SOME ENGLISH FUSES

The n°44 percussion fuse was quite a simple apparatus.

It was a small cylinder, slightly tronconical, wearing a Tetryl detonating charge in its tail, and closed at its upper end with a 'percussion disc' pressing on the percussion pin.

At the impact, the percussion pin was pressed by the disc into the starter charge, and the resulting fire was communicated to the main rear detonating charge via the communication channel.

That channel was blocked, at rest, by a centifugal lock, removed by the effect of the shell spin during its flight.

A brass cap, that had to be removed before the shot, was preventing the percussion disc from the manipulations during handling.

There was a variation, named the n° 44-B percussion fuse, with a more sensible centrifugal lock, designed for the lower spins of the heavy artillery shells.

The fuse n°44 was mainly used with the smoke shells of the :

• 4.5 in field howitzers (4.5 inches - 114 mm),

and with the high explosive shells of the :

• 6 in siege howitzers (6 inches - 152 mm),
• 9.2 in siege howitzers (9.2 inches - 234 mm),
• 12 in howitzers (12 inches - 305 mm),

The English armies began the war with the N°100 percussion fuse.

It was a 1914 urgency development, since that item went from design to production withon 10 days only... Needless to say that the fuse n°100 was not optimised for the production lines.

That fuse as well as the derivated models (hereunder) was anyway universally employed by the English artillery, with shells of many calibres.
This fuse was used with the high explosive shells of the :

• 18 pdr field guns (3.3 inches - 84 mm),
• 60 pdr field guns (5 inches - 127 mm),
• 4.5 in field howitzers (4.5 inches - 114 mm),
• 6 in siege howitzers (6 inches - 152 mm),
• 9.2 in siege howitzers (9.2 inches - 234 mm),
• 8 in howitzers (8 inches - 203 mm),
• 12 in howitzers (12 inches - 305 mm),
• 15 in howitzers (15 inches - 381 mm),

The fuse N°100, standard impact fuse of the English Armies at the beginning of the war created big manufacturing difficulties. Therefore, this model left its place to several succesive enhancements, named N°101, N° 102 et N°103, representing, with their different marks, more than 89 models !

The models shown on the picture, a N°101 mark I and N°101 mark II, equipped the explosive shells of the guns and howitzer of nearly all calibers, from the 18 pdr guns to the 15 inches long range railway howitzers.
This fuse was used with the high explosive shells of the :

• 18 pdr field guns (3.3 inches - 84 mm),
• 60 pdr field guns (5 inches - 127 mm),
• 4.5 in field howitzers (4.5 inches - 114 mm),
• 6 in siege howitzers (6 inches - 152 mm),
• 9.2 in siege howitzers (9.2 inches - 234 mm),
• 8 in howitzers (8 inches - 203 mm),
• 12 in howitzers (12 inches - 305 mm),
• 15 in howitzers (15 inches - 381 mm),

The experience of the first years of the conflict obliged the armies to develop new materials. Particularly, the common percussion fuses often failed in muddy grounds of the Flanders battlefields.

The percussion fuse n°106 is one of those improvements, dated 1917 / 1918, much more sensitive to arrival shocks, even in soft grounds. A steel hat covered the percussion mechanism before the shot.
This fuse equipped the high explosive shells of the :

• 18 pdr field guns (3.3 inches - 84 mm),
• 3.7 in mountain guns (3.7 inches - 94 mm),
• 60 pdr field guns (5 inches - 127 mm),
• 6 in field guns (6 inches - 152 mm),
• 12 in guns (12 inches - 305 mm),
• 4.5 in field howitzers (4.5 inches - 114 mm),
• 6 in siege howitzers (6 inches - 152 mm),
• 8 in howitzers (8 inches - 203 mm),
• 12 in howitzers (12 inches - 305 mm),
• 15 in howitzers (15 inches - 381 mm),

As well as the chemical and smoke shells of the :

• 18 pdr field guns (3.3 inches - 84 mm),
• 4.5 in field howitzer (4.5 inches - 114 mm),
• 6 in siege howitzers (6 inches - 152 mm),

The N°80 time and percussion fuse, entirely made of brass, was graduated from 0 to 22 seconds and with a roman cross sign for impact percussion function.
The time system is classical, with an axial concutor setting fire at departure time to graduated discs filled with fusing composition. The percussion system is also classical, based on an inertia block and a staple arming the shell at its departure.
First dedicated to the shells of the :

• 13 pdr field guns (3 inches - 76 mm),
• 18 pdr field guns (3.3 inches - 84 mm),

it was afterwards adapted on most of the equivalent existing calibers, for the shrapnell shells of the :

• 10 pdr and 2.7-in mountain guns (2.75 inches - 70 mm),
• 2,95 in mountain guns (2.95 inches - 75 mm),
• 15 pdr field guns (3 inches - 76 mm),

This is the classical British fuse of WW1, declined onto 16 different marks during the war.

There is a strange but real story, feeding the thesis demonstrating that the war was intentionally created by the international of the weapons industrials : the design of this piece have been made by Krupp (Germany). after the end of the war, Vickers, the British society that manufactured those fuses, payed to Krupp royalties for an amount of 40.000 £...

The time system of the time and percussion fuse n°83 was very similar to the famous n°80 one, at the exception of the non-axial pyrotechnic arming system, but the percussion system was quite different. In that model, the staple / inertia block arming system was replaced by a bronze ball arming system, more appropriate to the heavy calibre shells departure conditions.

Dedicated to the shrapnell shells of the :

• 60 pdr long range field guns (5 inches - 127 mm),

Before joining the war in 1917, the United States of America allowed its industry to sell weapons and ammunitions to the allied countries. This fact finally led the German submarines to destroy the American ship 'Lusitania', that transported both civilians and a lot of war material. This particularly bad incident was one of the triggering facts that made Washington join its allies on the european battlefields.

The time and percussion fuse n°80 was therefore manufactured by the american metallurgists. Those imported series were given a new number, 'n°85 time and percussion fuse'. The characteristics of those two marks were very similar.
This fuze equipped the shrapnell shells of the :

• 13 pdr field guns (3 inches - 76 mm),
• 18 pdr field guns (3.3 inches - 84 mm),

One of the two items showed in the pictures is marked 'B.S.C.' (Bethlehem Steel Corporation), and the fabrication year 1915, and is then a good illustration of the story hereabove.

Revolving discs time fuse quite impressive because of its size and its weight (made of brass).

Gradueted from 0 to 22 seconds, and with a roman cross sign for an impact percussion function.
This N°88 HZ time and percussion fuse was a variant of the n°83 fuse (see above), with its lower ring filled with a slower burning composition, giving a total time of burning of 45 seconds instead of approximatively 30 seconds.
A deep trapezoïdal groove is machined in the top of the fuse head for shell handling.
dedicated to the shrapnell shells of the :

• 60 pdr long range field guns (5 inches - 127 mm),
• 6 in siege and field guns (6 in - 152 mm),
• 9,2 in guns (9.2 inches - 234 mm),
• 12 in guns (12 inches - 305 mm),