5.3cm Gruson

[earni74]

Thanks Alpini, and everyone else for their input.

The fuzes are for Nordenfeld rounds, after checking all the rounds in the collection, ( which I should have done in the 1st instance ) these fuzes match the ones on my Nordenfeld rounds.

Thanks once again

[Gspragge]

If your projectiles are Belgian made which is what I think, then the fuzes would likely be what you have. It is possible that both rounds ended up in Romania, it is well known that they used Gruson fortress turrets and so on. The German export case could easily have gone to Rumania and the Rumanian case speaks for it self. Where the Rumanians source projectiles etc over time is the question, but Belgium exported also, especially after Nordenfelt left Maxim and went to Belgium.

[wingsofwrath]

Bit of necroposting, considering I found this thread four years late, but this is such a specialised subject, I had to put my two cents in.

First off, I can confirm that yes, the shells are indeed Romanian - I have two cases with the same markings (Feb. 1888 on mine, but who's counting).

53ro_bottom_1000.jpg

When it comes to the Belgian fuze, Romania has in fact captured several 57mm Cockerill-Nordenfelt guns from the Germans at the battle of Mărășești (August 6, 1917 – September 3, 1917), and one of them is on display at the National Military Museum in Bucharest, unfortunately misidentified as a Hotchkiss.

img_1683.jpg

Also, a few years ago, metal detectorists found a cache of 57mm Belgian ammunition. Here they are before being detonated by Romanian EOD. As you can see from the picture, they weren't very sure what they were facing, which is why they also blew up the otherwise totally inert case shot alongside the common shells...

proiectil.jpg

So all in all, it's totally possible some Belgian fuzes ended up on romanian 53mm shells during the war, even though I'd bet on some later shenanigans in the collector's market, because Romanian fuzes are waaay harder to come by than Belgian ones.

[earni74]

many thanks wingsofwrath for your comments and interesting photo's, the fuzes on my 5.3cm projectiles hang over the tip of the top of the shell by about half a millimeter not perfectly flush as they usually are, that was my doubt
Mick