wagner Posted November 19, 2012 Share #1 Posted November 19, 2012 Hi Guys, I found these 2 cans which still feel like they are filled with water, in a vets grouping who served in the South Pacific in 1944/45. Can someone tell me more about when these were used, and any collector value would be appreciated. Thanks in Advance. -wagner- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wagner Posted November 19, 2012 Author Share #2 Posted November 19, 2012 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craig_pickrall Posted November 19, 2012 Share #3 Posted November 19, 2012 They were used in Life Raft emergency kits. Maybe other places as well. I think they are USN items with the grey paint. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Survival Posted November 19, 2012 Share #4 Posted November 19, 2012 These are 1950s 1960s era tins of water for survival kits, etc The date 1962 are probably the packing date. They appear to have a USN contract number....Might get a couple dollars or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sigsaye Posted November 19, 2012 Share #5 Posted November 19, 2012 They were still in use when I left the Navy in '99. As has been said, they were packed in the life raft survival kits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hawkdriver Posted November 19, 2012 Share #6 Posted November 19, 2012 Army used them also in aircraft survival kits up until about 2000 when the Mylar water pouches came out. I have about half dozen myself, but they are not in as good as condition as yours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QED4 Posted November 19, 2012 Share #7 Posted November 19, 2012 They were also used in Civil Defense shelters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doyler Posted November 19, 2012 Share #8 Posted November 19, 2012 Value...about a $1 per can.There is a guy here that sells them at the summer flea market for that.If you want more the price gets better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Hudson Posted November 19, 2012 Share #9 Posted November 19, 2012 The N383-155s-77754 number tells us for sure this is a US Navy contract item and it's a post-WWII item. This number was used beginning during the Korean War. Here's a photo of a case of these from 1952. The military specification on these "MIL W 15117" dates back to WWII and is still on the books today. The Coast Guard required that standard to be met for canned water packed with civilian life rafts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wagner Posted November 19, 2012 Author Share #10 Posted November 19, 2012 Thanks guys for all the info. A ton of knowledge here. -wagner- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J_Andrews Posted November 19, 2012 Share #11 Posted November 19, 2012 These were also in refugee relief supplies in SEA. Saw pallets of them in 1970, after a typhoon. Funny how they appeared in the "black" market stalls shortly thereafter.... (The VNese liked them for making cocktails, as local water was, well, crummy.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spathologist Posted November 20, 2012 Share #12 Posted November 20, 2012 I don't know how valid the check is, but when we inspected them for Army survival kits we'd strike them with a palm on one end. If you felt a "glop", it was good to drink. If a "splash", not so much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uplandmod Posted November 20, 2012 Share #13 Posted November 20, 2012 That glop sound is funny, you would think there is something solid in the can. We opened one up and it still taste good! LF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BEAR Posted November 20, 2012 Share #14 Posted November 20, 2012 Ha! We had a butterbar (2nd Lt.) who saw these cans in an old Civil Defense barrel. He asked if there was real water in the cans (he hadn't picked them up yet). I and the other NCOs told him that the cans had dehydrated water in them and that you had to add 10 oz of water to re-hydrate the water. Then we told him to go tell the Commander that he found some cans of dehydrated water. He didn't come back for a long time ... I guess the CO told him something different. It's always fun to rib a shavetail. BEAR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m1ashooter Posted November 20, 2012 Share #15 Posted November 20, 2012 I pulled the same type of water cans out of our emergency kit in a Minuteman III Launch Control Centers floor in the mid 80's. We were looking for the emergency bottle of Jack Daniels but didnt find it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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