Description
Fired 90mm T27 Brass Cartridge Case
Product Overview
This fired 90mm T27 brass cartridge case is a military ammunition collectible tied to the development of American anti-tank rounds. Its large brass body makes it a distinctive display piece for collectors of tank ammunition, artillery cases, and Cold War ordnance. It offers a physical example of the cartridge cases that supported advances in armored warfare.
Identification and Features
The item is identified as a T27 cartridge case for 90mm ammunition and is offered in fired condition. Brass construction is its main material feature. The 90mm designation refers to the ammunition’s caliber, rather than the outside diameter of the case.
Original Function
The cartridge case originally held the propellant and formed the rear portion of a complete round. It supported the projectile as part of a single ammunition assembly. After firing, the empty case was removed from the gun’s breech, leaving the fired brass component represented by this collectible.
Product History
The T27 family is associated with U.S. efforts to improve 90mm HEAT ammunition. HEAT means High Explosive Anti-Tank. These rounds used a shaped charge to attack armor. Their development included the T108E40 and T108E46 designs. Army records later classified the resulting M348-series ammunition as obsolete in 1968.
Documented Applications
Army ammunition data sheets identify the T27E2 case with the M348 and M348A1 HEAT cartridges. The listed guns are the M3, M36, T132, and T133. These are documented applications of that T27-family variant; they do not establish the exact cartridge loading or weapon that fired this individual T27 case.
Equipment History
The vehicles behind this ammunition history span the move from World War II armor to early Cold War tanks. The M3 gun armed the M36 tank destroyer and the T26 tank development program. Later, the M47 Patton carried the M36 gun. Introduced into U.S. service in 1952, the M47 combined an M46-based hull with a turret developed for the T42 tank project.
Weapon-System Background
The American 90mm M3 gun grew from the M1 anti-aircraft gun, adapted for use in tanks and gun motor carriages. It had a rifled barrel and a vertically sliding breechblock. Vehicle mounts combined the gun with recoil equipment and optical sights. Later designs, including the M3A1 and M36, carried the 90mm tank-gun family into the postwar period.
History of Use
American 90mm-armed tanks served in Korea and in the armored forces built during the Cold War. The M47’s U.S. career centered largely on training and defense duties in Europe. The 63rd Tank Battalion of the 1st Infantry Division used M47s in Germany. Many tanks later passed to allied armies, extending the service of the vehicles and their ammunition systems beyond their brief U.S. front-line careers.
Condition
This cartridge case is offered in fired condition as an inert collectible. The listing covers the brass case itself. Its individual finish and markings should be judged from the inventory photographs, with condition varying between examples.
Collector Appeal
The T27 case adds a specialized ammunition component to a collection of U.S. military brass. It is well suited to displays about HEAT development, tank-gun ammunition, and the changes in American ordnance during the early Cold War.
Approx length 23", Approx width 5", Approx height 5", Approx weight 9.2lbs.
Pictures are stock images of our inventory. Unless otherwise noted, you will not be receiving the exact item shown in the pictures. The pictures are representative of the item’s general condition. The item you receive might be slightly better, or worse, condition than was shown in the pictures.
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