Mk 2 Carrier water can

[Robert Bergeron]

Very nice Peter.

First time I see '' flammable spirits on a Canadian military C Broad arrowed can . Seen it on numerous occasions on British cans.

We all agree that these are not insignificant details found on Carriers and other fighting vehicles.

They are an interesting part of collecting for our vehicles.

I know of no pubs or official documentation, just contemporary photographic evidence. Anyone know any different ?

Again thank you all for your contributions, keep 'em coming .

Rob , all white water cans I have seen all bear earlier date marks than the Grey cans. I think the white was too conspicuous to be used on the battlefield and was changed somewhere in 44 to Gray.. but still not Green as to differentiate them from POL . Humble suggestion also.

[Ron Pier]

Since the 'FLIMSY' has been mentioned during this thread, here is one I finally managed to acquire. Dated 1942.

I read somewhere that the average loss of fuel due to damage in transit was 1% per 10 miles. I still don't know how the tear off cap was attached or sealed? Ron

[Robert Bergeron]

Thank you Ron .

Canadians might of used these in Italy as they were supplied by the British from forward bases in Africa. Most of the rolling stock the Canadians had brought with them to Italy from England had been sunk to the bottom of the Mediterranean so possibly Flimsies were used . Probably not NWE as the 20 Gal Jerrycan became prevalent by 1944.

Interesting addition nonetheless.

[Ron Pier]

Originally Posted by Robert Bergeron

Thank you Ron .
the 20 Gal Jerrycan became prevalent by 1944.

You'd need some muscles to lift that one Ron

[Robert Bergeron]

Yes Ron , the 20 Litre / 5 Gal Jerry is heavy and cumbersome but they give you ''legs '' , autonomy . That is especially important when you stretch your lines of communication / supply.

A tank ( Sherman, Stuart ) , Half track or armoured car demand a lot of petrol... Carriers not much more than a CMP truck but still. So 20 Litre / 5 Gal jerries were a definite improvement. And they were re-usable contrary to the ''Flimsy''.

ANY MORE 1 and 2 Gal cans we haven't seen boys ? Thanks Ron , i corrected the typo.

[Ron Pier]

You missed my point Robert! I think you meant 20 litres. (5 Gallons) Ron

[Ed Storey]

This thread has wandered into discussing the British wartime policy of water supply and that of petroleum, oil and lubricants which directed how the various containers were distributed and used. For fuel you had various bulk and medium size containers, so in the case of the rectangular 4 gallon tin (flimsy), this was considered a non-returnable bulk storage item. On the other hand the 4½ gallon Jerrican was considered at the time as a medium sized returnable item. I have reference to non-returnable fuel containers being used in the UK prior to Normandy and direction that they were not to be used as water containers afterwards.

Wartime terminology refers to the returnable containers, the items most likely found on vehicles, as British - Jerricans, US - Amerricans, and British - 2 Gallon Cans.

The 'Amerrican' copy.jpg

Also 4½ gallons of fuel weighs 27lbs or 12kg. The same amount of water is 32lbs or 14.5kg.

[Owen Evans]

Originally Posted by Robert Bergeron

Rob , all white water cans I have seen all bear earlier date marks than the Grey cans. I think the white was too conspicuous to be used on the battlefield and was changed somewhere in 44 to Gray.. but still not Green as to differentiate them from POL . Humble suggestion also.

To add to this, I picked up a water can (albeit a British one) a few weeks ago, stamped 'VALOR 3 40' (March 1940?) on the underneath. After removing the multitude of paint layers, I find it is black, with 'WATER' stencilled in white. I find to trace that the can was ever painted white. Of course, the paint could have been stripped before repainting.

From a point of history, here's a photo (July '44, in Normandy) of the white cans in action behind a Bedford MWC. Were the white cans retained for use away from the front lines? And note the black jerrycans too. And still on the subject of water cans, how would the troops in the field know if the water in the cans was safe to drink? I've never seen a 2 gallon can marked 'drinking water'.

Just my thoughts..

Owen.

[Robert Bergeron]

All good questions my friend !

[marco]

Some information about water cans from the XIIMD War Diary but this info should also apply for other units.


Marco

[Robert Bergeron]

Nice Marco , very nice information ! Thank-you

[Robert Bergeron]

One of my friends sent me a picture of an original red 2 Gal can .

Could you post it here please Michael R ? Thanks.

[Kirk Armitage]

Picked this can up the other day, never paid attention until I got it beside another one. The common one on the left has rounded corners and the usual markings, the mystery one has sharp corners and no markings that I can find.Any info would be appreciated. Thanks K Armitage