Shotgun cartridge headstamps: dating the brass caps you dig

Detect any field that’s been shot over and you’ll dig brass shotgun cartridge heads. Lots of them.

Most go in the junk bag. But the stamp on the base, the headstamp, can date one to within a few decades. Some carry the name of a long-gone country gunmaker.

What you’re holding

A shotgun cartridge is a tube, once paper and later plastic, set into a brass head. In the ground, the tube usually rots or tears away and the brass head survives.

The headstamp is pressed into the base around the primer. It usually shows a maker’s name and a number. The number is normally the gauge, such as 12 or 16. It’s not a date.

The big caveat: case maker, not loader

The Cartridge Corner headstamp guide warns that British headstamps can be a poor guide to who made the finished cartridge.

Hundreds of small gun shops and powder companies loaded their own shells, but couldn’t make the cases. So they bought cases from a few big makers. According to the guide, the main UK case suppliers were Eley, Kynoch and Nobel of Scotland. Cases were also imported from Belgium, France, Germany and Italy.

Many shops used plain Eley or Kynoch heads. The shop’s own name and address went on the tube, which rarely survives in the ground. Others had their own name stamped on the head. Gunmaker W.J. Jeffery, for example, had cartridges made by one of the big makers with the Jeffery name on the headstamp.

So the headstamp usually dates the case. That’s still a good date.

The company timeline

Most British heads come from a few companies that merged into one. Grace’s Guide gives the dates.

Witton, Kynoch’s site, became ICI’s ammunition centre. Grace’s Guide records that sporting cartridge production was concentrated there in the 1920s.

Reading the headstamp

Use the name to place the head before or after the merger.

ELEY, ELEY BROS or ELEY LONDON. Eley as an independent firm, so before 1918 is possible. But the name continued, so treat it as a broad date.

KYNOCH. Kynoch as an independent firm, before 1918, is possible. Kynoch kept its own name after the merger, so this is broad too.

NOBEL. Cartridge Corner lists Nobel of Scotland as one of the main case makers. We haven’t found a dated source for Nobel headstamp styles, so check one against a collectors’ reference before you put a date on it.

ELEY-KYNOCH with a small ICI logo in a circle. Collectors on the International Ammunition Association forum date this to the ICI period, c.1926–1963 (sources differ). One collector, citing Ken Rutterford’s reference book, says ELEY-KYNOCH heads aren’t from the earlier Nobel Industries period. Another gives the range as after 1928 and before 1962. Treat the edges as approximate.

ELEY-KYNOCH with just the gauge number, no ICI logo. Post-1963, according to the same collectors.

A gunmaker’s or shop’s name. Search the name with the town. Trade directories often give the years a shop traded.

Recording tips

• Photograph the head straight on, in low side light. The stamp is shallow.
• Note the gauge, the full legend and any symbols.
• Gauge works on the same idea as bore, the number of balls to the pound. Our musket ball size chart explains it.

Modern cartridge heads aren’t Treasure (see what counts as Treasure). But a cluster can show where a shooting party stood. It’s worth a note in your finds log.

Safety

If the primer in the centre is undented and the head is still attached to a tube, treat it as live. Don’t hit it, heat it or try to open it. Keep it separate and ask the landowner or the police how they want it handled.

FAQ

How do I date a shotgun cartridge head?

Read the maker's name on the base and match it to the company history. A plain KYNOCH or ELEY head can be from before the 1918 merger. ELEY-KYNOCH with a small ICI logo in a circle is, according to collectors, roughly c.1926–1963 (sources differ on the exact years). ELEY-KYNOCH with just the gauge number and no ICI logo is later.

Does the headstamp tell me who made the cartridge?

Not always. Many gunmakers and shops loaded their own cartridges into cases bought from big makers. The headstamp usually tells you who made the case. The loader's name was often printed on the paper tube, which rarely survives.

What does the number on a cartridge head mean?

On shotgun cartridges it's normally the gauge, for example 12 or 16. It isn't a date.

Who were the main British case makers?

The Cartridge Corner guide names Eley, Kynoch and Nobel of Scotland as the main UK suppliers of cases. Cases were also imported from Belgium, France, Germany and Italy.

What if I dig an unfired cartridge?

Treat it as live. Don't hit it, heat it or try to open it. Put it aside safely, away from your finds bag, and ask the landowner or the police how they want it handled.

Sources

Every figure in this guide comes from one of these. We checked each one on 1 November 2026.

1. Grace's Guide to British Industrial History, “Eley Brothers”. www.gracesguide.co.uk/Eley_Brothers
2. Grace's Guide to British Industrial History, “Kynoch”. www.gracesguide.co.uk/Kynoch
3. Wikipedia, “Kynoch”. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kynoch
4. Cartridge Corner, “Shotgun” (British shotshell headstamps). cartridge-corner.com/shotgun2.htm
5. International Ammunition Association forum, “Eley Kynoch” (2008), citing Ken Rutterford's first book, p. 23. forum.cartridgecollectors.org/t/eley-kynoch/3555
6. International Ammunition Association forum, “Help Dating an Eley-Kynoch 16 Gauge Pinfire Shotshell Headstamp” (2018). forum.cartridgecollectors.org/t/help-dating-an-eley-kynoch-16-gauge-pinfire-shotshell-headstamp/28160
7. The Cartridge Collector's Exchange, July 2017 (Paradox shells made for W.J. Jeffery). www.oldammo.com/july17.htm