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Wood crate question

jpmcd21

Member
Hello all,
What is the thickness of the wood used to make wood ammo crates and M36 grenade crates? Sorry if this is answered elsewhere, I tried a search but couldn't find anything.
Thank you!
Jim McDonnell
 
Hi Jim,

cant help you with the ammo crates but with the Mills box it all depends on whether WW1 or WW2 and/or for what type of Mills, be it a No 5 or a 23/36.
WW1 36s made from 3/4 in unplaned wood, WW2 from 1/2 in wood. The WW1 type is also of different dimention to a WW2 box. No 5 box? Well, there were several types, the very early ones being rather different. My original box being closer to 1/2 in.
You will also need 1/4 in sizal for the ropes too.

Hope this helps,

Andy
 
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Thank you for the quick response! I am building WWII M36 boxes. I have two built already, but I used 3/4 inch wood. For the next couple, I will plane down to 1/2 inch.

Two other questions regarding the Mills crates, what size are the stacking cleats and did all Mills boxes (WWII) have sizal rope for closing the lids?
I followed plans I downloaded from somewhere an it says 1 inch square for the cleats, but when I built them, the cleats don't look right. I would guess that they are 1 1/2 to 2 inches in width. I have seen pictures of a mills box with metal strips (like the ammo boxes) on either end.

Thanks again for the help!
Jim
 
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I don't know if M36 means Mills No.36 so this may be totally useless to you, but I have a few US M26 crates, an M26A1, M61 and M67 crates and the average wood thickness on all of them is 19mm. I can't imagine it would be that much different for other types. Hope that helps.
 
Jim,

yes, all the cleats are the same size, 1 1/2 ins, inc the carrying cleats on the side of the box. Those on the lid should be 1 1/2 ins from the end, some were done more than this. This enables the boxes to stack on top of each other easily.
WW1 boxes had the rope to help close it but havnt seen any WW2 boxes with it. This dosnt mean there were none like it though.

Boxes with metal on them were WW1 first pattern boxes made in 1915, later patterns were all wood jobbies.

Do show us some pics when done.

Andy
 
Thank you all for the responses!
Sorry! M36 is americanese for No.36 M hand grenade.LOL! Thanks for the info though GTR003121!

Andy, I will post pics of the ones already made soon. Of course now I will have to fix them.LOL!

Jim
 
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