2 small questions concerning aluminum MG-gurtkasten...

[Jan B]

Hi to all

I thought I could first ask it here before posting in the equipement-section.

two quick questions :

1) Were aluminum (early) MG-gurtkasten (ammo-boxes) also produced after the war for use by BW, NVA,etc...?

2) Were original wartime aluminum ones always marked in a way?



Thanks in advance!

Cheers

Jan

[Jan B]

Anyone?

Cheers

Jan

[Frosch]

Stamps on an aluminium ammo can

Jan,

I don't know if this will help much, but the lid of an aluminium can I have has two stamps visible below many layers of (mainly blue grey) paint.

The Bundeswehr had or has a similar can, but the type I have seen seems to be definitely different to the pre-1945 type.

Does anyone know who the manufacturer was?

/David

[Jan B]

Hi David

Thanks for your input. Sorry but I can't help you on the marking, definatly wartime indeed!

The reason I asked this question is following :

I have two of these aluminum cans. The first is obviously pre-45 as it has a WaA-mark and is dated/makermarked as well : BNC 41.

The second one is identical in shape and dimensions/weight, but I can't find any markings at the usual place ( on the top, just below the handle). It has been painted white (for use by medical units) but the color under the white is sort of ugly "grasgreen"...a color often seen on post-war BW or eastgerman equipement.

Also apparently it never had the leather pieces on the main- and side-handle.

What are the differences between postwar and wartime cans?

Cheers

Jan

[Frosch]

Post-war ammo can

Jan,

If I not mistaken, the can shown at http://www.waffenhq.de/infanterie/mg3.html is the modern Bundeswehr type. I think I have also seen one without the reinforcing rib on the side, but made of steel and with more rounded corners than the wartime type.

There is also a type shown at http://www.armeebedarf.de/index.htm?...n_kanister.htm which looks very similar to the wartime issue.

The grass green and white paint on the one you have may indicate that it comes from post-war Norwegian stocks. Reserve units of the Norwegian army used a lot of Wehrmacht equipment at least until the 1980s. If it is clean and dry inside, then it might have been for a first-aid kit. Any gun oil traces or smell would suggest that it is simply a winter camouflage version of the standard ammunition tin.

My aluminium tin shows no trace of the stamp on the inside, by the way. The absence of any markings on yours may just be due to the fact that they are covered by thick layers of paint.

Pre-19145 aluminium tins are not easy to find, but do sometimes appear at flea markets on stalls that sell old tools and machinery.

/David

[Jan B]

Hi David

Thank you so much for your additional information, it's highly appriciated!

The cans in your second link are very similar indeed, despite the poor picture.

The inside of the white painted box in question is very clean, in fact it had cardbord in it and came with medical items from the 50's/60's...

It could be that the markings are covered, but I still have my doubts...

Thanks again!

ps :I will post here some pictures of it, so you get an idea. There's a redcross on both sides.

Cheers

Jan

[Jan B]

2

[Jan B]

Also note that the white of the red-cross is not the same as the greyish white color of the can.

[Jan B]

4.

[Jan B]

and here's my other aluminum one...which is dated 1941.

Cheers

Jan

[Frosch]

Jan,

The angles, rivets and other comparable features on the white painted can you show are identical to my aluminium can that has the stamps shown in my first post above. The stamps are located on the lid in the central recess which accommodates the folded handle and, as stated before, the stamps are invisible on the inside, where the paint only seems to be one layer thick.

I am confident there is a good chance your white-painted can has the same or similar marks beneath the paint. My can still retains the leather pieces on the top and side handles, although they have also been partly covered in paint.

Judging by the holes driled in the side, the second can you show looks as though it has been used as an on-board first-aid kit for a vehicle.

These cans may have been made in their tens of thousands, but they are still very interesting and tangible links with situations that did not always have a happy end.

This post has now prompted me to start looking for my photographs of Imperial medics, which I will post in the near future.

All the best,

David

[Jan B]

David,

Yes, like I stated as well, it's identical in every way as the other one with the holes drilled in too, which is a genuine one. I know were these markings are normally found, but I'm not planning to scrap the paint of it to find them. I will just leave it like that.

The other one with the holes drilled in could indeed have been used in a vehicle or even in a plane.( I posted this one before in the equipement-section).

If anyone has some better pictures of these post-war M59 BGS/BW cans that would be great...As the picture in the link provided by David is to blurry.

Anyway, thanks again for your time and information.

Kind regards

Jan