7.62x54r Surplus Ammo Crate Opening

M

mhowarth

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So i bought a crate of the surplus ammo and when it arrived I couldn't believe how well the stuff was packaged into its crate!

I hope I'm not the only one that couldn't for the life of me figure out how to get the damn thing open! I unscrewed the top of the crate, took it off and placed it on the ground beside me, and then got to work on the ammo tins. Those spam cans were perplexing! I thought judging by the seal around the top that it was a paint can style lid, so there i was trying to pry the top off... \

After coming up with a few creative combinations of swear words I gave up and had a look on youtube for how to proceed. Sure enough there was a video on there of someone using a tool that came with the ammo crates to cut the top open. I went back to the crate to search for such a tool and get even more pissed when i couldn't find it!

Ready to give up and leave it for another day i noticed the lid wasn't sitting flat on the ground. So i flipped the lid upside down and voi-la (my french sucks) - there was the d@mn tool screwed to the bottom of the lid!

Anyway from there on in I was good to go, but wow that little crate had me stumped!

I thought I would share this little story with you for anyone curious how to get the things open! I was surprised that no one had asked this question before on here, or even made a sticky like the 7.62x39.

Cheers guys, happy long weekend!
 
There is a can opener on steroids in the wood lid. Short of that, an angle grinder across the top of the can along the edge will have it opened in 30 seconds.
 
Nothing like showering sparks down onto a crate of live ammo.

haha like liquor and night swimming - its a winning combination :D
 
Acualy the Russians had a hand cranked can opener for that like they use in resturant kitchens or mess halls. I would think the stamped can opener was something for use when you were out in the field.
 
The tool was also used for breaking the steel strapping on wooden ammo cases. Forget what make of ammo it was, .303, I think, but we got all kinds of questions about what the tool on the lid was for. Got a lot of disbelieving looks when we told the guy it was for opening the next box.
 
I posted about this about a month ago, don't know where it went. Had my toddler "Helping" me open the crate and didn't see the opener under the lid right away either. Amazing that the tins are air tight after all this time.
 
i was very surprised when i stuck the opener into it the first time and heard it suck air in and sort of fill out a little more. They really did know how to package these things!

Am i the only one that finds it a bit overkill? i mean, if there were some advancing troops and someone needed to get that crate open in a hurry with the little tool provided... good luck! Although i do suppose its a very simple low tech low cost way of preserving the ammo.
 
mhowarth said:
... if there were some advancing troops and someone needed to get that crate open in a hurry with the little tool provided... good luck! Although i do suppose its a very simple low tech low cost way of preserving the ammo.
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Although you have a point, crates of ammo can be deployed, stored, and redeployed again, blown up in a truck, restacked, transported and deployed again to be stored.


In any active situation, the troops would have it ready to use un-crated, with lots more crates behind the lines along with personnel to unpack them.
 
I use a large flat head screw driver ,a hammer , and a set of tin snips! as that church key sometimes breaks off! But what a hell of a way to store ammo! Dale Z!
 
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