Ammo Can Repacked Lot SLB91889

[Tommy cilia]

On 11/8/2020 at 1:27 PM, Scottz63 said:

Hello. I have a 50cal WW2 can I purchased a couple of years ago at an antiques mall. I'm assuming the ammo can is WW2 production. The lot number on the back says 47. Is this a repacked WW2 can with post war ammo?

 

Thanks, Scott

 

 

You know why my box has the hole for the ring and the other doesn't?

[silverplate]

Repacked lots are typically cartons of cartridges that were made at one plant then shipped to another, usually Evansville in the case of carbine and .45, for sealing in the M10 “spam can”  used for long term storage. In the case of .30 caliber and .50 caliber cartridges, if a belt (cloth or metal links) is made up of several different loadings (ball, ap, tracer, api, etc) each one of those types had their own lot number, and regs required that those numbers be tracked, so a new number was assigned to that belt, hence the repacked lot number. As shown in some of the earlier photos in this thread, a “repacked lot card” was put in the box to record those original lot numbers, and the repacked lot number was put on the outside of the box.

 

 

[Tommy cilia]

38 minutes ago, silverplate said:

Los lotes reempaquetados son típicamente cajas de cartuchos que se fabricaron en una planta y luego se enviaron a otra, generalmente Evansville en el caso de la carabina y .45, para sellar en la "lata de spam" M10 que se usa para el almacenamiento a largo plazo. En el caso de cartuchos calibre .30 y calibre .50, si un cinturón (eslabones de tela o metal) está compuesto por varias cargas diferentes (bola, ap, trazador, api, etc.) cada uno de esos tipos tenía su propio número de lote. , y los reglamentos requerían que se rastrearan esos números, por lo que se asignó un nuevo número a ese cinturón, de ahí el número de lote reempacado. Como se muestra en algunas de las fotos anteriores de este hilo, se colocó una “tarjeta de lote reempaquetado” en la caja para registrar esos números de lote originales, y el número de lote reempaquetado se colocó en el exterior de la caja.

 

 

excellent explanation.  so the batch SL.L 9xxxx is not from the time of ww2?

[silverplate]

From what I can tell from my ordnance bulletins, St. Louis only made a small quantity of .50 caliber AP in WWII, and all of it with a 4 digit lot number. It's possible that it was repacked in a metallic belt and assigned that 5 digit repack number during 1945, when the original batch of AP was made, but without the repack card from your metal box it's hard to say. By that point in the war, most .50 caliber cartridges were coming from the plants in belts already and didn't need to be repacked unless it was a mixed belt, which yours is not (according to your box).

[Tommy cilia]

16 minutes ago, silverplate said:

Por lo que puedo decir de mis boletines de artillería, St. Louis solo fabricó una pequeña cantidad de AP calibre .50 en la Segunda Guerra Mundial, y todo con un número de lote de 4 dígitos. Es posible que haya sido reempacado en un cinturón metálico y se le haya asignado ese número de reempaquetado de 5 dígitos durante 1945, cuando se hizo el lote original de AP, pero sin la tarjeta de reempaquetado de su caja de metal es difícil de decir. En ese momento de la guerra, la mayoría de los cartuchos de calibre .50 ya procedían de las plantas en cinturones y no era necesario volver a empaquetarlos a menos que fuera un cinturón mixto, que el suyo no es (según su caja).

sincerely a pleasure to have contacted you, thank you very much for your time

[silverplate]

You're welcome, I hope I helped.

[Rybson]

On 6/15/2021 at 4:12 AM, silverplate said:

You're welcome, I hope I helped.

Hello, could you help about these lot numbers?

[silverplate]

I can explain the markings for you. This is a box of Cal. .30 Ball that was repacked into metal links at Seneca Ordnance Depot. (SND - L) I don't have a lot number list for the Seneca Depot. It was a storage and repacking facility in upstate New York, operating from 1941 to 1990. It is a WWII-era M1 ammunition box, and the "Repacked Lot" markings (RPKD-LOT) date the box to June 1952 or earlier since that nomenclature changed to "Functional Lot" after that date. A repacked lot data card would have been placed in the box to identify the source of the original boxed rounds. An example is attached.

 

If I were to guess, I'd say your box is from WWII since the ball ammo was repacked into metallic links for use with a Cal. .30 M2 Aircraft Machinegun. All other Cal. .30 machineguns (M1917A1, M1919A4 thru A6) used fabric belts, not metallic links to feed the cartridges. Plus, the Cal. .30 aircraft machinegun had been replaced in most aircraft by the Cal. .50 M2 machinegun by the end of WWII. Finally, the lot number is in the early range of numbers assigned.

[mikie]

On 10/25/2020 at 6:41 PM, silverplate said:

Richard, the Ordnance Dept. printed service bulletins twice a year during the war that listed the lots and grades made to that point of the primary small arms ammunition made under contract.  They were OFSB 3-5 until 1943, then renames SB 9-AMM 4 going forward. The official title is "Small Arms Ammunition Lots and Grades" and it took me years to build my wartime set. Great reference and worth the effort if you collect WWII small arms ammo since the lot number is often the only way to date a wartime container. Glad I could help.

I don’t have a can that I need info on, but just read this thread and think it’s great of you to offer to help so many folks with this. If I ever do need help, hope you don’t mind if I yell out to you.

 

mikie

[mikie]

On 10/25/2020 at 6:41 PM, silverplate said:

Richard, the Ordnance Dept. printed service bulletins twice a year during the war that listed the lots and grades made to that point of the primary small arms ammunition made under contract.  They were OFSB 3-5 until 1943, then renames SB 9-AMM 4 going forward. The official title is "Small Arms Ammunition Lots and Grades" and it took me years to build my wartime set. Great reference and worth the effort if you collect WWII small arms ammo since the lot number is often the only way to date a wartime container. Glad I could help.

I don’t have a can that I need info on, but just read this thread and think it’s great of you to offer to help so many folks with this. If I ever do need help, hope you don’t mind if I yell out to you.

 

mikie

[silverplate]

I'll help if I can, Mikie. Wartime small arms ammo is my passion and I have lots of resources to draw from.

[poiuyt]

On 12/26/2022 at 4:52 PM, silverplate said:

I'll help if I can, Mikie. Wartime small arms ammo is my passion and I have lots of resources to draw from.

Do you have info on ammo can manufactures or know if this info is available elsewhere?

[silverplate]

There are numerous websites with that info. available. One I use is called “Olive Drab”. He has some good, detailed info. with photos on the M1 and M1A1 cans. Hope this helps.

[silverplate]

90th IDPG De-Farbing the Browning 30 Caliber: The M1A1 Ammo Can

 

Here is another good article about the M1A1 can that lists manufacturers.

[poiuyt]

17 hours ago, silverplate said:

90th IDPG De-Farbing the Browning 30 Caliber: The M1A1 Ammo Can

 

Here is another good article about the M1A1 can that lists manufacturers.

Thanks for the info!

[Rybson]

On 12/26/2022 at 10:38 PM, silverplate said:

I can explain the markings for you. This is a box of Cal. .30 Ball that was repacked into metal links at Seneca Ordnance Depot. (SND - L) I don't have a lot number list for the Seneca Depot. It was a storage and repacking facility in upstate New York, operating from 1941 to 1990. It is a WWII-era M1 ammunition box, and the "Repacked Lot" markings (RPKD-LOT) date the box to June 1952 or earlier since that nomenclature changed to "Functional Lot" after that date. A repacked lot data card would have been placed in the box to identify the source of the original boxed rounds. An example is attached.

 

If I were to guess, I'd say your box is from WWII since the ball ammo was repacked into metallic links for use with a Cal. .30 M2 Aircraft Machinegun. All other Cal. .30 machineguns (M1917A1, M1919A4 thru A6) used fabric belts, not metallic links to feed the cartridges. Plus, the Cal. .30 aircraft machinegun had been replaced in most aircraft by the Cal. .50 M2 machinegun by the end of WWII. Finally, the lot number is in the early range of numbers assigned.

Thank you so much! You're the best!