1900 Hotchkiss 1 Pr fuze frankford Arsenal Question -----

[Gspragge]

I acquired this fuze expecting it to be for 42mm 2 Pr
Hotchkiss Mountain gun munitions. While it looks the same
the threads go the wrong way and it is not for those types.
It does fit a standard U.S.N. 1 pr and the U.S. Army 1pr.
as used by Coastal Artillery at the same time. The fuze
internal workings are the Frankford Arsenal Ring Safety
type, not used by the navy. I find it odd that Hotchkiss
made this at all, but this kind exists with the opposite
thread for the 2 pr. So these must be made to order
for Frankford Arsenal who would have had a good relationship
with Hotchkiss over the years. As this is not a Navel base fuze
the only Army projectile that I am aware of that could use this
fuze is the 1 pr projectile as shown. This type when encountered
is plugged and has a black finish indicating an inert projectile
as is normal for Coastal Artillery subcaliber practice projectiles.
So what else could the U.S. Army have used this fuze for. It
should fit the standard 3 pr projectile, but did the Army use these ?

Both projectiles are American Ordnance Co, Left projectile has
Navy markings and the right hand projectile has the Ordnance
Corps stamp.