brass and lead

[gtoast99]

Hey all! The other day the forum helped me ID my first minie ball, which had either been double loaded or suffered ramrod damage. I decided to do some more around that area, and came up with these two interesting pieces I was helping you might help with.

1) The round ball has an obvious mold line and the white color we look for. It's smaller than a 69 though, closer in size to the 58 I dug yesterday (but without calipers and with the ball slightly distorted, I can't give you an exact. Could it be war period? I tried to do some research myself and thought maybe 54 pistol ball? But what do I know, I defer to the experts LOL

2) The brass piece has three distinct characteristics. At the top there is a small hole. Further down, a raised ridge. Further still (emphasized because it's tricky to notice in the picture, a pair of thinner lines depressed into the metal. It's hollow inside and open on both ends.

Any thoughts? Thanks so much in advance!!

 

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[TheCannonballGuy]

Because the lead ball with a distinct mold-seam is out-of-round (lopsided), but shows no distinguishable impact damage, it is more likely to be an antipersonnel ball from an artillery projectile than a musketball. Unlike musketballs, artillery antipersonnel balls didn't need to be manufactured perfectly-round. If your antipersonnel ball is from an explosive shell, it is called a case-shot ball. If it from a round of Canister, it is called a canister-ball.

Hotchkiss Canister and Case-Shot shells contained antipersonnel balls which were about .58-caliber. (By the way, all Hotchkiss projectiles were US-made.) Parrott and Bormann Case-Shot balls were about .69-caliber, so that excludes your ball.

 

[duggap]

Not sure form your photo, but the brass item looks like it might be from a bayonette scabbard. Just a guess mind you.

 

[gtoast99]

Because the lead ball with a distinct mold-seam is out-of-round (lopsided), but shows no distinguishable impact damage, it is more likely to be an antipersonnel ball from an artillery projectile than a musketball.

That seems odd to me. I know this isn't a battlefield, there was troop presence so there may have been something going on there (the more relics I find are starting to make me think so), but nothing so large as to involve ordinance. I would have thought I'd find more of them if there was a drop/spill of case/canister balls. Anyways, that's why I was thinking maybe pistol ball. But I guess part of the mystery of the hobby - "how the heck did this get here?!" LOL

Not sure form your photo, but the brass item looks like it might be from a bayonette scabbard. Just a guess mind you.

Didn't want to jinx it by saying it myself, BUT I haven't found anything online that's close enough. So I was hoping one of the gurus on here might recognize it hehe

 

[High Plains Digger]

I stopped wondering "how the heck did this get here" and I stopped having headaches. It's there because it is there. Except for that So. African Rand coin that stuck to a coconut and was carried by an African Swallow to be found on a beach in Idaho. Only explanation I have ever head that made sense.

 

[gtoast99]

hahaha I like that HPD! I still plan on doing some more research at the library to find out what exactly *did* go on here. All these relics are starting to add up to a very interesting puzzle for me!

ALSO I opened up a purchased display of CW bullets to compare sizes. So I can tell you definitively that it's bigger than the 44 in the set, smaller than the 69, and appears roughly on par with the 52 and 58 to the best of my ability to see. SO hopefully that helps some. And that brass piece still has my head scratching

I love this hobby!!!

 

[gtoast99]

I found my brass piece online, and it is (as I hoped it might be) a scabbard throat

The description on the item here says it is from a bowie or dagger type knife. Yay!