MY FIRST CW ARTILLERY SHELL!!

[plugcutter84]

I was back out at my usual CW site yesterday with a couple of buddies. Work is slow right now so I had to do something productive with the day! I was working an area that I've hit hard before, and I was digging every iron signal that I got. I got a real iffy signal and it sounded deep, so I started digging. I was down about 18", and I kept getting a solid sounding signal in the hole that was bouncing between 30-60 on the at pro. I put the pinpointer in the hole and it started to chirp, so I slowly dug my way closer to the target. I brushed away some dirt and saw the beautiful lead sabot of an artillery shell! I knew immediately what I had, and I was careful to dig out around it and not scratch it up with my shovel. When I got it out of the ground there were high fives all around, and I think we all felt a little bit like those clowns on that lame nat geo show... I still can't believe how well preserved it is after being in the ground for 150 years, I guess being so deep must've helped it. I also dug an eagle cuff button, 4 round balls and an iron stirrup, but the shell was the highlight of the day!

 

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[pong12211]

Wow that is really cool. Thanks for sharing and nice pics.

 

[Guest 1551]

gorgeous shell man. major congrats. one of those puppies is my bucket list obviously

 

[plugcutter84]

Thanks guys, I forgot to mention that it is a 3" dyer shell weighing a little over 10lbs. Thanks again for looking!

 

[diggervet]

That is one of the best feelings in the world when you get a deep signal that keeps getting better the deeper you dig! Congratulations on a great find!

 

[RJ55]

Great find, congrats

 

[Davers]

Man Great shell & in Awesome condition, Sabot and all.
Def, on my G.I.S.list..
"G.I.S."= Gig In The Sky.

 

[relic nut]

Great find. There is always something still there. congrats

 

[BosnMate]

Great find, at my age and location I'll never find one.

 

[Jpro]

Awesome find..congratulations!!!!!

 

[Goldiver]

Man, what a beauty, congratulations and thanks for sharing with us!

Steve

 

[danimal03]

congrats! I have only dug exploded pieces of shells. Have yet to dig my first complete one....

 

[RustyGold]

Congratulations on an awesome find!

 

[coinman123]

Congrats on that amazing piece of history. That would have ruled the civil war battle field. I love how much history is behind that piece, if only it could talk. I would love to find one, but being in NH I don't think it would be possible.

Coinman123,

 

[winslow]

A real beauty. Congratulations! It's on my list of "wants one of those" as well.

 

[parsonwalker]

Congrats on a killer shell! (No pun intended)

 

[BuckleBoy]

That is one outstanding find. A complete shell is still on my list to find.

BIG congrats,

Buck

 

[EccentricInTexas]

Awesome Find!!! Be sure to demill it. Those were hot rounds. I have the base of one somewhere.

 

[voodoo]

super cool find!! thanks for sharing that! Cheers!

 

[plugcutter84]

Thanks for all the replies guys, I feel extremely lucky to have found this shell and I'm taking all the necessary precautions to make it safe.
After doing a little more research I have found that the US 3" dyer shell and the CS 3" burton shell are very similar. Since it was found in a union camp I assumed it was a dyer shell. However, I have found shell fragments here before, and now I'm wondering if there could have been some shelling on the camp by the south, and possible this shell didn't explode and just punched 2 ft down into the soil. Any shell experts who can maybe chime in with a positive id? Thanks guys.