I recently added two mess kits to my collection: RIA 1903 made of tin plated steel. I thought they changed to aluminum in 1900. I just purchased it "buy-it-now" and have not received it yet. I also added one dated RIA 1910. I have another dated 1913 and passed on a 1911 dated mess kit just yesterday. Probably my most prized is the all aluminum 1905. The first photo includes a late pattern 1874, 1905 all aluminum, 1910 dated, 1913 dated, unissued 1917 dated and 1918 dated. I have many other later ones including several of the round ones that spent God knows how many years outside and are in pretty bad shape. I picked about five or six out of a big stack several years ago. There was a large pile (20+ feet in diameter and 1-1/2 to 2' deep) of mess kits and canteens that had been left outdoors for years. I grabbed just a few. I should have spent the day going thru all of them
Information
Warning: This is a relatively older thread
This discussion is older than 360 days. Some information contained in it may no longer be current.