Artillery Shell with WWI-Era Powder Train Time Fuse

[UnderMiner]

Found this in a suburban spring cleaning dumpster today, it's an old chrome plated artillery shell. Unscrewed the fuse and there was no explosive inside so it's completely harmless. I was thinking it may be a WWII shell but after a little research I discovered the fuse on it is a very old type patented during the Spanish American war in 1898 and used predominantly in World War One artillery shells. It is called a Powder Train Time Fuse, and it works exactly as it sounds - a train of gunpowder is ignited and burns through at a set time until it reaches the main charge and ignites it. Not sure if the fuse is original to the shell or not, it may have been added later, I also suspect the shell was chrome plated by someone and not its original color - I can't find any documentation about chrome plated artillery shells being used in combat.





No explosives inside:


Powder train time fuse is also empty, looks to be original and unaltered:

 

[trapperart]

Very cool congrats

 

[vpnavy]

Neat! Thanks for sharing...

 

[Tommy G]

Ok, now I have to add dumpster diving to my hobbies! Interesting find.

 

[Westfront]

Looks to me like a 3" WWI era Fuze as you said. Shell is probably WWII or later. My guess is modern.

WWI shells are more cylindrical like this one.

This is a German one, but they looked similar. Most of the WWII shells had still powder train fuzes. I dig frags of them almost every time i'm out. Better to grab them complete out of a dumpster.

 

[UnderMiner]

Ok, now I have to add dumpster diving to my hobbies! Interesting find.

Treasure is everywhere, dumpsters included.

 

[OBN]

Nice Save UM! Always something different and cool!