🥇 BANNER Intact James Shell...Never In My Wildest Dreams!

garren · Oct 18, 2016

I would have never dreamed I would get an intact James shell from a hay field 16" deep with a 5X8 coil. I can't believe I found an artillery shell, period!

I also found a round iron ball nearby. I guess its safe to say it's grape shot given this location?

I have a few questions...Its hard researching from a hotel and I cant go cleaning on this shell here.

Will this have a fuse? or is there a James with a solid nose?
I was under the impression that all James' had to be drilled to make them inert. Are any solid?
Was the James Confederate, Union or both?

**Updating - Nov 2016 with a pic of the finished shell.

Shell Restoration - Day 26 finished_2.webp

Tnmountains · Oct 21, 2016

Just walked in and clicked on and it looks like you made the Banner! Congratulations Garren !

garren · Oct 21, 2016

Tnmountains said:
Just walked in and clicked on and it looks like you made the Banner! Congratulations Garren !

Thank you so much! It goes in the electrolysis tomorrow. I won't be able to stare at it for a few weeks

Davers · Oct 22, 2016

Gitschlag said:
I must admit, I am very jealous of your find . An intact James shell has been on my list for a LONG time, and the closest I have come to finding one so far was this large fragment from the base. Another member from WV found two in one day, and made it on the banner. However, it was taken off the banner after he removed his pictures. A find like this is banner worthy to me, but not everyone gets as excited about rusted chunks of metal as I do .

First off .
A Super Nice Find, Any Shell will work for me but a James :headbang:

.

Also.
I recall the Shells that this post refers to , I wonder why they were taken Down

&
If I recall Right ; they were in much better shape than the Op's.

Tommy G · Oct 22, 2016

I'm late the party, but still have to chime in. That is one amazing shell! Can't wait to see it cleaned up. I would definitely return to that field, this time with a larger coil. Best of luck on future hunts!

garren · Oct 24, 2016

I was able to get the shell in electrolysis Friday evening. Now that we're on day four it's apparent that the shell will have a good side and a bad side. The second pic shows the good side on day one. The last pic shows the bad side today but I'm excited to see that the brass safety wire near the top will be visible when this is finished.

The orange rusty matrix in the birdcage area is hard as concrete!

rreahard · Oct 24, 2016

Very nice!! Congrats on an awesome find!!!

against the wind · Oct 28, 2016

Now that's a SHELL of a find!
Congrats

shanegalang · Oct 29, 2016

Congrats on a super find and banner!

UNC_ · Oct 30, 2016

shell yea !!!awesome find !!!!

Cletus · Oct 30, 2016

Awesome find!!! Congrats!!!
just one question.... what kind of signal did you get at that depth?
i'm sure it was solid but faint at 16"? I dug a bullet today at 10"+ with the ATP
So I know they will surprise you!!

garren · Oct 30, 2016

Cletus said:
Awesome find!!! Congrats!!!
just one question.... what kind of signal did you get at that depth?
i'm sure it was solid but faint at 16"? I dug a bullet today at 10"+ with the ATP
So I know they will surprise you!!

Yes, I remember the signal being the low tone that bounced to a mid tone on a couple of passes. The audio wasn't too faint but I knew it was a deep target. I wish I had been paying more attention but it was at the end of a long day and I only glanced at the target ID number. I think it was a 35 or a 45

garren · Nov 17, 2016

After 26 days of electrolysis and tedious work the James shell is finally finished and ready for display. Thanks to everyone in the relic forum that provided tips and instructions throughout this process. I feel that relics like this come with a certain level of responsibility to properly restore and preserve them for the future. I hope I did this shell justice. Up to this point my level of expertise with iron relics was sandblasting horseshoes and boiling them in wax. This project was a lot more involved.

Although I like the look and feel of boiled wax I chose tannic acid as the preservative for it's durability. After all of the cleaning the brass percussion cap was way too shiny. I spent the last couple of days putting the patina back on it with vinegar vapor. I was even able to get some green verdigris to grow on it. After I was satisfied with the patina I wiped off the verdigris only leaving a hint so that it wasn't distracting. Last step was a satin clear coat.

Here's some pics of the finished shell along with some "during" pics.