Author Topic: So......yeah....no idea. (Read 10870 times)

padams8888 · « **on:** August 20, 2015, 12:18:45 AM »

I'm not even sure where to ask this.....but here goes. In 1999...I spent three months in Aviano, Italy during Operation Allied Force. During my time there...they had us in the proverbial "Tent City". Where they scraped away the earth to make it bigger, I did some walking and looking (I'm a rock hound) and found this....no idea.....It's lead....multi ribbed with what appears to be a brass rim in the base with a hollow spot.....has anyone ever seen anything like this before???

I admit....my only micrometer is digital and the battery is dead (I'm a slacker...lol) so I dont have a diameter.....but it looks to be roughly .500???

Phosphorus32 · « **Reply #1 on:** August 20, 2015, 04:51:32 PM »

Italian 10.4mm Vetterli bullet?

Do you have a micrometer to measure length and diameter?

Greatguns · « **Reply #2 on:** August 20, 2015, 04:55:47 PM »

Just use a ruler. 1" = 25.4mm

A 10.4mm Vetterli is about the same as a .41 mag or Spl bullet at .4095"

padams8888 · « **Reply #3 on:** August 20, 2015, 06:02:51 PM »

My digital mic is down....it almost fits into a 50 BMG case....still a hair bigger...and exactly 2 inches long. It goes past 640 gr. on my scale and then OL's.

Greatguns · « **Reply #4 on:** August 20, 2015, 06:11:58 PM »

Is it possible it is a .540" muzzle loader bullet?

Phosphorus32 · « **Reply #5 on:** August 20, 2015, 06:41:17 PM »

Yeah, that does not sound anywhere close to a bullet from any modern Italian, Austrian or Serbian rifle cartridge.

Loose}{Cannon · « **Reply #6 on:** August 20, 2015, 07:39:46 PM »

Looks like a strange muzzleloader bullet with a gas check? JD? Needs to look at it..

padams8888 · « **Reply #7 on:** August 20, 2015, 08:56:00 PM »

That would be one stout (heavy) muzzle loader bullet.......640 plus gr. They make them that heavy?

Greatguns · « **Reply #8 on:** August 21, 2015, 12:54:36 AM »

Looks like there are lots of calibers that large. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_rifle_cartridges

Maybe the 15.2mm Steyr

Greasemonkey · « **Reply #9 on:** August 21, 2015, 02:42:25 AM »

Being in black powder, it looks like nothing I've seen.

But, and I gotta say it, it looks kinda like some kind of masonry wall anchor. Being lead, having a metal insert, gripping grooves. Ok, you can laugh now.

Quote from: padams8888 on August 20, 2015, 08:56:00 PM

That would be one stout (heavy) muzzle loader bullet.......640 plus gr. They make them that heavy?

A majority of Civil War rifles, like the .58 musket, or .577 Enfield ran around 530grain, then you get up in to .69 cal, which even with it being larger, ran about the same bullet weight. Some slightly more modern compairsons, a standard 45-70 Govt will max out weight wise at about 500grain, a .50-100, .50-110 Sharps your getting close to 600grain, a plain jane .50bmg 670-700 grain, A 4bore black powder ball, about 1 inch in diameter, your pushing 1750grains, a quarter pound.

Loose}{Cannon · « **Reply #10 on:** August 21, 2015, 08:23:07 AM »

Is there not rifling grooves towards the rear?

Stoned_Oli · « **Reply #11 on:** August 21, 2015, 08:46:49 AM »

It would be hilarious as a BP tracer bullet...

So how deep is the cavity inside?
It looks like the rifling marks continue on the front set of rings, too... same angle and spaced approximately the same.

Greasemonkey · « **Reply #12 on:** August 21, 2015, 11:41:37 AM »

Rifling up until the 1800s was uncommon, there were a few weapons that were, but they were custom jobs. Most everything up to the the 1830s give or take 10-20 years was typically smoothbore. And alot of smooth bore rifles were used even in our civil war.

Most large black powder rifles, like the 1853 Enfield musket have a twist of 78 to 1, some other rifles have slightly more, some slightly less. A slow rifling twist was used for large heavy slow moving blobs of lead, plus it assisted with loading, considering the rifling was cutting during loading from the muzzle. The typical muzzle velocity for these big caliber black powder rifles ran 800 to a 1000 fps, depending on how hot you loaded her up. And then you have paper patching, another common practice, in that case, the bullet didnt realy take the rifling, the paper took up clearance between the actual bullet and bore, so usually the bullet was spinning when fired, but had no rifling marks.

Dannyboy53 · « **Reply #13 on:** August 25, 2015, 01:34:08 PM »

Quote from: Loose}{Cannon on August 20, 2015, 07:39:46 PM

Looks like a strange muzzleloader bullet with a gas check? JD? Needs to look at it..

Diameter is too small to be a gas check...but this thing is a real mystery.

Loose}{Cannon · « **Reply #14 on:** August 25, 2015, 01:56:14 PM »

Fishing weight.

Dannyboy53 · « **Reply #15 on:** August 25, 2015, 02:21:58 PM »

Quote from: Loose}{Cannon on August 25, 2015, 01:56:14 PM

Fishing weight.

LOL...

I'm starting to think GM might be on the right track with the wall anchor idea! Markings are too inconsistant for rifling in my opinion.

Loose}{Cannon · « **Reply #16 on:** August 25, 2015, 02:22:28 PM »

GM thinks its a time released cyanide butt-capsule.

padams8888 · « **Reply #17 on:** August 28, 2015, 05:10:37 PM »

Quote from: Loose}{Cannon on August 25, 2015, 02:22:28 PM

GM thinks its a time released cyanide butt-capsule.

That being the case....I probably should be wearing gloves....

I would have to rule out a wall anchor as well....as the hole in the base is only about 1/4 to 3/8 deep. It definitely has distinct rifling marks that line up on the first two sets of checks.....as far as the rear...it appears to be smaller in diameter than the front.....

Greasemonkey · « **Reply #18 on:** August 29, 2015, 12:46:46 AM »

Wall anchor, no

WWII Nazi lead cyanide suicide butt capsule, in case of capture, insert.....maybe??

Lets try, old lead weight from a fishing net...for $200 Alex..

Loose}{Cannon · « **Reply #19 on:** August 29, 2015, 09:57:04 AM »

Plutonium capsule? The led shielding would make sense.

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Author Topic: So......yeah....no idea. (Read 10870 times)