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Armor/AFV: Axis - WWII
Armor and ground forces of the Axis forces during World War II.
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12,8cm ammo shells
PanzerKarl
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England - North West, United Kingdom
Joined: April 20, 2004
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Posted: Monday, November 21, 2005 - 10:38 PM UTC
what colour were the tips of 12,8cm or 128mm shells.
for high explosive and armour piercing rounds.
gone a google but nothing much showed up

thanks in advance

karl
JPTRR
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RAILROAD MODELING
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Tennessee, United States
Joined: December 21, 2002
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Posted: Tuesday, November 22, 2005 - 07:42 AM UTC
Hi Karl,

From the late great site AFV INTERIORS:


Quoted Text

details of the charge cartridge construction. These were constructed from strip steel that was wrapped around a form into a helix with a small overlap, and welded together. Inside was a synthetic silk bagged containing a stick form propelling charge with a Nitro-cellulose igniter and an electric primer cap. There were actually two different charge cartridges provided for the Jagdtiger. One was meant for the Pz.Gr.43 armor piercing projectile and the other for the Spr.Gr. high explosive, the AP charge being a full charge while the HE had only a partial charge. The cartridge steel was oil blackened and typically appears almost black; the dark oil was used to retard corrosion/rust. Both cartridge casings were identical in shape and size and only identified with painted letters on the base plate and the cartridge opening that was sealed with a milboard cover, recessed about an inch or so into the case. This cover marking was in large red letters that indicated either PZGR or SPRGR.

The Germans typically painted their Spr.Gr. HE projectiles gray or gray-green, but the ones found in this particular vehicle are reported to have been yellow. These projectiles also had two grooves located behind the two driving bands, which leads us to believe that they were probably originally produced for the German navy, and were intended as part of a fixed round, the grooves used to secure the projectile to a fixed cartridge. German Pz.Gr. AP rounds were almost all oil blackened steel, and would appear black in color. We see here one of the interesting yellow Spr.Gr. HE projectiles. Again, notice the double driving bands located near the base. By the way, Spr.Gr. stands for Sprenggranaten, or 'explosive shell', and Pz.Gr. stands for Panzergranaten, or 'panzer shell'. The Spr.Gr. projectile used a nose percussion fuse and the Pz.Gr. projectile a base percussive, slightly delayed, fuse. This allowed penetration of the projectile before the bursting charge was ignited, thereby pretty well totaling the interior of an enemy AFV and anybody unlucky enough to also be inside.

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