Todays gun show find

[Steve Flanagan]

Had this walk in to the Dallas show today, guy is an antique tool collector and found this on the shelf of a garage, he worked the projectile out of the case and dumped the charge but I advised that due to the markings that may have been a life altering event. Im guessing 20mm,,,,and Im hoping possible could be appropriate to an ME-109 which I collect the signed prints. HHHHEEELLP. the projectile is still intact/live, may soak it for a bit.

[Steve Flanagan]

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[Steve Flanagan]

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[Steve Flanagan]

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[Steve Flanagan]

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[Nimble1]

20X138B Solothurn

Steve, you have a 20x138B AA Solothurn round that is apparently still live.Be very careful with the projectile. The silver end contains the fuse and I am not real sure exactly how it works. The primer can be deactivated by soaking it in oil but I don't know about the projectile.
The guns which used the 20x138B "Long Solothurn" start with the Solothurn S5-100 series, which was the ancestor of the Rheinmetall-Borsig FlaK 30/38, the KwK-30/38 (used in light tanks and armoured cars) and the MG C/30L (designed for aircraft, but mainly used as an AA gun). The round was also used in the Solothurn S18-1000/1100 anti-tank rifles.

Outside the Rheinmetall/Solothurn family, the 20x138B was used in two Italian guns - the Breda M35 and Scotti - as well as the Lahti L39 anti-tank rifle and L40 AA gun. It was also used in Polish guns (the 20mm wz. 38 HMG family of ground and aircraft guns), but these saw little use.

[CLENTER]

Ref:gun Show Find

Looks Like A Tracer Round To! Cool Find.

[Nimble1]

Tracer & HE

The yellow body color markings also indicate its a high explosive round

http://cartridgecollectors.org/forum...hlight=20x138b

[Zünder]

The fact that it has a untouched primer and an intact tracer element doesn't mean necessarily it's a live HE round.

It's a HE round with red tracer for use in the tropics fitted with what seems to be a Kpf Z.45.
Nice round by the way.

[Steve Flanagan]

Thanks guys

Thanks all, Im going to soak the projectile in penetrating oil like WD 40 then put it in a shadowbox.

[Theodor]

Be careful, as the oil /especially penetrating!/ may lift the paint. Is the tracer part the only expolosive on it? I have read that the tracer stuff is no that dangerous, just do not put fire to it, is that right?

[Alan Smith]

Steve,

Your projectile has very nice paint and inked markings. If you soak it in oil (or anything else) you are going to ruin the paint.

I know the EOD guys will jump down my throat for suggesting this, but I think the only way you are going to be able to determine whether the projectile is a live HE round is to very gently unscrew the fuze. Chances are good that the vet did this years ago and scraped out the HE charge, prior to bringing it home as a souvenir.

Nice round and, like the other post mentioned, no - it is not for an aircraft gun. The aircraft 20mm used a shorter cartridge case. Your round would most commonly be encountered in use with the ground-based Flak 38 type 20mm anti-aircraft guns. Also, aircraft ammo should have LW acceptance proofs on it, not Army waffenampts.

[Steve Flanagan]

20mm

Okay soakings out and Ill disassemble. Thanks. Okay the projectile is clear of charge with only the primer and fuze and tracer material being live, Im going to frame it as is.

[François B.]

Please be careful with the fuze then....
If it is still alive...

Those are one of the most dagerous fuzes to deactived...
They are highly explosive and very sensitive....

[Steve Flanagan]

20mm

Yep Im going to put it in a padded display case with the info you guys provided underneath it. The Fuze had a sharp point poking out on the "charge side" with no sign of being demilled.