Cannon shells etc
Yes,they were live...dad & uncles developed a system of putting them in a vice then hitting with a hammer & punch- if nothing else, scared the crap out of the local rabbits...
My grandfather was a ground to air gunner at Westhampnett / Goodwood, but the only chance he got of a shot at a low & slow Heinkel 111, he had the barrel of his rifle jammed by a 4 x 2 cleaning cloth - from what I'm told, Morris Dancers had nothing on him prancing through tears of frustration !
I'll try to dig out the Bf109 manifold & lodged bullet then post a photo' of it.
DZ