5.1 Schenkl

[Garret]

Did any of the Union ships have a Dahlgren Rifle to fire this 5.1 Schenkl Shell at the battle of Malvern Hill?

http://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot/civil-war-us-5-inch-schenkl-shell-malvern-hill-17259-c-c6a4a77a2f

[scottfromgeorgia]

Is that thing disarmed? I see two little holes drilled in, but not enough to flush it out.

[emike123]

It appears like most, if not all, of the shells for sale at that auction are not disarmed which is probably good for folks who do that work and don't live too far away from Tallahassee (you know who you are!), but a consideration for bidders who may encounter shipping challenges and extra inerting costs and risks.

As for the 5.1in Schenkl, I have no reason to believe that it could not have been fired from a ship into the Malvern Hill area, but no definitive proof they were used there.  It does seem to be in better condition than most, many of which come from wet ground in SC.

[alwion]

I called them and they "guaranteed " they were all disarmed. but at least the fella I talked to didn't seem very knowledgeable or helpful

[CarlS]

You can't really expect an auction house attendant to know anything about the disarming of artillery.  And as we know just because a hole is in the shell somewhere doesn't mean any powder has been removed.  I think it is generally best to bid based on the assumption the shell has not been (adequately) disarmed.

[gflower]

I am with Carl never know if one really is disarmed unless you did it or had someone reputable do it. Brought him a nice 6.4 inch Schenkl which my Dad had disarmed and found that his bit broke off and never made it to the powder chamber! Is there an inspection period? I may be in Taallahassee next week. If so I can sneak by and check it out. Gary

[24thMichigan]

I was just advised by the auction house that all of the shells were disarmed by "injecting wax into the shell cavity" and it was "very cleanly done."   ??  That's a new one for me.  Anyone ever heard of this?

[CarlS]

Yes, I've seen a few like that but I'm not a fan.  It would be hard to convince an EOD person that the shell was disarmed if they can't see an empty powder cavity.

[24thMichigan]

Interesting auction.  Picked up a few things.  Some bargains but not many.  I thought that big Schenkl would bring more.

[emike123]

Alwion called me and reminded me to log in (Thank you Alan).  I got some good things including a 2 or 3 uncommon Hotchkiss types for my collection.  Looks like the market is good.  Shameless self promotion, but true: Some stuff is basically cheaper on our website!  But there is also a lesson there as the very common stuff was cheap so it doesn't pay to dump 25 Hotchkisses or Parrotts at a single sitting. 

[24thMichigan]

I was after that fuse auger but it went too high for my wallet.

[emike123]

I bid on it too, but I have one so stopped as runner up and let the other guy beat me by $25.  Wouldn't be surprised if a fellow forumite who believes you can never have too many artillery tools snagged it.

I was pretty disciplined, but I think one of the Hotchkisses with a restored sabot may have slipped into my cart.  If so, it wasn't a very expensive error fortunately.  There were a lot of them and a couple others almost got me.

[24thMichigan]

I got 3 Hotchkiss bolts, 1 shell and 1 & 1/2 Polygonal cavity 12 pdrs, all low end stuff but a good deal as I don't have any of those.  Everything I was really after went way too high, at least for me.  You're right you guys have better prices.  One of the lots of two 10 lb Parrots was weird, I had high bid, then it showed my bid retracted and someone else got it for the same price!

[scottfromgeorgia]

I got a half dozen pieces that will slip smoothly into my collection. I thought the prices were mostly fine, but on the better Reads, went too high. 

Don't know if you folks noticed that the Hotchkiss shell from Port Republic has the original linen wrapping on it that covered the sabot. Only second one I have seen so pristine. Seems unlikely to be a pickup - more likely he got it from a local guy who had it for decades on a shelf. I got it for $525, and I think that was a steal.

[scottfromgeorgia]

Question - why did the Wentworth bolt go so low? Worries about its provenance - US or English?