Yannis, that's interesting, but what makes you think it's after-market? I could easily see it being a repair on a long welding flaw; a continuation of the very visible line that run out its ends; often so hard though, to tell damage from original flaws. Is it a plug or an overlay?
Bill, I can't see the other surrounding crack you're talking about (as you predicted), but I don't know that it rules out a forging flaw; the raggedness of this hole does not seem consistent with a bullet, and it's overall shape is consistent with a type of flaw I see occur fairly often right where this one may be; at the division between edge steel and body steel on pinched in or sandwiched edges. they sometimes seem puffed out, as if some impurity had become gaseous and exploded during forging????? Also, I don't think a bullet would penetrate at that angle; it might well make a dent, but I don't think it would bite in.....
In the art museum in Philadelphia is a 17th c. armour of the grand duke of Lithuania. In the chest without explanation is a smallish ragged hole; anyone know what that is; weird bullet hole? Corrosion from the back?
Last edited by tom hyle; 18th March 2005 at 02:14 PM.
Reason: removing gratuitous though well deserved commentary on Philadelphia
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