Rare Canteen Cup and Cover

Did a full day of antiquing today. Did a roughly 100 mile round route. Not much luck until the last stop.

Spotted a canteen, looked at the price which was $58 and almost put it back but decided to check the cup and canteen. Canteen is run of the mill but I suspected the cup was a rare one. Turns out it is. The guy had a sale for 30% off so I got it for about $42 with tax and all. The cup alone is worth more than that.

These cups were made during a short time from late 1942 to early 1943. They are steel with a zinc coating. Only two companies made them, and they were never assigned an inventory number because they were considered failures. They tended to rust, dented easily and couldn't be field repaired.

The cover I narrowed down to 1942-1943 time frame but the manufacturer is completely unknown. BRUCE OR DRUCE PRODUCTS.

Whoever used it last apparently drank coffee and never bothered to wash it out as it had congealed and hardened in the bottom of the cup and the base of the canteen. I got most of it out but it did leave stains on the cup. There is also some light rust in spots.

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