Show Me Your Ammo Can

!968 Match

My first was a M17 from 1943, inherited from my dad. This is the most uncommon can I have

Hmm, I never really focused much on the can. I just used them as a vessel to store ammo in. I much prefer the 30 cal cans to the 50 cal cans when loading them with loose rounds. They get heavy quick.

John Joseph said:

My first was a M17 from 1943, inherited from my dad. This is the most uncommon can I have
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That is a very rare can indeed.
Take that to an MG or military vehicle restoration meet, and you'd get drools and cash offers.
Bravo.

Maybe not an ammo can but an ammo crate. My wife just picked this up at a family reunion auction. It's still in decent shape so may just store a few of my mortar rounds in it. Just kidding. Looks like Korean vintage but I know nothing about these things.

Two of the ".50 cans" used to come in a chicken crate like affair each filled with 880 rounds of M193 5.56mm Ball sometimes. I would rip a part the thin wood crate portion and split it into popsicle sized strips and carry a small wad as fire starting tender. Not everyone had access to Heximine tabs or Esbit (commercial German heat tabs that often came with a little pocket stove, if I could make a small wood fire I saved then tabs for wetter weather). When it is 34 degrees F and 100 percent humidity, warm C-rats could really make life better. Also used those crates to start over head cover with, mainly for protection from the weather. Some folks paved their fighting position floors with them or shored up the walls of their holes. Some guys ripped the wire off them for use as ties in shelter building.

Empty ammo cans in the field got used for storing cigs and pogie-bait in. Saw one used for making hot water in for instant Coffee and such. They were trying to use the lid as a handle. Later in the evening the lid seal started to melt then burn and it smelled awful! No thanks, that's why Uncle Suger gave me a canteen cup!

-kBob

kBob said:

Two of the ".50 cans" used to come in a chicken crate like affair each filled with 880 rounds of M193 5.56mm Ball sometimes. I would rip a part the thin wood crate portion and split it into popsicle sized strips and carry a small wad as fire starting tender. Not everyone had access to Heximine tabs or Esbit (commercial German heat tabs that often came with a little pocket stove, if I could make a small wood fire I saved then tabs for wetter weather). When it is 34 degrees F and 100 percent humidity, warm C-rats could really make life better. Also used those crates to start over head cover with, mainly for protection from the weather. Some folks paved their fighting position floors with them or shored up the walls of their holes. Some guys ripped the wire off them for use as ties in shelter building.

Empty ammo cans in the field got used for storing cigs and pogie-bait in. Saw one used for making hot water in for instant Coffee and such. They were trying to use the lid as a handle. Later in the evening the lid seal started to melt then burn and it smelled awful! No thanks, that's why Uncle Suger gave me a canteen cup!

-kBob

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If you put the wood crate back together without the ends, it made a great toilet to put over a cat hole.
Come to think of it. I may have one of those crates around.

Here is my mortar ammo can I bought 10 years ago or so. I never quite figured out what to store in it so I'm going to do another bulk ammo load of 308 to fill it up.

.

total recoil said:

Thanks, Coaltrain49! I kinda figgured you and Gunny myself were the only ones that collected wooden ammo crates. They make good kindling, but whooda' thought to make a latrine out of one? There are too many slivers to make that appealing to me.
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With box weights of 50 to 70 pounds for just two rounds, I can now appreciate the terrible logistics problem that artillery people had in keeping supplied. Someone also had to bust butt in loading/unloading truckfulls of this stuff.
On the other hand, Gunny,,,,, everyone could have a private commode?

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Here are the crates I was referring to. They are used for packing ammo cans.
The one on the left is for 7.62x51 NATO belted and the one on the right for 5.56.

I own three two metal and one plastic.Here's a picture of one.

This one looks like your standard 7.62mm ammo can.



However, there is something different about this one. It is lined with Spanish cedar and holds the fruits of my other expensive hobby.
Ammo cans are absolutely perfect for cigar storage.

Arkansas Paul said:

Ammo cans are absolutely perfect for cigar storage.

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Distinct advantage in that one's BiL is less likely to try and sneak a Cohiba or Partegas Nr 1 out of that box []

MosinT53Hunter, that is one old piggy bank you have there.
http://browningmgs.com/AmmoCans/T-Chial/AmmoBoxes01_WW2.htm

I have one of the M1A1 30 cal cans.

Arkansas Paul said:

However, there is something different about this one. It is lined with Spanish cedar and holds the fruits of my other expensive hobby.
Ammo cans are absolutely perfect for cigar storage.

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You're running very low on ammo.

Used an ammo can meant to hold 30 25mm cartridges to house a mobile 2 meter Ham radio station.

Holds a transceiver, 13.8V DC power supply and switch to direct power. Power to the transceiver can come from either my Jeep DC power plug or the DC power supply.

CoalTrain49 said:

You're running very low on ammo.

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I am indeed.
I'm low on everyday stuff. Those are mostly high end cigars that I save for somewhat special occasions. No $5 and under sticks in that bunch.

You know I do not have an ammo can set up as a safe these days. We would cut out the hole in the locking plate to be a slot and attach a loop portion of hasp from a hardware store via drilling holes for the bolts to the can itself so that when the latch was closed the loop stuck out and could be padlocked. I believe it was at Ft Knox that I saw welded up versions of ammo can safes, there being welding equipment in abundance around an Armor School.

Our Charge of Quarters during off duty hours had to carry about only the key to that pad lock as the Building, arms room, and motor pool keys and spare pistol mags were locked in such a can and the can chained to a steam radiator.

Gunny's toilets reminded me that I hope no one ever dug up a couple cans we used for "indoor plumbing" in fighting positions that we simply closed and buried when filling in the holes. We were told in Advanced Infantry School to use our helmets as chamber pots when in no move night positions, but hey, I shaved, bathed, and on occasion cooked in the M1 Steel Pot, so no thank you.

I think you can see from Gunny's fine pictures how valuable those chicken crates would be as building material in the field. I wish I had thought to use them as a guide to keep dropped drawers out of the line of fire!

-kBob

Nothing special, but fun to have. Inherited them from my grandfather who passed before I was born.



Also inherited this US M3 military knife from him.

total recoil said:

Gun show today in Cadillac, MI. The Gunny has more cans than anyone, but I have to show you my new one. This is super clean and was $22.
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I have three other cans that have graced my ammo dump for years. One of them I have questions about.
This can:
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Might have been re-painted by me many years ago as it has no original markings.(I am so old that my memory fails me.) I hope it is an ammo can antique. It has 6 latches about it's circumference. The ammo can guy at the gun show says it's probably a NAVY can. Do any of you have any info on this hopefully old ammo can?

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I have one of these that I store my chain in. Got about 6, 20 ft lengths of 3/8" chain, and 7, 20 ft lengths of 5/16" chain. Takes 2 men to pick it up. Have several of the smaller 30 cal boxes for brass flare fittings, ball valves and brass pipe nipples, a couple with bolts and grade 8 pins (bolts with the heads cut off), one with eye bolts and lifting rings, and one with a 1/2 ton chainfall. Left over from my chiller overhaul days. Very useful mobile mechanic storage.

I camouflaged a bunch of my ammo cans for fun. These are all stuffed full, and the shelf is double-deep in cans. .30-06, .308, .303, 8x57, .22 LR and .22 mag cans are behind these...

CapnMac said:

That is a very rare can indeed.
Take that to an MG or military vehicle restoration meet, and you'd get drools and cash offers.
Bravo.

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Alas the handle is missing on mine, and the bottom had a bit of rust so I painted the bottom with Rustoleum