6 pounder III - Tricky to date ??

[ammofo]

I've recently picked up this 6 pounder Mark III case, but it doesn't have any indication of a date that I can see...

Any guesses ?

Also, does the anchor suggest Naval usage in this case or am I barking up the wrong tree as usual ??

 

[ydnum303]

I have seen several of these cases without dates, all made by Kynoch, as they have a letter K at about 7o'c on the base, but this is the first one I have seen without the K. The anchor is, I believe, an internal factory mark, presumably by an inspector. Naval use in the British service would be indicated by a letter N.

Regards,
Roger.

 

[gravelbelly]

I have seen several of these cases without dates, all made by Kynoch, as they have a letter K at about 7o'c on the base, but this is the first one I have seen without the K. The anchor is, I believe, an internal factory mark, presumably by an inspector. Naval use in the British service would be indicated by a letter N.

Regards,
Roger.

Roger,

Isn't that a faint "K" that I see at 6 o'clock?

Dave

 

[ammofo]

I have seen several of these cases without dates, all made by Kynoch, as they have a letter K at about 7o'c on the base, but this is the first one I have seen without the K. The anchor is, I believe, an internal factory mark, presumably by an inspector. Naval use in the British service would be indicated by a letter N.

Regards,
Roger.

Hi Roger, this one is a Kynoch casing (there's a very feint 'K' at 6 oclock) - I've seen some speculation on other sites about the 3 digit number at '4 o'clock' possibly pertaining to a date, which looks like '2 96' to me. Is that something that tallies with examples you might have ?

I did know about the 'N' on Naval cases, but don't know how far back in time that extends to......(I've got some huge Naval cases dating from the 30s and 40s). Do you know how far back the 'N' goes for future reference ?

 

[tigbrand]

Hi,in naval use these were obviously marked N and came into use in the late 19th century, the gun then was used in early tanks and as far as im aware the Kynoch cases were made for tank use. Hence no N marking. these were made in large numbers and used to(like everything else!!) turn up everywhere. They are not normally dated. Tig:tinysmile_fatgrin_t

 

[ammofo]

Hi Tig, you've kind of hit the mark with this answer, because my main wish would be that it is indeed a WW1 tank shell, but here's the deal...a few days earlier, I also picked up another (sadly cut down) 6 Pdr III, with a 'K' at 3 o'clock, which is very clearly dated 1917.....this is why I thought the undated one might possibly be earlier and therefore NOT a tank shell...

Does this help clear, or further muddy, the waters ??!!

 

[tigbrand]

Dont think it muddies the water, just most arent dated! As for the k stamp ive seen them in different places on the base. Remember it was wartime and although most British ammo is marked as per set procedures, these were made in large numbers quite quickly. Tim G might have an idea of production figures. Finding a nice common shell to fit will be hard these days too. :tinysmile_fatgrin_t

 

[ydnum303]

Hi Dave,

Yes, you (and all the others who pointed it out) are quite right about the "K"; - obviously I didn't look hard enough, or my glasses were steamed up!

Roger.