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Help on canteen cover manufacturer


Fausto
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Hello!

Never seen a canteen cover like this, marked IRGC 1945. This manufacturer doesn't appear on usual manufacturers lists, not to mention the odd U.S. stencil with only one dot even misplaced... What do you think? A fantasy fake or a not common example of an unknown manufacturer? Any help much appreciated...

Fausto

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Airborne-Hunter

I've handled a lot of canteen covers and have never seen that maker, but I think this may be a modern repro. Notice the stitching down the front is not straight and the canvas trim on the two top flaps appears to be the cheaper, thinner and flimsier type sometimes seen out of China. Also note that the periods between the US are missing. Best ABN

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Thanks guys for your replies...

Me too I'm not convinced by this cover...Anyway it is curious how the mark and the date have been choosed... Who knows?

Fausto

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Only my novice opinion, but wouldn't the markings on the two press studs, give you a indication as to it being, a repro or not, there are post on this subject.

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Hi Welshman,

You're right... Judging by the pictures it looks to have the press studs marked with just the "dot" with no other markings. And this would be correct for the 1945 time, when these studs (widely used in both WWI and WWII) were still in use, together with Lift-the-Dot, KliKit Pull, S in the triangle and so on...

Well, it is probably a reproduction, but I'm not still 100% convinced of that...

Fausto

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Hi Fausto

Can you post photos of them, for what I can see of them, they look to be newly painted and no wear on them, so I'm unsure?.

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Hi again Welshman (are you a friend of my Welsh friend Ian "Sabrejet"?)...

Sorry, the pics were taken from the net, the cover is not mine... I can add just a couple of (small) pics, which add nothing more... As for no signs of wear on the fasteners, the cover looks to be unissued-unused...

The maker-date stamp looks not recently made, but the worst things in the whole cover are the bad, white stitiching and the U.S. with just that lone period even misplaced. Maybe a pilot example for a new contract? Mmmm... in 1945 I think they didn't need new canteen cover manufacturers...

Fausto

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In my interest in collecting, in trying to say, buy a genuine item, there as been one flaw, that is, you have to remember, there were many makers of equipment/gear, each one would have had, say a pattern/template on what to work on, they would then have worked to this, in what material they had.

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My argument on the trim is that i have seen that type of twill on other items from cots to carbine pouches and they are original , also have seen that type of trim on gailee grenade pouches, other items of gear i have seen are made quite sloppy from 1945 period . koreamike

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In my opinion, I think it's a excellent China reproduction. I've been collecting canvas gear for over 20 years and never seen this company before. If this is a real WWII canvas company their should be more than one example out their and in different used conditions also I google this name on the back and nothing comes up for a company or other gear talked about.

One other dead give away it's a repro take a look at the US front ink stamp. The period is centered in the middle after the (S) and no period after the (U) at all !!! I check all my unissued & used WWII canteen covers and they all have the periods after the U & S and on the bottom and not in a higher or lower locations.

The U.S. with periods is made all on one ink stamp and his error would have never happen!

 

Craig

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Just found this one on ebay, Seller description says:

  • WW2 U.S. Army Canteen Cover In An Unused Mint Condition
  • This is an original vintage World War 2 U.S. Army Canteen Cover. It is marked " IRGC 1945" on the back and "US. " on the front. It is in a never used condition. You won't find another one in this fine...

 

$_35.JPG?set_id=880000500F

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I'm 100% sure these are from China! now we have two unissued but none in combat used condition.

 

Check the ink US stamp on a original & then on a the (I R G C) cover see the periods are missiing and not in the right location.

 

Craig

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Clearly that's the same canteen cover that this topic is about.

 

Just went back to the ebay listing, the seller his "curlytaildog" 933 one star, 5hrs 6 minutes left on listing.

Here's his caption for it:

 

WW2 U.S. Army Canteen Cover In An Unused Mint Condition.

 

And another of the sellers photos:

 

$_1.JPG

 

 

This is an original vintage World War 2 U.S. Army Canteen Cover. It is marked " IRGC 1945" on the back and "US." on the front. It is in a never used condition. You won't find another one in this fine a condition. It was in a World War 2 American Army Officers foot locker. He served in the South Pacific Theater for 4 years. The foot locker was locked and put away since 1945. The foot locker was first opened about 1 year ago by his granddaughter when the old family home was sold and cleaned out. Scroll all the way down to see all of my photos.

Please scroll all the way down and read through everything. Please see my photos, email me with any questions and look at my other auctions. Shipping and handling for the United States will be $3.95 for First Class mail.

I will email you an eBay invoice soon after the auction through eBay and your eBay supplied email address with the total. Be sure to check eBay and the email address that you gave to eBay. Payment must be here within 3 days of the end of the auction.

Return policy: It is a 14 day only the cost of the item minus a 15% percent restocking fee money back return policy. Not refunded is the cost of shipping and insurance to you and back to me. Most of my items are old, antique or in a used condition. I some cases they may be in a new or near new condition and I will state that in the ad. Every thing is sold in a "as is" condition. I will do my best to accurately describe the item as best as I can and include lots of photos. Most of the items that I sell I am not a collector of, so a collector may see and find problems I didn't see or know about. Ask lots of questions and ask for extra photos. I am not responsible for uninsured items. Be sure you want to buy it. A returned item must be in the same condition as it was sent in. Email me first after receiving the item if you want to make a return. If there is any problem email me first.

Shipping time: I ship most items the next day after payment has arrived or when your payment has cleared. No shipping is done on Saturdays, Sundays or Holidays. So Friday payments get shipped Mondays. Thank You, CTD.

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Here is a old thread from the forum here of a list of WWII canteen cover makers from 1940-45

 

US Canteen Covers 1940-1945
and their typical stampings
Acme Lea Goods Co.
A.G. Corp.
Airtress Mfg.
Airtress Mid. Inc.
Alltex
Appleton Awning Corp.
Atlantic Products Corp.
Atlas
Baker-Lockwood Mfg. Co.
Baker-Lockwood A & T Co. (applied since 1945)
Bertress Mfg.
B-G. Inc.
Bradd's Inc.
Brandos Inc.
Brauer Bros. Mfg. Co.
Collette Mfg. Co.
Decatur Tent and Awning
Des Moines Glove & Mfg. Co.
Excel
Fisher
Foley Mfg. Co.
Gallaway Mills
Gates Mfg. Co.
Glida
G. & R. Co.
H.S. Co.
J.A. Shoe
Jeff. Q.M.D.
J.W. Johnson Co.
Kozee-Kar
Lawrence Prod. Co.
Lewiston Tent Awning Co.
LUB. PROD. Co.
Lustre
NU-MODE Inc.
O.A.G.
Pretschold Bros. Co.
Scott Mfg. Co.
Shane Mfg. Co.
St. Croix G. Co.
Troxel Mfg. Co.
Wolk Mfg. Co. (stamped also with full name Walk Manufacturing Company)

 

I google, and bing this I R G C manufactor and nothing comes up at all, nothing! it don't exist on google. until you guys find any other info on this company I'm not buying the seller story.

 

Craig

 

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Guys...

sorry for all this mess. Yes, the first pictures in my topic were taken from the eBay advertisement. And I'll confess the worst : at the end I got this cover. Most probably I threw away some bucks that I could use for a pizza with friends, but I couldn't resist to the temptation to have in my hands this cover and get a deep and good look through...I'm not 100% convinced that it is a fake... China reproductions look different and have good U.S. stencil with the dots at the right place. Here the markings are a little faded and the whole thing doesn't look so recently made. This has nothing to do with the "story" told by the seller. I have well learned the lesson "buy the item not the story".

When I will have the cover I will let you know...

Fausto

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As someone has already said, some of the '45 production stuff is poorly made (finishing off the wartime contracts and suchlike).

 

IRGC is possibly I... R.... Garment Company.

 

There used to be an OD7 one done by Sturm/SEMS and sold by Soldier of Fortune over here in the UK, but that was marked SEMS, same as the rest of their stuff.

 

Cheers,

Glen.

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I am the US WWI to V-nam Canteens collector, have always had big number of the covers manufactured in 1945 and would say that they are the best quality covers, they are literally ideal -- very well-tailored, very strong, well-stitched, manufactured with top technical culture. Poorly made covers I know come from 1941 to 1943.

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Thanks Glen for your opinion and your guess...

And welcome Greg, I hoped to hear what did you think about... And I agree with you: all 1945 canteen covers in my collection are really well made, strong etc. But, sincerely, are you 100% sure that this cover is a reproduction? Why spend time and work to cut a more than decent artifact and then stitch it with that ugly white thread and put on it a ridiculous US. with a lonely and wrong dot? A faker would have done a better job, I think...

I have plenty of .45 magazine pouches, M1 carbine pouches, First Aid pouches from great makers and from large WWI and WWII contracts with odd, messed and wrong markings, not to mention multicolour threads, various tone web, oversized and undersized examples from the same maker...

And I repeat : I will be surely wrong, but this cover, judging from the pictures, doesn't like - in my humble opinion - a recent reproduction. I would incline to think to some pilot hurried example from an unknown maker who, maybe, didn't win the big thing, maybe due to the bad stitching, bad markings or so...

Fausto

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Hi Fausto,

 

Hard to say what is it from a photograph only. I am empiricist and organoleptic guy when it comes to US militaria (as vast majority of us). What I may tell is that after 12 or 13 years of my discussions with Richard "Canteen Guru" I have never heard about such a company brand name, as posted, though we have always changed pieces of information with Richard about manufacturers of the Canteen covers.

 

Slightly misplaced dots between "U" and "S" I know from WWII covers but what can be seen in the specimen posted is a "hardcore" :D

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