Ammunition box
Encyclopedia
An ammunition box is a container designed for safe transport and storage of ammunition
Ammunition
Ammunition is a generic term derived from the French language la munition which embraced all material used for war , but which in time came to refer specifically to gunpowder and artillery. The collective term for all types of ammunition is munitions...

. It is typically made of metal and labelled with caliber
Caliber
In guns including firearms, caliber or calibre is the approximate internal diameter of the barrel in relation to the diameter of the projectile used in it....

, quantity, and manufacturing date or lot number. A rubber gasket
Gasket
thumb|sright|250px|Some seals and gaskets1. [[o-ring]]2. fiber [[Washer |washer]]3. paper gaskets4. [[cylinder head]] [[head gasket|gasket]]...

 is commonly found in the hinged lid to protect the ammunition from moisture damage.

Due to their durable construction, used metal ammunition boxes are popularly re-used for general storage and other purposes Players in the sport of geocaching
Geocaching
Geocaching is an outdoor sporting activity in which the participants use a Global Positioning System receiver or mobile device and other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers, called "geocaches" or "caches", anywhere in the world....

 commonly use ammunition boxes as the containers to hide logbooks and treasures. Used boxes are often sold at military surplus
Military surplus
Military surplus are goods, usually matériel, that are sold or otherwise disposed of when no longer needed by the military. Entrepreneurs often buy these goods and resell them at surplus stores. Military surplus rarely includes weapons or munitions, though they are occasionally found in such stores...

 stores.

The resealing ammunition box is largely a NATO tradition. Warsaw Pact
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Treaty Organization of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance , or more commonly referred to as the Warsaw Pact, was a mutual defense treaty subscribed to by eight communist states in Eastern Europe...

 nations typically stored and transported ammunition in single-use "spam cans". In World War II, Duct tape
Duct tape
Duct tape, or duck tape, is cloth- or scrim-backed pressure sensitive tape often sealed with polyethylene. It is very similar to gaffer tape but differs in that gaffer tape was designed to be cleanly removed, while duct tape was not. It has a standard width of and is generally silver or black...

was used to seal ammo boxes.

Not all ammunition boxes are metal, however. Wood and paper have also historically been used as a method of packaging and selling ammunition. Some enthusiasts and investors collect historical ammunition boxes.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK