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KWK 3,7cm HE
- Thread starter DF-41A
- Start date
greif
Well-Known Member
The cartridge you are showing is the 3,7 cm Gr. Patr. 40 Kwk as depicted below.
I think the cartridge has some issues. As a rule German driving bands were unpainted, this one is painted. The shell has the correct color but without even a scratch. Furthermore the loading data are not correct.
Marking c) must be: supply nr of the explosive charge, place, month and year of loading the shell with the explosive charge.
Marking b) must be: the code nr. of the explosive charge, in most cases for this shell that was nr. 32. That is missing.
Marking a) must be: the place, day, month and year of finishing the shell, meaning screwing on the fuze, followed by a letter marking of the responsible worker .
As you can see from the markings c) and a) on your shell the loading of the explosive charge was done in november 1941 and screwing on the fuze was done in september 1941. That doesn’t match.
Also the data of the composition of the propelling charge on the side of the case are missing.
As PD fuze the AZ 39 was standard. But for lack of that fuze the 3,7 cm Kpf. Z. Zerl. P (for the 3,7 cm Flak 18) was used, in which case the self destruct function was unabled, marking that with a red stripe on the nose of the fuze. So an AZ 39 with a red tip is not correct.
My conclusion is that the shell and case were repainted.
I think the cartridge has some issues. As a rule German driving bands were unpainted, this one is painted. The shell has the correct color but without even a scratch. Furthermore the loading data are not correct.
Marking c) must be: supply nr of the explosive charge, place, month and year of loading the shell with the explosive charge.
Marking b) must be: the code nr. of the explosive charge, in most cases for this shell that was nr. 32. That is missing.
Marking a) must be: the place, day, month and year of finishing the shell, meaning screwing on the fuze, followed by a letter marking of the responsible worker .
As you can see from the markings c) and a) on your shell the loading of the explosive charge was done in november 1941 and screwing on the fuze was done in september 1941. That doesn’t match.
Also the data of the composition of the propelling charge on the side of the case are missing.
As PD fuze the AZ 39 was standard. But for lack of that fuze the 3,7 cm Kpf. Z. Zerl. P (for the 3,7 cm Flak 18) was used, in which case the self destruct function was unabled, marking that with a red stripe on the nose of the fuze. So an AZ 39 with a red tip is not correct.
My conclusion is that the shell and case were repainted.
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Thank you very much for such detailed analysis and reply.
Personally I dont have such professional materials, but the fonts of the stencils just look too 'modern' to me. I've come across possible repainted IJA cases with similar fonts in my country earlier, so doubts arose in my mind.