Look what I found

[CPF]

10 llb flash and smoke practice bombs. Both used, both safe. That part is cast iron with a brass rod through it, which is the firing pin if you like. Police took one off me when I took it to school. Used to close the local beet factory if one ended up there. Still find them.

After I found them the word get about, People telling me stories about them from the war . One local farmhand was working in the field came across one and it blew the bottom part of his leg off, And I met A gentleman On ,my-son-in-law’s farm not far from the field where I found them , Had one stuck in a Cultivate ,everyone told him they was armless as he was trying to get it out it went off and blew his wrist off and he had an artificial hand.

 

[76masseyman]

Couple of extra bits about them. There is a full on one on the window sill in Guy Gibsons office at RAF Scampton.

 

[TripleSix]

Many many years ago father in law was ploughing out a grass field whilst working for someone.
Ford 3000, about 11.30 at night, found some buried chain harrows.
No plough lamp.

Took a long time to get them untangled from the plough.

 

[bumkin]

Sorry for using the wrong words, it has been a while.
A photo is welcome but not necessary, I have got and have used both.
Maybe I will take a pic. i think this might be a horse in harness and its in Cheshire just for you kids

 

[Lowland1]

On a weekend home from school i was Rotavating with a hired County 1164 at about 9 oclock at night the rotavator started making a nasty noise. Got back to yard and got Dad out the house to have a look. Unfortunately i had rotavated the cab doors from our MF 135 that had been taken off when turning straw.

 

[e3120]

I found a wallet skewered on a tine of the front press. Couldn't do it if you tried. Not mine but empty nonetheless.

 

[bumkin]

i was at a friends one evening having a drink and spotted a hand grenade on his mantle piece i asked him where he found it, he told me on a trip to northern france he found it in a field, i said aren't you scared it might explode ,he replied why?do you think it might? i said well its still in one piece and that's what they are meant to do, the next day it was taken away by the bomb squad the fact he had brought it back and kept it on the mantle piece over a roaring log fire just makes the mind bogle

 

[Werzle]

Manager on a farm i worked for abit when i first left school found the only telegraph pole in the field while ploughing, he had fallen asleep and when he woke with a jolt the exhaust was blocking the line of sight of the pole and he couldnt work out what was wrong for a bit

 

[Chopsy Varmint]

It's what was locally called a "ridgeworth" and was used to support the shafts of the cart . It rode in a metalled groove in the saddle of a set of "gears" . That kind of tackle was never called "harness " which was used for lighter work . And "harness " didn't have a ridgeworth it used one long heavy duty strap that went right round the horse and consisted of a a back band and a belly band , the back band carrying a pair of "tugs" through which the shafts went . If I can find a photo , I'll post it .

I took the liberty of looking for photos...

Here's the chain in place in a heavy horse driving harness with the chain circled in red:

compared to plough harness, although the one below doesn't have the complete belly band:

 

[Swarfmonkey]

i was at a friends one evening having a drink and spotted a hand grenade on his mantle piece i asked him where he found it, he told me on a trip to northern france he found it in a field, i said aren't you scared it might explode ,he replied why?do you think it might? i said well its still in one piece and that's what they are meant to do, the next day it was taken away by the bomb squad the fact he had brought it back and kept it on the mantle piece over a roaring log fire just makes the mind bogle

I knew a WO2 that used a shell from a QF 4.5" as a doorstop. After he was posted out his replacement had it looked at whereupon it transpired that it had never been demilled and still had it's full load of RDX/TNT mix in it. Thankfully, no fuse.