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Help Needed With Identification
- Thread starter Darren
- Start date
Darren
Well-Known Member
Thanks HAZORD for the information, thats great.
Darren,
You are most welcome. One interesting thing you will notice about your U.S. case, is that the primer is smaller in diameter than almost all of the other WWII users of the L/60 40mm Bofors. Almost everyone else used larger diameter screw-in primers, whereas the U.S. Primers are press fit into the case. This is common practice with a majority of U.S. artillery cases WWI and WWII, and still continuing on 105mm Howitzer cases.
If you do a search for 40mm Bofors on this site, you will see photos of the German and UK cases with the screw in primers.
John
You are most welcome. One interesting thing you will notice about your U.S. case, is that the primer is smaller in diameter than almost all of the other WWII users of the L/60 40mm Bofors. Almost everyone else used larger diameter screw-in primers, whereas the U.S. Primers are press fit into the case. This is common practice with a majority of U.S. artillery cases WWI and WWII, and still continuing on 105mm Howitzer cases.
If you do a search for 40mm Bofors on this site, you will see photos of the German and UK cases with the screw in primers.
John
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Darren
Well-Known Member
Thank you John for that information, very interesting. I did notice this and it was going to be my next question. I wonder why such a difference in design.
Darren
I haven't ever read anything about the priorities of manufacturing methods for U.S. ammo. Historically, the U.S. was late getting into the artillery game. In WWI we used the French 75 and 155mm Howitzer. We did manufacture a huge amount of ammunition for use by our Allies in Europe, and as a result copied the Russian PD fuze for use on out 3" Field Gun projectiles. Since WWI was supposed to be the "War to end all wars", there wasn't a lot of development done till WWII for land ordnance, whereas the Navy continually upgraded.
It is probably do to economic priorities. European nations used removeable primers so they could reload the cases rapidly or change from percussion to electric primers. It costs much more to thread the case for a primer, and to thread the primer to fit the case, and both need to be just right to fit together. Since the U.S. didn't plan to reload their brass, it was just cheaper and better to make them a press fit.
I neglected to tell you that there are two markings on your case that indicate that it was for Navy use. THe Anchor is one and the MK2 is the other. Navy uses MK numbers, Army and Air Force use M numbers for cases
Here is info on the gun:
http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_4cm-56_mk12_pics.htm
http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_4cm-56_mk12.htm
You will notice that the Navy guns seem to have a much larger barrel. They have water cooling jackets around the barrels due to their high rate of contiuous fire.
It is probably do to economic priorities. European nations used removeable primers so they could reload the cases rapidly or change from percussion to electric primers. It costs much more to thread the case for a primer, and to thread the primer to fit the case, and both need to be just right to fit together. Since the U.S. didn't plan to reload their brass, it was just cheaper and better to make them a press fit.
I neglected to tell you that there are two markings on your case that indicate that it was for Navy use. THe Anchor is one and the MK2 is the other. Navy uses MK numbers, Army and Air Force use M numbers for cases
Here is info on the gun:
http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_4cm-56_mk12_pics.htm
http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_4cm-56_mk12.htm
You will notice that the Navy guns seem to have a much larger barrel. They have water cooling jackets around the barrels due to their high rate of contiuous fire.
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