CSS Georgia’s parting shot

[Tex27]

A handful of engineers and technicians, spent the last two months inerting 170 Dahlgren and 6.4-inch Brooke projectiles that Navy divers recovered from the CSS Georgia this summer.

http://www.sas.usace.army.mil/Media/NewsStories/tabid/10266/Article/631248/css-georgias-parting-shot.aspx

[emike123]

a) Interesting article

b)  I wish they would keep the shells completely immersed in water.

c) I would like to see the "charge" in the fuzes that is so meticulously removed.

d) Does anyone knowledgeable think they will explode if struck or dropped?  Of course I am assuming that they are not dropped from so high that they break open and a spark ensues.  I just am interested in this eod guy's statement that this could happen.  In these cases, there is a lot of opinion passed off sometimes as fact and I wonder if folks think his stated opinion is accurate.

e)  I am happy to see they are doing a thorough job of inerting these so they can be saved.

[divedigger]

Yeah I wish those shells were covered completely with water as well. I have worked on shells that got dry and it destroys them. As for them being a danger, in my limited experience shells that have been underwater for a century and a half have powder that has broken down to the point that you almost can't get it to burn. What with condensation or sweating the powder seems to decay and often turns grey and just in general gets waterlogged. I don't worry about them. I have dried out a lot of it and about all it does is smoke like crazy.

[emike123]

I heard their expert(s) were inerting the Archer percussion fuses by drilling them with a quarter inch drill bit.  If that is the case, they are defacing them and ill informed as to the risk these pose.  At least a couple of the folks here are former EOD techs who would certify them safe for free without whipping out their drill bits.  It may be too late for these fuses, but it would be nice if we had someone there we could reason with.