French 37mm mle 1929?

[Szewcer_Aro]

Hello,
Today i have aquired a rimless case of French origin marked Hotchkiss 2 33 D.Paris.
It measures 37x208mm all around the neck wuthout deviation, so if cut, it was done really well (the mle 1929 should be 218 long i think)

Is anyone able to confirm or deny this ?
Also possible anyone has photos of complete cases/examples they could share for reference ?
Cheers,
Arek.

 

[Lambert]

I think your case is not 37 mm but 25 mm x 163 hotkiss DCA. At the start of the shot, the shell takes the missing piece to your case.
See picture join.

 

[Szewcer_Aro]

I think your case is not 37 mm but 25 mm x 163 hotkiss DCA. At the start of the shot, the shell takes the missing piece to your case.
See picture join.

it cannot be 25x163, the measurements are too off

caliper measurement is not fully accurate (done with one hand to show on picture)
and a 37mm hotchkiss projectile fits perfectly so it is a 37mm

 

[Alpini]

Hello,

It's not cut down. 208 mm is the correct length. But sorry, I don't have any more info about the gun other than it was called "37 mm Mitrailleuse Hotchkiss" (37 mm M.H.). It seems to have been invented in 1932.

 

[Szewcer_Aro]

Hello,

It's not cut down. 208 mm is the correct length. But sorry, I don't have any more info about the gun other than it was called "37 mm Mitrailleuse Hotchkiss" (37 mm M.H.). It seems to have been invented in 1932.

thank you so much !

 

[Alpini]

Your case with lot number "2" from 1933 also fits well for a first production in 1932. It think it was an experimental or exported gun.

 

[Szewcer_Aro]

Your case with lot number "2" from 1933 also fits well for a first production in 1932. It think it was an experimental or exported gun.

Thank you for the info, I'm glad i spent the 90PLN for it

 

[Tony Williams]

You did very well to find such a rare item!

This is what I say about it in my book, Autocannon:

37 x 208 Hotchkiss

This almost unknown round, for which only factory drawings and a tiny photo exist, was developed in the mid-1930s for an automatic AA gun. In the same period, Hotchkiss produced such a gun which competed unsuccessfully in the French naval ACAD competition for a new AA twin mounting. This might have been the same gun which is stated to have been sold to Romanian Army in single and twin towed mountings, although these never entered service so were presumably acquired for trials purposes. There was also another naval project at around that time: the 37 mm zénithaux (zenith), an upward-firing Hotchkiss quadruple mounting intended for use against dive bombers (the guns could not depress below 45 degrees). The mounting would have been set into the deck and loaded from beneath, but this was only at the concept stage by June 1940. It is unknown what ammunition any of these gun projects might have used, but it might have been the 37 x 208, or just possibly the 37 x 218R below. One source for the Hotchkiss shell weight gives 550 g, but for the ACAD trials (see below) the Hotchkiss fired a 625 g shell containing 57 g Tetryl; MV in both cases was 875 m/s.

The photo of the round in my book is of a replica which I had made by Mick Wilkinson, for photo comparisons.

 

[Szewcer_Aro]

You did very well to find such a rare item!

This is what I say about it in my book, Autocannon:

37 x 208 Hotchkiss

This almost unknown round, for which only factory drawings and a tiny photo exist, was developed in the mid-1930s for an automatic AA gun. In the same period, Hotchkiss produced such a gun which competed unsuccessfully in the French naval ACAD competition for a new AA twin mounting. This might have been the same gun which is stated to have been sold to Romanian Army in single and twin towed mountings, although these never entered service so were presumably acquired for trials purposes. There was also another naval project at around that time: the 37 mm zénithaux (zenith), an upward-firing Hotchkiss quadruple mounting intended for use against dive bombers (the guns could not depress below 45 degrees). The mounting would have been set into the deck and loaded from beneath, but this was only at the concept stage by June 1940. It is unknown what ammunition any of these gun projects might have used, but it might have been the 37 x 208, or just possibly the 37 x 218R below. One source for the Hotchkiss shell weight gives 550 g, but for the ACAD trials (see below) the Hotchkiss fired a 625 g shell containing 57 g Tetryl; MV in both cases was 875 m/s.

The photo of the round in my book is of a replica which I had made by Mick Wilkinson, for photo comparisons.

Really thank you for the reply, i actually tried contacting you about it after Dan told me to but maybe my email didn't make it
edit: Turns out my email threw your response in the spam folder and I didn't see it, terribly sorry about this