Wooden box with German stamp inside lid

[ozziammo]

Hi All, can this plain wooden box please be identified, for what it was used for? No partitions or ribs in the box, just very plain inside. Sorry no dimensions either! Thanks, Regards Ozzi.

 

[Alpini]

It was used for 7,92x57R machine gun belts. The factory stamp seems to read "Tischfabrik" so it was manufactured in a table factory.

 

[Taber10]

Patronenkasten for 7.9 X 57 (Not rimmed).

 

[Alpini]

In my opinion only the large boxes for non-belted ammunition were called Patronenkasten. For belted ammunition it's a Gurtkasten.

 

[Taber10]

That could be right. Frank Buchholz and Thomas Bruggen wrote a very informative book, German Machine Guns, Development, Tactics and Use from 1892 to1918. On pages 424 thru 433, the development of the Patronenkasten one thru eleven is documented. The OP's box looks exactly like what these two gentlemen call the Patronenkasten 01 (for the Gewehrpatrone 88) and Patronenkasten 08 (for the 2mm shorter S-Patrone). But I'm no expert--on anything--and not the European boxes!

 

[Alpini]

Yes you are right. I kept informed, both (belted) and single boxes were called Patronenkasten at this time. Gurtkasten seems to be 2nd WW only nomenclature.

Some nice pictures can be found here: http://mg08.de/Gurtfueller/Gurtfueller.html

 

[ozziammo]

Thank you everyone, just what I needed to know. Kind Regards Ozzi.