WWII Era 50 cal pen with armor piercing bullet

[Mach4]

Some of you will recall my write up on a modified way to make 50 cal pens using 3D printed inserts and ball bullets - https://www.penturners.org/threads/50cal-bmg-pens.173120/ Over half the bullets I procured were armor piercing and were so hard it was impossible to turn or drill. In fact, I broke a carbide turning tool just trying to make a mark on one. I've spent a good deal of time trying to figure out a way to use those bullets in pens so they don't go to waste. I love the historical significance of the casings and bullets and making a pen out of them makes a great keepsake. This write up describes my first prototype using the flip pen as a model.

As I mentioned, the bullets cannot be machined so I needed to find a way to incorporate them into a pen as is. The strategy I settled on was based on the flip pen model. I turned off the bottom 3/8th inch or so of the copper jacket to expose the hardened steel core. I then made a matching recess in a 1/2" brass rod. It turned out that a "stepless step drill" has almost the perfect angle so I ground off the bottom of the drill to match the diameter of the steel core. I was then able to epoxy the bullet to the brass.

The flip pen kit is able to use a full size refill because they drill the "bullet" to gain enough room. I don't have this option so I researched refills and discovered a really short refill that is used in the Shaffer Ion pens. Alas, even this short refill was not short enough and needed to be shortened 1/4" inch. The barrel of the pen is threaded so that it can be attached to the segment with the bullet attached. This pen uses a very plain design with a straight body and a gentle taper to the tip. I anticipate using carbide tools in the future to manually turn more intricate and interesting designs.

Ssdfd

 

[Fine Engineer]

Very clever work to make this into a pen. Of course, it's the challenges that make this fun, right? If it was easy, anybody could do it.

 

[darrin1200]

Looks really good Paul. You need to paint the tip of the projectile black. That's the standard NATO designation of AP rounds.

 

[Mach4]

You need to paint the tip of the projectile black. That's the standard NATO designation of AP rounds.

Based on your comment, I did some research on the 50BMG bullets and I now now longer believe these are armor piercing. They were recovered from a training range in Nevada where B17 and B24 crews trained. There would be no need for AP shells to be used in training and since the guns were defensive against fighter aircraft, there would be no need to use armor piercing shells at all. My assumption was that since some shells had mild steel cores and others had hardened steel cores, the latter were AP. I'd love to know the reason that there are different configurations. That said, I have a couple bullets where the patina on the tip is different perhaps pointing to a once painted tip that slowed corrosion….

 

[wolf creek knives]

My father in law gave me a 50 cal bullet he got when he was on Okinawa way back in WWII. He was in the U.S. Navy, had a great eye and was on either the first or second wave of the invasion. He went ashore with the Marines and he was tasked with identifying Japanese planes at one of the various air strips the Japanese had established. I won't go into the entire story but the bullet he gave me was a 50 cal AP. He tried to drill a hole in it to attach to his dog tags but just barely made a dent in it. As for the painted tips, NATO wasn't established until 1949, so the bullet wouldn't have been painted black or any other color if it was actually from the WWII era, prior to 1946. Also, most brass cases have a head stamp on them that indicates year of manufacturer, where it was manufactured and who manufactured it. For example it might have a head stamp of, Den (Denver), 44 (1944), Spring (Springfield arsenal/armory). Personally, I wouldn't change a thing about it. You've got a piece of history in your hands that should be shared with others just like you found it. But that's just me. I've also got a fired case off a U.S. A10 Warthog that was fired over Iraq that will have a prominent place in my collection. Thanks for sharing, I'm a big history nut!

 

[Mach4]

….most brass cases have a head stamp on them that indicates year of manufacturer, where it was manufactured and who manufactured it…. You've got a piece of history in your hands that should be shared with others just like you found it. But that's just me….

The stuff I've got is all WWII vintage, various munitions factories - Salt Lake City, Remington Arms, Milwaukee, Utah, Twin Cities, etc. it's virtually all 42 and 43. I'd agree with you about keeping things like they are except for the fact that they're training stuff not historical battlefield artifacts. People seem to really like a functional piece of history rather than a display item. Your stuff is really historical and should be treasured as is. The thing that makes my stuff unique is that both the shell casings and the bullets are all once-fired - clearly showing the rifling from being shot.

Thanks for your comment….

 

[Mach4]

Here's two more just finished….