Steve T Posted July 27, 2016 Share Posted July 27, 2016 My lovely wife asked what I wanted to do on my birthday. 'Go digging of course!' I replied......... So today I began the last year in my forties, which I celebrated by visiting the British army dump site. The landowner joined me as well and we had a great morning pottering about. Well, when I say pottering, I dug like a man possessed and the landowner did the riddling I hit a patch where there were one or two bakelite spike bayonet scabbards, along with LE nose caps, the usual starter tabs and a seam of Kerr sling buckles. Then I switched location and found that the Vickers 50cal seam we found on the last dig did indeed stop......but started again about a foot further on!! This seam was in great shape with only very minor surface corrosion on the brass, which rubbed off easily with a gloved finger. A few hours later I was knackered but happy, having filled two buckets with stuff. I then went back to the landowner's place for a cuppa and he very kindly and generously gave me some of the stranger relics he had recently recovered from the site! A great day and some superb relics First set of pictures starting on the group shot were my finds, second set, (starting with another group shot), are what the landowner gave me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davejb Posted July 27, 2016 Share Posted July 27, 2016 Where the hell did a part of an MP40 come from????????? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve T Posted July 28, 2016 Author Share Posted July 28, 2016 The dump Along with the K98 butt plates and the K98 trigger and mag housing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve T Posted July 28, 2016 Author Share Posted July 28, 2016 The cleaning has started on Wednesdays birthday dig finds. Got lots of stuff soaking in citric acid and lots in the rock tumbler. This lot have had an hour in citric then whizzed over with the old wire brush attachment on my drill. Some nicely marked Lee-Enfield oil bottles, along with one shorter Sten oil bottle. Interesting to see Dominion Arsenal (Canada) marked on one.....only ever seen it on cartridges. The Vickers 303 starter tabs are fairly standard except for the two I've put to one side. I have a couple of hundred of these and they are always marked with manufacturer, date, calibre and number of rounds, (not always all this info, but most do). The two to one side though are very unusual as they appear to be marked with unit info!!! Green Howards and Royal West Kents? Never seen them unit marked before. The Bakelite Lee-Enfield spike bayonet scabbards have cleaned up nicely as well Oh, anyone any idea what the little brass 'frame' is off? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davejb Posted July 28, 2016 Share Posted July 28, 2016 I,ve seen that frame before and I,m buggered if I can remember what its from!!!!!!!!!!! annoying!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve T Posted July 30, 2016 Author Share Posted July 30, 2016 Cleaning of Wednesday's finds continues...... We have in the below pictures, Luger magazine, K98 butt plates, Browning MG mount, Browning M1910/22 slide, K98 trigger and mag housing, combination tool, (not sure of which weapon yet), rear sight distance marker from Vickers MG, Lee-Enfield No 1 and No 4 tiny pieces of barrel, rear sights from Vetterli Vitali rifle, Lee-Enfield No 1 nose caps, (note the one at the top with the extended bayonet lug), Lewis spade grips and finally Lee-Enfield training rifle trigger/mag and bolt, (non-functioning training aids so not section 5). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve T Posted August 1, 2016 Author Share Posted August 1, 2016 More cleaned bits from last weeks dig. Some nice Long Lee butt plates along with a few Lee-Enfield ones. The Long Lee ones are all nicely marked. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve T Posted August 17, 2016 Author Share Posted August 17, 2016 More cleaned stuff from the dig a few weeks back. Usual Kerr sling buckles, LE sling and Springfield buckles. LE oil bottle. Handles from Mk 2 Sten mag loader. 303s, including one complete inspection round, (no percussion cap and cartridge contains a wooden round to position the bullet correctly). More starter tabs from Vickers 50cal as well as some 303 ones as well, including the Mk 3 variant. Nothing overly spectacular, but I have got another marked 303 cloth belt starter tab. This one appears to be 1st Foresters. Also one unidentified bit. Reminds me of a candle snuffer or possibly a fuze cover. Could even be a barrel end cover. Appears to have Arabic writing on it as well. Turkish Mauser maybe? Let me know if you recognise it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major General Bil4338 Posted August 17, 2016 Major General Share Posted August 17, 2016 Looks like a Mauser barrel protector right enough, assume it's for a WW1 weapon, as that is indeed old Turkish Arabic script. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve T Posted August 17, 2016 Author Share Posted August 17, 2016 Thanks @Bil4338. Now to find a picture...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve T Posted August 17, 2016 Author Share Posted August 17, 2016 Found the little fecker @Bil4338. Rather earlier than I thought. That muzzle cover is Pre WW1 and for either the 1890, 1893, or 1903 Mauser's. Not properly IDd as they are so rare can't find them on the net! Got a pic though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major General Bil4338 Posted August 18, 2016 Major General Share Posted August 18, 2016 A great little keepsake to have found then! Something out of the ordinary you'll treasure I'm sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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