → 24 April 1951 → Commons Sitting → BRITISH ARMY
Bofors Ammunition (Allocation)
Page retrieved: http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1951/apr/24/bofors-ammunition-allocation
HC Deb 24 April 1951 vol 487 cc200-1 200

§ 34. Mr. Alport

asked the Secretary of State for War why the allocation of 40 mm. Bofors ammunition for use by light anti-aircraft regiments in practice camp 201 this year is smaller than in 1950, in spite of the fact that such units are now responsible for training an increased number of Z reservists.

§ Mr. Strachey

The hon. Member has been misinformed. The allotment of ammunition to Territorial Army light anti-aircraft regiments for 1951 is considerably higher than the scale for 1950. Regular light anti-aircraft regiments will not take Z reservists to practice camps in 1951 and will receive the same allotment of ammunition as for 1950.

News report about the L 60 from 1942

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qy_fWmKMSSA

Air Defence reservists firing L 60 (probably within the last 10 years due to the hearing protection everyone is wearing!)

Air Defence reservists firing the EL 70 which was introduced five years ago

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#9 21-10-2008 4:21pm
cathy01

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ok, Im going to ask a friend with a camera that can take close ups to take a picture.I though on the other board , when you said gun..like a small gun.
Doooh.
thanks,
cathy

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#10 21-10-2008 4:58pm
concussion

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cathy01 wrote: »

ok, Im going to ask a friend with a camera that can take close ups to take a picture.I though on the other board , when you said gun..like a small gun.
Doooh.
thanks,
cathy

A normal digital camera should do it, just turn the flash off as that was what was obscuring the details in the other pics.

And yeah, its a heavy-duty piece of kit!

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#11 21-10-2008 6:20pm
Manic Moran

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cathy01 wrote: »

ok, Im going to ask a friend with a camera that can take close ups to take a picture.I though on the other board , when you said gun..like a small gun.
Doooh.
thanks,
cathy

I would hate to have to carry a gun (let alone shoot it) which shoots shell casings that size. Normal rifle casings are about 2" long and 1/4" in diameter.

I should reiterate that our figuring out exactly where these casings were made is of pretty academic interest from your point of view: It's not going to make a whit of difference to the value you're going to get for them in your charity shop, after all, you're just going to put a small card saying "Bofors 40mm casings, $40" or whatever. We're just (a ) a little curious, and (b ) trying to show off our great and expansive knowledge of utterly useless information.

NTM

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#12 21-10-2008 8:08pm
cathy01

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well now I have taken an interest in the,How did they end up in the chairty shop.Its interesting.thanks
cathy:)

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#13 23-10-2008 12:23am
Mahatma coat

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how stuf ens up in a charity shop canbe explained in 3 simple letters

F C A

:0

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#14 23-10-2008 8:52pm
concussion

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Mahatma coat wrote: »

how stuf ens up in a charity shop canbe explained in 3 simple letters

F C A

:0

Here's three more for ya

P D F

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#15 24-10-2008 10:33am
cathy01

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ok thanks for the info ,Im going to post them up on the adverts boards.
cathy

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#16 18-09-2012 11:28pm
kingpin1

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hi just asking are they still for sale?

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#17 19-09-2012 8:19am
gripcasey

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Cathy.

More than a good chance they where fire at Gormanston Camp which is close to your shop. And with Balbriggan having large number of residents who have served in the PDF over the years,we have 2 at home from my father's days in the camp. thats probaly how come you received them as donations.

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#18 19-09-2012 11:47pm
kingpin1

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well i can take them off your hands if you want please let me know as i am a Collector
many thanks

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#19 20-09-2012 7:51am
Dogwatch

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Check the dates................4 years old

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#20 20-09-2012 4:31pm
kingpin1

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my bad sorry Dogwatch

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