WWII German 7,5 cm Kwk 40 PzIV/StugIII Tank Ammunition Box
Original wood box once used to store three rounds of 7,5 cm Kw.K. 40 ammunition. This type of ammunition was used on long barreled ( L/48 ) 7,5cm gun as in later models of Pz IV and Stug III.
Construction of the box primarily consists of xx mm thick planks. The corners are constructed using rabbit joints at 90 degrees. Two metal hidges allow the simple flat top to fold back. Two latches engage a strip of metal and pull the lid down and closed. The over dimensions of the box without exterior strips is xx cm long, xx cm wide, and xx cm deep.
Pebbled leather was the primary material used in the manufacture of the K98 pouch. Nineteen
to twenty-one separate pieces of leather made up the pouch. The parts include
(3) pockets, (3) catgut clip dividers, (3) pocket lids, (3) lid straps, (2)
backing, (2) belt straps, (2) belt strap spacers, (1) equipment loop, and
for early types only - (2) belt loop straps.
The color of the leather pouches produced in the thirty's was various shades of brown. Branches of the Wehrmacht had a preference for certain shades of brown. The Heer, Kriegsmarine and Police generally used pouches that were light/dark brown in color. The Luftwaffe used a chocolate brown until 1942. There is no steadfast rule for colors used by the branches and many variations can be found. Sometime in 1940 a High Command order was issued changing the color of leather items to black, possibly for camouflage reasons. Many early pouches can be found with the original brown color on the belt side and the outer surface dyed black to conform with the order. It is possible to find pouches that were not field dyed. By the end of 1940 going into 1941, manufacturers were producing most pouches with black leather materials. Some pouches can still be found brown with a 1942 date. Pouches used in the early days of the Afrika Korps (DAK) were sometimes light tan/brown but this color was not used for very long and the DAK adapted black as the standard.
Construction of the pouch was mostly machine sewn together with metal being used at stress points. Aluminum was used until 1941/42 when it was replaced with steel. Inside each of the three pockets was a narrow catgut divider to separate the ammunition clips. It was held at each end with a single rivet. It is not unusual to find these dividers missing from used pouches as they were easily damaged and/or removed by the owners in the field. The belt side of the center pocket had a short leather loop with an equipment ring attached. The ring was either shaped like a "D" or rectangular. Aluminum was used for early pouches while steel was used as the war progressed. The "D" ring style is found on early pouches while the rectangular style ring was used for later produced pouches. The leather loop was sewn and secured with two rivets. The equipment ring was then attached in the field to the soldiers combat "Y" strap hooks and with the belt attached to the pouch, supported the weight of various gear. Later style pouches used at times four rivets instead of two with stitching.
The belt side of the two end compartments each had a 18mm wide
vertically mounted strap that the equipment waist belt would go through. The
leather used for the strap was smooth and usually has two lines pressed near
each of the long edges although later types may not have these lines. The
top of the strap was sewn (one row of six stitches) and riveted to the back
and used a metal plate for reenforcement. Between the back and the top of
strap was a small block of leather that spaced the strap away from the back
of the pouch. This gave the equipment waist belt some room. Early style pouches
then slipped under a small strap (riveted at each end to the pouch back).
The remaining end would fold under the pocket and onto a post. The belt straps
used on later style pouches were simply sewn and riveted at the bottom and
did not fold under the pocket. They also included a small leather spacer
beween the back and the lower strap ends, creating a thin gap for the belt to slip through.
Each of the three pockets were covered by a lid that was sewn onto the back and folded over the top. The lid ends were tapered and sewn to the lid outer edge. Each lid had a 16mm wide strap that was usually pebbled to match the pouch, some had a smooth finish. The early pattern of pouches had straps that were typically sewn to the lid with two horizontal rows of six stitches. The strap extended down the outside of the compartment, then folded under the pocket bottom and ended with a large hole in the end that was slipped over a metal post mounted to the pocket bottom. This strap clipping method was used on all types of K98 pouches. It is uncommon to find pouch lid straps with two vertical stitches, but they do exist. Even more uncommon are pouches with two rows of vertical stitching and rivets in between. By 1942, two round head rivets began to replace the stitching on lid straps.
The post mounted to the bottom of each compartment was either aluminum or steel depending on the manufacturing period. Early style posts were aluminum and extended about 15-16mm from the compartment bottom. The center post had a round ball shaped end, while the ends were more pointed. The post was shortened when the belt strap was no longer folded under the compartment. This type of post was usually steel and all three had a ball shaped end. Authors note: I have in my collection a transitional 1940 dated pouch (20061005-02) with steel posts on bottom of each compartment but with an early style of belt strap that wraps under the pockets.
Marker marks are commonly found on the pouches. While some pouches were never marked, most had a manufacturer
stamp pressed into the pouch. The most common stamps were done in an area
below the equipment ring/loop typically had pressings in the leather that
indicated the manufacturer and year produced. These stamps are found on early
pouches starting in 1935. Manufacturer names and cities are found on pouches
up to around 1940 (manufacturer named pouches have been found as late as 1944).
In 1940, three letter codes in lowercase characters were also starting to
be used.
By late 1942, the use of names and three letter codes was replaced
with National factory code numbers to hide the factory locations that could
have been used by the Allies to bomb factories. This factory code system is
called the RB Nr. (Reichbetrieb Nummer) system. The RF. Nr. (Reich Fabrik
Nummer) number system followed in late 1944. Both numbers are found in the format
0/0000/0000 with the first number either a "0" or a "1". Today these RB/RF numbers are rarely connected with a specific
manufacturer but some pouches have been found with the name and RB number
pressed on the same pouch or other equipment. This has been the only known
way to decipher the numbers as a complete conversion table is not known to
exist. Waffenamts were almost never used on K98 pouches and I'm not aware
of any confirmed originals in existance. Although very uncommon, RBNr numbers
are also found on the lid strap, belt strap, and inside a pocket lid.
Inventory stamps in ink are sometimes found inside the lids of Heer and some Luftwaffe pouches. It is speculated that the pouches were shipped with only the maker mark impression on the back. The supply depots would sometimes ink stamp in an inventory number. Unit designations were sometimes added as well. In both cases, the underside of the lids was a common location for these stamps. When the soldiers received the pouches, they sometimes put their names and/or unit markings inside the lid or straps although these additional markings were phased out around 1940. The Kriegsmarine didn't ink stamp the pouches, only the stamp on the back. Examples of inventory stamps are, a "B" followed by a two digit year number. The "B" indicates Heeresbekleidungsamt of Berlin. Inventory stamp "L 37" is also known, but I don't know what the "L" stands for.
Branch markings varied depending on the military arm. The Kriegsmarine
used a "M" under an eagle and swastika stamped on the backside (seen at right). At least four
styles of Kriegsmarine markings are known to exist. The Luftwaffe use the letters "LBA" (Luftwaffe
Bekleidungsamt) followed by a number stamped under a pocket lid, usually
the middle one. The SS had a rune stamp on the back. The SS versions are rare
and many fakes exist.
Mini Gallery
From left to right; back of two late pattern, front of early pattern (on zelt), and back of same early pattern pouch.