Misplaced Pages

#78921

44-682: The Ammunition Identification Code (AIC) was a sub-set of the Standard Nomenclature List (SNL) . The SNL was an inventory system used from 1928 to 1958 to catalog all the items the Army's Ordnance Corps issued. The AIC was used by the United States Army Ordnance Corps from January, 1942 to 1958. It listed munitions and explosives (items from SNLs P, R, S, and T), items that were considered priority issue for soldiers in combat. The markings used by

88-549: A 60-minute paper about 6 pounds (2.7 kg) per square. The smaller volume of material, however, does tend to make these papers less resistant to moisture than heavier felts. Tar paper is used as a roofing underlayment with asphalt , wood , shake , and other roof shingles as a form of intermediate bituminous waterproofing . It is sold in rolls of various widths, lengths, and thicknesses – 3-foot-wide (0.91 m) rolls, 50 or 100 feet (15 or 30 m) long and "15 lb" (7 kg) and "30 lb" (14 kg) weights are common in

132-472: A Mk.II fragmentation grenade into a rifle grenade. Note = The fiberboard packing tubes are sealed with colored tape. The color of the tape indicates what type of rocket it is: yellow is HEAT, gray is Smoke, and blue is Practice. Early M6 HE(AT) and M7 Practice rockets can only be fired out of M1 launchers because they have an earlier ignition system that cannot be activated out of an M1A1, M9, or M9A1 launcher. Standard Nomenclature List This article

176-478: A brass base (base only) with a full paper hull or partial brass case (1" long) and a long paper hull. Combat shells had either a partial brass case (1" long) with a long paper hull or a full (2.75" long) brass case and no paper hull. Sporting shells (used for trap shooting or hunting) either had a brass base with a full paper hull or a partial brass case (1/2" long) and a long paper hull. A metal-strapped wooden packing crate designed to be thrown away that replaced

220-403: A folding two-strut metal handle fastened between the reinforcing struts for heavier loads. The cartons of ammunition inside were originally grouped and packed in corrugated cardboard boxes. The boxes were then coated and sealed in a waterproof wax coating to keep the ammunition inside from being affected by the environment. There were 2 boxes per crate and they were loaded in the crate sideways so

264-465: A four-chambered internal divider, had a horsehair pad in the inside of the lid to cushion the fuzes, and had a metal loop carrying handle on the lid that doubled as the locking catch. The M140A1 canister eliminated the divider and carried the shells in tarpaper packing tubes instead. Each wooden crate comes with six mines, six fuzes packed in cylindrical fiberboard containers, six 26-foot-long spools of tripwire (painted either Olive Drab or Sand Color), and

308-445: A green cloth bag) was a short range powder charge in increments from 1 to 5. The White Bag Charge (in a white cloth bag) was the long range powder charge in increments 7 through 12? The gunners would rip off the unneeded sections of the bag charge and load the remainder in the gun. Uses Powder Charge P2EAA Uses Powder Charge P2FCC The 40mm Bofors Gun used 4-round clips and was loaded manually. The "T" (or "Trial") designation

352-411: A line of text beginning with "REPACKED LOT:" followed by the new lot code. In 1952 this text was replaced with "FUNCTIONAL LOT:", as troops had been leery of using "used" ammunition. If the lot was being repacked by the same manufacturer, the lot code would be the same, but it would have underneath it the text: "REPACKED" followed by the manufacturer code and the digits of the month and year (e.g., TW-01-44

396-645: A long crate with a volume of 1.94 cubic feet. The M4 Howitzer was a modified version of the M2A1 used with the M4A3 Sherman Assault Support tank. An artillery piece that used the same carriage as the 155mm Howitzer M1 and fired the same ammunition as the British 4.5" Field Gun . This was an internal gun/mortar mounted in the left side of the turret of the M4 Sherman tank. The M3 mortar

440-500: A total of 1,000 belted or linked rounds packed in 4 M1 ammo boxes and the later M1A1 ammo crate held a total of 1,000 belted or 1,100 linked rounds packed in M1A1 ammo boxes. There were two .50 M2 ammo boxes to a crate (for a total of 220 belted or 210 linked rounds) with a volume of 0.93 cubic feet. The later M2A1 can also came packed two to a crate (for a total of 200 linked rounds) with a volume of 0.85 cubic feet. The Green Bag Charge (in

484-447: A web belt or disintegrating metal link. The paperwork would mark the new lot number and list the different types and lot numbers of all ammunition used. Packaging would list the lot of each type of ammunition used on the lower right field of the crate, beginning with the line of text "AMMUNITION LOT". Belted ammunition would have a "B" prefix and linked ammunition would have an "L" prefix. Lots made up of old or damaged ammunition were from

SECTION 10

#1732801506079

528-496: A wrench for unscrewing the plastic safety plugs from the mines before inserting the fuze. Each wooden crate comes with the five mines loaded sideways. AN- stands for "Army / Navy", meaning it is a common supply item for both the War and Navy departments. Note: Since it was a high explosive grenade, they were shipped without fuzes to prevent accidental detonation during shipping. Note: The M1A1 Grenade Projection Adapter converted

572-521: Is defined as a Grade D building paper—a designation derived from a federal specification in the United States. Sometimes anachronistically referred to as "building paper", tar paper is manufactured from virgin kraft paper (as opposed to the fabric-based or synthetic mesh substrates of roofing felt ) impregnated with asphalt. The result is a lighter-weight but less durable product with similar properties to felt. Grade papers are rated in minutes:

616-509: Is the overarching list of United States Army weapons and materiel by their historic SNL (Standard Nomenclature List) supply catalog designations — except the very long sub-lists of both group F and group G — these are not included here, but found in their separate list-class articles. This is a historic (index) list of United States Army weapons and materiel , by their Standard Nomenclature List ( SNL ) group and individual designations — an alpha-numeric nomenclature system used in

660-519: The Springfield M1903 came with the ammo already in 5-round stripper clips. They were packed in the large M1917 ammunition packing boxes. .50 caliber machine gun ammo (grades "AC" and "MG") came bulk-packed in 10-round boxes for loading into belts or links in-theater. They were packed in the large M1917 ammunition packing boxes. A wooden box designed to be reused. The lid was secured by tightening brass wingnuts over threaded metal posts in

704-684: The United States Army Ordnance Corps Supply Catalogues used from about 1930 to about 1958. The July 1943 Ordnance Publications For Supply Index – OPSI – (page2) explains that the " Index of Standard Nomenclature Lists (...) covers – by groups, and subdivisions of groups – all classes of equipment and supplies, assigned to the Ordnance Department for procurement, storage, issue, and maintenance. " The designations in this Misplaced Pages list represent so-called " major items ". For each of

748-502: The major items , there were separate, designated "Standard Nomenclature Lists" — extensive parts catalogs for supply and repair purposes. In essence, the index was a list of lists . There could be numerous volumes, changes, and updates under each single item designation. According to the Corps' Ordnance Publications for Supply Index of July 1943: Captured Foreign material Tarpaper Tar paper has been in use for centuries. It

792-501: The Ammunition Packing Box. They were made of plain, unpainted wood and had its lettering, AIC code, and symbols stamped on in black ink. They were carried by a horizontal rectangular wooden bar fastened to the pair of vertical wooden reinforcing struts on each end. Some crate contractors looped a semi-circular piece of thick rope through a hole in each reinforcing strut for use as a flexible handle. Other contractors used

836-446: The U.S. – often marked with chalk lines at certain intervals to aid in laying it out straight on roofs with the proper overlap (more overlap for flatter roofs). It is typically stapled in place, or held with roofing nails , and is sometimes applied in several layers with hot asphalt, cold asphalt (adhesive), or non-asphaltic adhesives. Older construction typically used a lighter-weight tar paper, stapled up with some overlap, as

880-407: The amount of time it takes for a moisture-sensitive chemical indicator to change color when a small boat-like sample is floated on water. Common grades include 10-, 20-, 30-, and 60-minute. The higher the rating, the heavier and more moisture-resistant the paper. A typical 20-minute paper will weigh about 3.3 pounds (1.5 kg) per square , a 30-minute paper 3.75 pounds (1.70 kg) per square, and

924-537: The bullets would fly off to the sides rather than through the top or bottom. The weatherproofing was found to be ineffective, so the cardboard boxes were replaced by hermetically-sealed ammunition cans ("spam cans") in the autumn of 1943. A vacuum-sealed metal canister with wire handles on its sides. They were first produced at the Evansville, Indiana Chrysler-Sunbeam plant in 1943 to pack .45 ACP ammunition in M5 cans. It

SECTION 20

#1732801506079

968-406: The contents at a glance. The caliber, ammunition type and model (e.g., Caliber .30 Ball M1 ) were in the upper center field in bold lettering. The number of units (i.e., how many bullets or shells there were per box) and packing information (i.e., whether it was in cartons, bandoleers or belts) were on the two lines below it. The caliber (CAL .45, CAL .30, or CAL .50) was painted in bold lettering in

1012-451: The height of the M20, was a taller version of the M20 and was packed two per M23 crate. It was designed to pack linked machinegun and autocannon ammunition. They lacked the embossing of the earlier cans. Mixed lots are when two or three types of new ammunition were used (e.g., Ball and Tracer or Armor-Piercing and Incendiary), like in a machinegun or autocannon belt. They would be pre-loaded into

1056-429: The right side. If packed in cartons, the colored stripe was duplicated on the carton's label vertically. A wooden or fiberboard box with a waterproof tarpaper lining designed to transport and carry shotgun shells. It held 20 × 25-shell cartons (500 total shells) of 12 gauge ammunition and weighed around 65 lbs (Dimensions: 15" Length × 10.375" Width × 9.75" Height; Volume: 0.88 Cubic Feet). Guard shells had either

1100-407: The same colored ammunition identification stripes as the pre-war and early-war M1917 wooden packing crates. They were first shipped individually, but were later bulk-packed in unpainted wire-bound plywood crates with stencil-painted or ink-stamped lettering. The .30 M1 and M1A1 ammo boxes were packed four to a crate that weighed around 90 pounds and had a volume of 1 cubic foot. The M1 ammo crate held

1144-504: The same lot. They would be inspected, overhauled, sorted and repacked for re-use. Repacked ammunition was usually resealed in an unpainted ammo can with the information stamped on the container in black ink. The arsenal or manufacturer who did the repacking would use their manufacturer's code followed by the last two digits of the year it was repacked. The paperwork would list the original lot code and new lot code to help in tracing defective or unsuitable ammunition. The repacked crate would have

1188-524: The small M1911 Pistol Ammunition Packing Boxes. .45 ACP ammo for the Colt M1917 and Smith & Wesson M1917 revolvers came packed in 3-round Half-Moon clips . They were packed eight clips per carton in two-row (2x12 cell – sideways interlocking "zig-zag" style) or three-row (3x9 cell – inline overlapping "spoons" style) rectangular cartons of 24 rounds. They were packed in the larger M1917 Rifle / Machinegun Ammunition Packing Boxes. M1 carbine ammo

1232-538: The system made it easier for soldiers to quickly identify and procure the right items. It used a code that had five parts. The AIC was replaced by the FSN (Federal Stock Number) in 1958, which later became the NSN (National Stock Number) in 1975. Ammunition came packed in single-ply chipboard cartons lined with Manila paper . A label marked with the number of cartridges, caliber and type of ammo, manufacturer, and Lot Code

1276-525: The upper left corner. The gross weight of the box in pounds and its volume in cubic feet was painted in the lower left corner and the Ammunition Lot information (manufacturer code and lot number) was painted in the lower right corner. In 1943(?), a system was introduced that painted color-coded stripes painted across the long sides and lid to indicate the contents. A straight stripe indicated Pistol, Carbine, Rifle and Medium Machine gun ammunition; it

1320-498: The walls of the chest. They were meant to be carried by means of handles milled into the ends of the chest; troops assigned to carry ammo found them hard to grasp. Ammunition was shipped in boxes with a hermetically-sealed terneplate lining that had the top soldered on to seal it; this was ripped open using a wire handle built into the top. It came in two standard sizes. The small M1917 packing box (Dimensions: 16-7/16" Length × 12-11/16" Width × 7-5/8" Height; Volume: 0.92 cubic feet)

1364-482: Was a conversion of the British SBML Ordnance 2-Inch Mortar that was used from 1943-1945. It could lay down a smoke cloud within 20 to 120 yards of the vehicle. The 81 mm mortar shells used an adapter collar to allow 60 mm mortar shell fuzes to fit. Originally packed in wooden crates, the late war shells (1944–1945) were packed in metal M140 canisters. The M140 canister carried live shells in

List of the United States Army munitions by supply catalog designation - Misplaced Pages Continue

1408-705: Was developed in 1944. It was available in Europe by March 1945 and in the Pacific by June 1945. Although the weapon was developed during World War II, the M20 Recoilless Rifle ("Trial" designation: T21E12) wasn't ready until the spring of 1945. It served mostly in the Korean and Vietnam Wars. "Semi-Fixed" artillery ammunition is composed of a shell and a propellant cartridge. Pre- and early-war semi-fixed ammunition came packed in black fiberboard tubes packed in

1452-595: Was embossed in raised letters and numbers on the metal lid so they could be identified by touch under low-light conditions. The "spam can" designs were created by American Can Company in New York City, New York. It was patented in 1950 (patent number 2,495,715). However, the application was filed on November 28, 1944, not much time after the first cartridges were repacked at the Evansville Chrysler plant. The model of can (M5, M6, M8, M10, M13, etc.)

1496-441: Was embossed on the bottom. The M5 cans were for packing .45 ACP ammo and weighed about 29 lbs. The M6 cans were for packing .30 Carbine ammo and weighed about 25 lbs. The M8 cans were for packing .30 Rifle & Machine gun ammo and weighed about 16 lbs. The M10 cans were originally for packing .50 Machinegun ammo but later on were also used to pack shotgun shells or a variety of other ammunition in cartons. The M13 can

1540-465: Was for experimental munitions before they went into standard production. They are placed in parentheses after the standard designation. The 20 mm M24 was a variant of the 20 mm M3 designed to use electrically fired instead of percussion-fired shells. NOTE: The M3 was the towed Anti-Tank gun version. The short-barreled M5 and semi-automatic M6 were tank and self-propelled gun variants. The M18 Recoilless Rifle (final "Trial" designation: T15E16)

1584-681: Was for issue with a rifle grenade launcher . The "A" assortment can (weight: 12 oz.) was packed with an assortment of a packet of six .30 Carbine M6 rifle-grenade blanks, a packet of ten .30-'06 Springfield M3 rifle-grenade blanks, and a packet of five M7 booster charges. The "B" assortment can (weight: 10 oz.) contained 1 packet of .30 Carbine M6 rifle-grenade blanks and 1 packet of .30-'06 Springfield M3 rifle-grenade blanks. The "C" assortment can (weight: 14 oz.) contained 1 packet of .30 Carbine M6 rifle-grenade blanks, 1 packet of .30-'06 Springfield M3 rifle-grenade blanks, and 2 packets of M7 booster charges. The instruction "Do Not Use As Food Container"

1628-556: Was glued over the top flap, front, and back to seal the carton. Wartime boxes (1942 to 1945) had wide vertical colored stripes, like those used on the packing box, as a background for the text. This allowed the soldier to quickly visually identify the ammo he needed. .45 ACP ammo for the Colt M1911 semi-automatic pistol and Thompson submachine gun originally came in 20-round boxes. It was later changed to 50-round boxes in 1942 for ease of packing and distribution. They were packed in

1672-490: Was opened using a metal can key (like a can of sardines) that was soldered to the top. It could be reclosed afterwards using a small roll of duct tape that came packed in the can. They were painted Olive Drab and had yellow lettering on them. The caliber of ammunition – .45 (.45 pistol or submachinegun - cartons), .30C ( .30 Carbine – cartons), .30R ( .30 Rifle – clips or cartons), .30M (.30 Machinegun – belted or linked ammo), or .50 (Machinegun - linked or cartons) –

1716-447: Was originally packed in 3-row 45-round boxes to reduce waste, as the carbine had a 15-round magazine. This was later changed in 1942 to 50-round boxes to ship as much ammo as possible. They were packed in a special small Ammunition Packing Box, perhaps so a soldier wouldn't grab the wrong ammunition. .30 caliber rifle (grade "R") and machine gun (grade "MG") ammo came in 20-round boxes. Early-war cartons for use in bolt-action rifles like

1760-425: Was prominently painted on the cans. The lead and chemical residue inside the container could contaminate the food and poison the soldier. The Korean War–era universal M20 and M21 cans replaced the earlier assortment of cartridge-specific cans. The M20 was a rounded-edged cube with a folding handle on top and was packed two per M22 crate. It was used to pack small arms ammunition in cartons or bandoleers. The M21, twice

1804-839: Was repacked by Twin Cities Arsenal in January 1944). A re-closeable metal box with a hinged metal lid sealed with a foam-rubber gasket to keep out moisture and rain and a folding metal handle to aid in carrying it. They were originally designed to only store belted machine gun ammunition, but later became a standard container after the war for all sorts of ammunition packed in cartons and / or clips and bandoleers. Originally planned to be disposable, they were recycled for reloading. The ammo boxes were originally painted Olive Drab Brown (OD3) with white lettering, but were later painted Olive Drab Green (OD7) with yellow lettering. The early individual M1 and M2 series metal boxes were also painted with

List of the United States Army munitions by supply catalog designation - Misplaced Pages Continue

1848-634: Was secured with 4 threaded posts (one on each side). It was used for pistol and submachine gun ammunition and held 2,000 rounds in cartons (100 x 20-round cartons or 40 x 50-round cartons). It could also be used to hold 960 rounds of Caliber .30 ammo (48 x 20-round cartons) or 240 rounds of Caliber .50 (24 x 10-round cartons) ammo. Another box ( Volume : 0.83 cubic feet) was used for carbine ammunition. It held 2,700 (60 x 45-round cartons) or 3,000 (60 x 50-round cartons) cartridges. The large M1917 packing box (Dimensions: 18-7/16" Length × 9-7/16" Width × 14-13/16" Height; Tare Weight: 9 lbs. Volume: 1.49 cubic feet)

1892-428: Was secured with 6 threaded posts (one on each end and two on each side). It was used to store and carry .30- and .50-caliber ammunition in cartons, clips, belts or links. Pre-war and early-war ammo packing boxes were made of stained wood with black-painted lettering. Mid- to late-war packing boxes were painted Olive Drab brown with white or yellow lettering that used the item's AIC code and a system of symbols to indicate

1936-414: Was vertical on the long sides and top and horizontal on the ends. Triple straight stripes were painted horizontally with the first stripe on top or to the left and the third stripe on the bottom or to the right. A diagonal stripe (lower left corner to upper right corner) indicated Heavy Machine gun ammunition. Triple diagonal stripes were painted with the first stripe on the left-side and the third stripe on

#78921