Mine fuze setting tools.

[whsammler]

So riddle me this Batman (men) as an ordnance collector why is it I can never locate a nice set of MINE FUZE SETTING TOOLS...

. Everywhere I look its always "ground finds" or rusted out junk......frustrating I tell you!!!!

Here is what im talking about:






I would really like to add a few to my collection before 2011.....how about it men....can anyone help a fellow ordnance collector out on this quest?

 

[V40]

Well, I can see that you don't have the one for the M14 "Toe Popper" Mine. That tool is also used for some mines that were in our inventory back during the Vietnam War. As for the toe popper is concerned, I do not have one at this time. But my search will continue, until the very end, then it will get sold by my family, go figure.

 

[whsammler]

German Mine Fuse Setting Tools.

Just to be clear...the photos used are not from my collection. At this time I have not one single tool like this in my collection.

The photos are just used to show examples of what im looking for.

 

[Big Dave]

Sorry cant help with the search ,only ever seen dug ones ,mine came from a guy in Finland ,the one with the spring tensioned piece came to me solid but after 2 weeks in a bucket of diesel/waste oil at work it emerged moving , showing a nice unpitted shaft ,regards Dave

 

[US-Subs]

Well, I can see that you don't have the one for the M14 "Toe Popper" Mine. That tool is also used for some mines that were in our inventory back during the Vietnam War. As for the toe popper is concerned, I do not have one at this time. But my search will continue, until the very end, then it will get sold by my family, go figure.

The M14 has actually been around for much longer than most folks realise. I don't know that it saw service in the Korean War, but I'll bet it just about could have.

 

[gijunkman]

M14 mine

TM 9-1900 Amunition General June 1956 lists the M14 nm antipersonel mine. It's the oldest mine refrence that I have.

 

[US-Subs]

I'll see what I can do.

 

[Tmine35]

Sorry cant help with the search ,only ever seen dug ones ,mine came from a guy in Finland ,the one with the spring tensioned piece came to me solid but after 2 weeks in a bucket of diesel/waste oil at work it emerged moving , showing a nice unpitted shaft ,regards Dave

Hi Dave,
Was it possibly from me? I purchased a bigger lot from German eBay ( could be the first picture below topic ), kept one set myself and sold the others in smaller lots.
I also got mine moving after soaking in oil/petroleum.

For information, in second picture the spanners on top left are for MG tripod, small T-keys on left down are to span MG15 drum magazine and the linked items on down right are ruptured case extractors for MG but all others are for T-mine 35.

 

[Big Dave]

Hi T ,i thought it was you but i wasnt sure ,it was a few years ago .Ive never seen a clean set and come to think of it very few relic /dugup ones either ,regards Dave

 

[US-Subs]

TM 9-1900 Amunition General June 1956 lists the M14 nm antipersonel mine. It's the oldest mine refrence that I have.

I don't have a reference, but I do have three examples of the mine. Many years (decades) ago we/I received a number of pieces to destroy, including a case of M14s. As they are quite simple to inert, we kept a number of them for training aids. The thing that facinated me about them was that they were dated Nov 1953.

These were full-up M14s. The practice pieces I have seen over the years were M14s as well, with two exceptions. I have two earlier models, a T34, and a T34E4. Neither is dated.

IF the practice version followed the normal production version, then the T version predates the M number, and the T34 existed prior to 1953. Noting that there were at least 5 successive models (initial, E1, E2, etc), this could place the M14 mine as exisiting significantly earlier than 1953.

Regardless, I can verify the date of this mine as Nov, 1953, both by the mine and by witnessing the packaging that it came from. As it is not LOT 001-01, I think it is safe to assume the mine existed even earlier - though by how much I cannot say.

 

[US-Subs]

The practice versions.

 

[ordnance]

Now there's a coincidence. about 10 minutes before checking in to the BOCN and reading this thread, I was downloading some LIFE magazine images from Google. The one below turned up, dated 1952. The caption didn't seem very accurate but they probably got the date of the photo correct:

"The M-4 anti-personnel mine, weighing only 4 1/2 ounces, yet packing the wallop of its nine-pound World War II predecessor."

A companion photo also featured an M3 mine and pinned the date down better at February, 1952 with an even more interesting caption:

"Antipersonnel mines are Assistant Army Secretary Karl Bendetsen's pride and joy."

 

[US-Subs]

Thanks Rick, I'll consider Life magazine as reference enough - I wasn't claiming 'use' anyway, just that it was older than most would have thought and "could have" seen service in Korea.

 

[sudelmuk]

Just to be clear...the photos used are not from my collection. At this time I have not one single tool like this in my collection.

The photos are just used to show examples of what im looking for.

Glen, I have done it in the same way as Dave to get a fully operative "Einstellehre" (adjust gauge) and "Spannschlssel" (spanner), they are without exception more ore less pitted and the special srewdriver for the TMi.35 is always totally missing due to his wooden grip (never seen such a piece yet).

gauge and spanner are frequently offered on ebay.de (hard to imagine, but true!) :tinysmile_twink_t2:

the reason, why they are always dug ups?
I believe, they were mostly thrown away as to every bundle of ten TMi.35 belonged a complete set of gauge, spanner and screw driver - more than practically necessary.

 

[whsammler]

Guys,

Thanks for the responses so far.

I will keep my eyes peeled for a good one.....fingers crossed.

 

[V40]

US-Subs,

Thanks for the pictures of the M14. My books also show that it went back to the early 50's. I have an FM 5-31 from 1956 that shows it all, the internal componets including the belleville spring.


mark , Us-Subs PM me if you can?

 

[Fjordhouse]

It took some time, but i want to show you this nice item, its the Fuze setting key in the box. I have found this item in Norway, Its on display at Liberty park Overloon Holland

 

[Slick]

Here are some U.S. fuze setters, wrenches and spanners. Nothing special, I don't guess, and obviously nothing rare or else I wouldn't have them. Just wish I had the respective fuzes and such they are used on.