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.500" nitro express

L

laurent

Member
When I compare these two cartridges made by ELEY and KYNOCH, I realize that both of these cartridges are closely the same.
The bullets have the same profile, the same for the cases except that bullet settings are a little bit larger on Kynoch's case.
Headstamps seems to have the the same font style. I unterstood that these kind of loadings (cupro-nickel jacketed bullets) must be made earlier than 1914,
At this time, the two companies were still separated. Could they used the same machinery?
I'm also intrigue by the ELEY's headstamp, it seems that the word 'NITRO' was add later, had you ever seen that before on others cartridges?
500 NITRO (1).jpg500 NITRO (2).jpg500 NITRO (3).jpg500 NITRO (4).jpg
 
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Eley was bought out in (if I remember right) 1916 by a larger group of companies. The Kynoch name was used later. The machinery could have been the same. Other members will be able to tell you more about it than I can.

If only TonyE was still here. He would have known the whole story from memory.
 
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The basic machinery is not that complex, these things are turned out by the thousand and they only have to change some dyes to make other calibres.
The main point is that the are only cartridge manufacturers and do not control the patent for the cartridge in the same way that say Winchester who make
guns such as the Winchester .270 Magnum and control the cartridge patent as gun designer and cartridge manufacturer do.
 
Quite possible that both firms used machinery made by the same firm, as they were ammunition makers, not machinery makers. Heavy engineering firms such as Greenwood & Batley made cartridge-making machinery, which they sold all over the world. The .500" was a popular calibre, and came in various case lengths, from 2" to 3¼". Then, of course, there were the .500" calibres made from necked-down .577" cases...

The added "NITRO" in the headstamp indicates that the case was originally intended for black powder, or a nitro-for-black load. Not uncommon use of surplus cases.

Regards,
Roger.
 
Should have added that the CuNi bullets were used well into the 1930s, so no guarantee that these rounds are pre-1914, also, once both firms had been merged into Explosives Trades, and then Nobel Industries, stocks of Eley headstamped cases could well have been used up by Kynoch, who were then the main manufacturers in the UK of metallic sporting ammunition.

Roger.
 
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