"55" Cavity Enfield

[aggiereb]

I saw a "55" cavity Enfield offered on Ebay.  Does anyone know what the "55" represents?

Interestingly, it was being offered by a seller with all the single-numberd Enfields from Canada.

[aggiereb]

Nobody has more knowledge than me?

Thanks for ANY reply.

[CarlS]

Sorry but I'm a newbie to the Lead Head area as Iron is the metal I'm most attracted to as a rule but lead is growing on me.   The only thing I can add is that I recently bought a case of cavity marked bullets and there is not a "55" in it but there is a very clear "5" base mark Enfield that is reported to have been found at Bermuda Hundred. 

That said, the bullet handbook in Appendix 3 from Dean and Jim Thomas indicates that the Enfield with a base mark of "55" and "57" are made by Eley Brothers of London, England.  I don't  have their volumes of bullet books and there is likely more information there.

[vcorps70]

Based on my own experiences with this site, I suggest using the ?Search? feature to find info on Enfields and base markings. There is a good amount of info there. Also, I believe I?ve picked up a bullet from the same dealer. He seems to get some of his Enfields from the ?Onion Patch? and they may also carry the ?Broad Arrow? imprint around the base rim, indicating British Govt. property.

[aggiereb]

Thanks Carl.  And I apologize for the delay in relaying gratitude. 

Per your suggestion, I'll certainly pursue the "Appendix" information.

[Pete George]

Nobody in this discussion has asked, but I'll post the info anyway, in case anybody is interested. As my book on civil war artillery projectiles shows, I am very interested in gathering data on where (the specific sites) various types of rare projectiles got used. So, if anybody cares to know... I dug an Enfield minie with the 55 base-mark at the Murfreesboro/StonesRiver battlefield, back in the mid-1970s.
Regards,
Pete George

[aggiereb]

Thanks Pete.  That's great information.

As with your artillery projectiles, I pride myself on keeping track of dig/discovery locations on bullets in my collection.  Sadly, I still have too many "unknowns." 

[manifestdestiny38]

For the sake of discussion (and since I'm fairly new to the forum and stated that I'd post some of the bullets that I have a few months ago), here is an excavated .55 Cavity Enfield. I am not sure of the exact location because I didn't excavate it, but I am fairly certain it is from the Stones River area as well.

I'll post measurements later if anyone is interested.

[CarlS]

Manifest,

That is a nice example.  Thanks for sharing it.

[Jim T]

the "55" and "57" cavity marked Enfields were products of Eley Bros.

They did have .55 and .577 caliber bullets as marked on the packs. Will have to do some reading as I don't remember all the specifics

[Jim T]

The "real" Enfield rounds made by, and for, the English Government were reduced to .55" around 1859. The commercial makers that sold rounds to the Confederacy were under no such supervision and supplied bullets of various diameters (.55 to .57).