Item Number: A00924

Item Title: James Type II Shell

Price: $725

Shipping: Not included

Provenance: US

Type: James Shell

Size: 3.8 Inch (14 Pounder)

Sabot: Lead Band

Fuse: James Percussion

Book:
Dickey and George (1993 Edition) Page 190
Melton and Pawl (Paperback Editon) Page 60 A-79

Location Recovered: Vicksburg, MS

Description:This Type-II James projectile is a really great example of cool shell. Everyone loves the Type-I "Birdcage" James shell but this Type-II is a really neat design and rarer (Rarity 7) than the Type-I. The Type-II was designed to overcome the great flaw in the Type-I where the sabot pieces always came off the fired shell and if any friendly troops were anywhere in front of the firing gun they would be in harms way. As dug evidence indicates the new design worked very well as nearly all fired examples still have their sabot.

The Type-II still used the same James percussion fuse and, as you can see in the pics, this one is a very nice green color. It could be buffed to a nice brass look if the new owner preferred. The shell's iron is in very good condition and I am pretty sure hasn't been run through electrolysis or had any intense cleaning. It is just a great example of Vicksburg iron. You can still see the small hole in the side where the fuse safety wire is. The end of the wire is visible just below the shell surface.

As you can see there is a pull on one side of the giant lead sabot. You see this on almost all of these type shells if they are fired. It appears to be from the ground as the shell impacted. They almost always have one side pulled and the other side perfect as this one is. When made the sabot was covered with a tin sleeve to keep the gun bore from fouling by the lead and this was covered with a greased linen. The ground action was so light on this shell that there is still a good bit of the tin covering. Rifling is visible on the sabot.

This one is so nice had I not dug the few that are in my collection I would keep it. It is in better shape.

Shell is disarmed, clean and coated. Close inspection would show some surface scale in a couple spots that would come off if run through electrolysis that would give it that perfectly even color. But it displays great as is.