However, while HESH projectiles are not armour-piercing, they can defeat armored targets by causing spall, which can injure or kill a vehicle's occupants or detonate some types of ammunition.

[3][2] Milliseconds later, the base fuze detonates the explosive, creating a shock wave that, owing to its large surface area and direct contact with the target, is transmitted through the material.

At the point where the compression and tension waves intersect, a high-stress zone is created in the metal, causing pieces of steel to be projected off the interior wall at high velocity.

HESH shells are not specifically designed to perforate the armour of vehicles, unlike high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) rounds, with their shaped charge jets.

It was also used by other military forces, especially those that acquired the early post-World War II British 105 mm (4.1 in) Royal Ordnance L7A1 tank gun, including Germany, India, Israel, and Sweden.

Since the 1980s, HESH ammunition has increasingly lost favour as armour designs have trended towards layered composites of hard metal and heat-resistant materials.

A 165 mm (6.5 in) HESH round is used by the United States Army for the main gun of the M728 combat engineer vehicle, an M60 tank equipped with a bulldozer blade.