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unknown french naval? fuze

Alpini

Well-Known Member
Premium Member
Hello,

I am looking for any info about this fuze. It came without the gain but a normal french gaine fits perfectly.

I made a small diagram about it's mechanics but don't fully understand how it could have worked. My guess is that it had an external arming spindle. The ink stamps are very hard to read so don't trust the stamps in my diagram.
 

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I think I found the answer myself (it seems I did not dig deep enough into the documents). It a fuze for the French Navy "Bombe L".

Does anyone know which publication the old drawing comes from? It would be nice to have it complete and in a better quality.

I also improoved my drawing because it had some failures...
 

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L 120/410 SAP French Aeronavale Bomb ("Bombe de semi-rupture")
Overall weight 410 kg including 120kg explosive (picratol)
Length 2309mm Maximal Diameter 400mm
Nose and tail fuzes with 0.,15s delay (so as to detonate the bomb 10 to 20m under sea level if dropped from a height of 800m)
Nose fuze - specific of this bomb (as shown in the post by Fusse)
Tail fuze - French Navy "fusee detonante" - Length 317 ( 225mm over the threading)


Older models (1928) L1 (only tail fuzed) and L2 (nose and tail fuzed) 108/491
Overall weight 491 kg including 109 Kg explosive (melinite)
Length 2400mm Maximal Diameter 400mm
Tail fuze: French Navy "fusee detonante" - Length 417 mm (325 over the threading)
 
In the meantime I got the steel top piece with the firing pin.

It is hard to decipher by I think on the steel part is written:

BILLES
DE 4455

two times on opposite sides. Could this be releated to the small steel balls securing the firing pin?

Anyone has a picture of the wind vane of a real example or a drawing of the wind vane?

For size comparsion I added a french 24-31 Mle.1899-08. This bomb bomb fuze ensemble is the most heavy I have ever seen.
 

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In the meantime I got the steel top piece with the firing pin.

It is hard to decipher by I think on the steel part is written:

BILLES
DE 4455

two times on opposite sides. Could this be releated to the small steel balls securing the firing pin?

Anyone has a picture of the wind vane of a real example or a drawing of the wind vane?

For size comparsion I added a french 24-31 Mle.1899-08. This bomb bomb fuze ensemble is the most heavy I have ever seen.

Very nice find (rare item).
No picture of complete one
 
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