MESS OPERATION IN FIELD (ref. TM 10-405/ TM 10-406)

Question and opinion regarding Living History / Reenacting.
User avatar
artificer
banned
Posts: 13558
Joined: Tue Jul 11, 2006 10:46 am
Location: SINGAPORE

Re: MESS OPERATION IN FIELD (ref. TM 10-405/ TM 10-406)

Post by artificer » Sun Jun 07, 2015 5:46 pm

Spud barbering....peeling potatoes
Back ups....second serving etc.
http://alldownunder.com/australian-slan ... litary.htm
John GIBBINS Member Institute of Automotive Mechanical Engineers [Ret], ASE Master Medium/Heavy Truck & Auto Technician USA -2002 Licensed Motor Mech NSW MVIC 49593 Current 2015
TO DIAGNOSE, TROUBLESHOOT OR FAULT FIND ANY AUTO SYSTEM....
Understand how system parts interact with one another. GOOD parts can then be established & the NOT GOOD problem/s part/s isolated for repair or replacement.


WWII502
G-Command Sergeant Major
G-Command Sergeant Major
Posts: 218
Joined: Sat May 25, 2013 9:57 am
Location:

Re: MESS OPERATION IN FIELD (ref. TM 10-405/ TM 10-406)

Post by WWII502 » Mon Jun 08, 2015 10:34 am

pintelhook11over wrote:Stumbled across this while looking for "Kitchen Spice Pack" info...very good collection of info on another site.

http://www.ww2incolor.com/forum/showthr ... rld-War-II

Did you find info on the kitchen spice pack? That peaked my interest! Lol any photos or details?

WWII502
G-Command Sergeant Major
G-Command Sergeant Major
Posts: 218
Joined: Sat May 25, 2013 9:57 am
Location:

Re: MESS OPERATION IN FIELD (ref. TM 10-405/ TM 10-406)

Post by WWII502 » Mon Jun 08, 2015 10:39 am

pintelhook11over wrote:Sounds like you got a lot on your plate... :D

So far so good, haven't tinkered too much on cooking, but am working on a SDS stove plate version 2.0, I am using a "dual" plate experiment. I am laying down a single 1/8 inch plate, but welding on a second plate onto the top of the bottom plate. It will be thicker and still allow the top cover to be held on by the clips. I am thinking the thicker metal will help heat dampening and warp prevention.

The bottom plate is still the single 17 x 19.5 inches, but the top plate is cut to 16 x 18 inches to allow the side wind shield to be snapped on normally. I drilled numerous holes into the top plate so I can weld the two together. I chickened out using bolt/nuts to secure the two because I didn't want to poke holes in the bottom of the aluminum pot with the heads of the hardware.

Interesting... I am giving up on the whole plate thing. I think I am just going to put a few propane burners in the bottom and build a crate to hide the tank. I know lots of guys have converted their M-1937 range stoves to propane. I love the burners but the soot from not burning right is a pain and the allure of instant, constant and consistent heat is very alluring... Anyone have some thoughts or comments there?

WWII502
G-Command Sergeant Major
G-Command Sergeant Major
Posts: 218
Joined: Sat May 25, 2013 9:57 am
Location:

Re: MESS OPERATION IN FIELD (ref. TM 10-405/ TM 10-406)

Post by WWII502 » Mon Jun 08, 2015 10:40 am

pintelhook11over wrote:Ha! You "Mates" always have a unique way of calling things compared to us "Yanks"!

Can't say I 've ever heard of Bait Layers or Tucker F!$%@s.

I have a book of WWII slang called "FUBAR - Soldiers slang of WWII", it has a whole section of TOMMY, AUSSIE ,CANUCK and KIWI slang.

Here is one of many definitions I saw and got a kick from: "Dixie Bashing-Cleaning pots and pans on kitchen fatigue" :lol: .

FUBAR ISBN number- 978 1 84603 175 5

Awesome book!!! I love that one!

pintelhook11over
G-Major
G-Major
Posts: 870
Joined: Mon Feb 08, 2010 7:45 pm
Location: Southern California

Re: MESS OPERATION IN FIELD (ref. TM 10-405/ TM 10-406)

Post by pintelhook11over » Mon Jun 08, 2015 5:33 pm

Have you cleaned you burner? I was flabbergasted when I cleaned mine for the first time, It just wasn't getting hot... I had some lag time between meals and I took it apart and man, it was 80-90% full of carbon! It was back to its good old glowing metal self after that!

That propane conversion may work good, but if heat and sealing are fighting you it may not get a draft going as good as it could. It will definitely be less sooty, go easy on the throttle at first. With the fuel already being in a gaseous state it may get hotter that the liquid fuel and over heat the lower metal box.

As for that Field Spice Pack, there is a decent picture in that link posted earlier, I can't quite make out all the contents, but I could make out most. Poked around a little on the Internet looking for contents, but was unsuccessful. This is what it looks like to me:

Found one 10 in 1 ration picture that had "Cont. W199 QM 34407, 10 in 1 menu 4, WT 45 CU 1.4", but haven't found any contents list for those either.

http://www.qmfound.com/Rations_Kitchen_Spice_Pack.gif

2- Maggi--- bouillon cube tubes
2- Argo ---corn starch boxes
2- ?????---pure mustard flour
1- ?????---Kitchen Bourbon?
1- Atlas---nutmeg
1- ?????---lemon juice powder synthetic
1- Astor---?????
1- Astor---ground cloves
1- Astor---ground sage
2- Hudson---ground celery salt
2- Old Judge---ground cinnamon
6- Sauers---ground black pepper
9- Ten Strike- baking powder
1942 G7117 No. 389946
1945 G527 Serial no.9218
USN CM3 NMCB "4"
Cat Field SVC/GPS installer
Cat Main shop Mech

pintelhook11over
G-Major
G-Major
Posts: 870
Joined: Mon Feb 08, 2010 7:45 pm
Location: Southern California

Re: MESS OPERATION IN FIELD (ref. TM 10-405/ TM 10-406)

Post by pintelhook11over » Mon Jun 08, 2015 5:41 pm

Here are pic's of what I've been tinkering with the plate version 2.0...

We'll have to see how it acts with some heat later when I fire it back up again. The windshield still snaps down too.

ImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImage
1942 G7117 No. 389946
1945 G527 Serial no.9218
USN CM3 NMCB "4"
Cat Field SVC/GPS installer
Cat Main shop Mech

WWII502
G-Command Sergeant Major
G-Command Sergeant Major
Posts: 218
Joined: Sat May 25, 2013 9:57 am
Location:

Re: MESS OPERATION IN FIELD (ref. TM 10-405/ TM 10-406)

Post by WWII502 » Tue Jun 09, 2015 12:26 pm

pintelhook11over wrote:Have you cleaned you burner? I was flabbergasted when I cleaned mine for the first time, It just wasn't getting hot... I had some lag time between meals and I took it apart and man, it was 80-90% full of carbon! It was back to its good old glowing metal self after that!

That propane conversion may work good, but if heat and sealing are fighting you it may not get a draft going as good as it could. It will definitely be less sooty, go easy on the throttle at first. With the fuel already being in a gaseous state it may get hotter that the liquid fuel and over heat the lower metal box.

As for that Field Spice Pack, there is a decent picture in that link posted earlier, I can't quite make out all the contents, but I could make out most. Poked around a little on the Internet looking for contents, but was unsuccessful. This is what it looks like to me:

Found one 10 in 1 ration picture that had "Cont. W199 QM 34407, 10 in 1 menu 4, WT 45 CU 1.4", but haven't found any contents list for those either.

http://www.qmfound.com/Rations_Kitchen_Spice_Pack.gif

2- Maggi--- bouillon cube tubes
2- Argo ---corn starch boxes
2- ?????---pure mustard flour
1- ?????---Kitchen Bourbon?
1- Atlas---nutmeg
1- ?????---lemon juice powder synthetic
1- Astor---?????
1- Astor---ground cloves
1- Astor---ground sage
2- Hudson---ground celery salt
2- Old Judge---ground cinnamon
6- Sauers---ground black pepper
9- Ten Strike- baking powder
No I have not cleaned my burners yet. I am at around 30 hours on them now and am planning on taking them apart to clean but I had plenty of heat when the draft was functioning like it should. My plan for converting is to put actual cast iron burners from outdoor propane stoves in the bottom not to actually convert the original burner. I don't think that will make the hot box too hot. I might be wrong. I can see what you mean about the heat otherwise. With the stove burners I bypass the need for draft all together since the burner head will be a few inches below the pot rest. Does that make sense? The spice pack thing is really cool and frankly I need more kitchen bourbon in my life lol. I like what you are doing with your plate but do you think that it is too much to heat up before heating your pots and pans? Let me know how it turns out. If it doesn't warp then I might beg and plead for you to make me one lol

pintelhook11over
G-Major
G-Major
Posts: 870
Joined: Mon Feb 08, 2010 7:45 pm
Location: Southern California

Re: MESS OPERATION IN FIELD (ref. TM 10-405/ TM 10-406)

Post by pintelhook11over » Sun Jun 14, 2015 9:19 pm

Well, tried my Plate Version 2.0, worked good, but still had some warpage. Started out building heat really slow, so I thought dang the metal was too thick now...it took like 15-20 minutes to heat up. Then oil temp slowly started to climb, 100..150...200...215...245...300...325...375...400...425! So, the heat is enough to deep fry in the hot spot of the stove! I had the cover over mostly to have an oven effect while heating the oil.

I started running out of fuel towards the end so my oil temps began to drop to like 250, unless it was the plate warping out...I only had about a quart or two of fuel when I shut the stove down, so not a lot of gravity flow pressure at that point. It was glowing pretty good mild orange at the hotspot, I wish the camera would pick up the glow of the metal but the flash always washes out the glow.

Put in one white fish filet first, then put in two at a time for 5 minutes or so, checked the oil temp along the was staying steady at 425 degrees F. I then put in about 20-25 shrimp for about the same time and they turned out nice and crispy, but not over done. The potatoes on the other had...they turned out cooked and soft but oily because the temp dropped too much and I couldn't get enough heat. So I gave up for the night since it was late and the food was getting cold.

ImageImageImageImageImageImageImage
1942 G7117 No. 389946
1945 G527 Serial no.9218
USN CM3 NMCB "4"
Cat Field SVC/GPS installer
Cat Main shop Mech

WWII502
G-Command Sergeant Major
G-Command Sergeant Major
Posts: 218
Joined: Sat May 25, 2013 9:57 am
Location:

Re: MESS OPERATION IN FIELD (ref. TM 10-405/ TM 10-406)

Post by WWII502 » Mon Jun 15, 2015 1:07 pm

Great post, that is way more heat then I have ever gotten, even when my burner was new. I must be doing something wrong. I was disheartened to hear that the plate still warped. I think I am going to try the propane conversion. I am posting a pic of the burner I want to use. It comes from the camp chef stoves and new ones from the manufacturer are $25. I am think of putting one in each quadrant and have each half be on a separate needle valve for temp control and so if I don't need one side I don't waste fuel. Thoughts? I hate to give up but I need something that works consistently in the field. I know people have converted the M-37s so I feel a little better about it. I also get that the guys had to deal with this in real life but I want to get food to my guys not stand there and say sorry I can't help it.
Attachments
image.jpg
Camp chef burner
image.jpg (26.16 KiB) Viewed 3389 times

WWII502
G-Command Sergeant Major
G-Command Sergeant Major
Posts: 218
Joined: Sat May 25, 2013 9:57 am
Location:

Re: MESS OPERATION IN FIELD (ref. TM 10-405/ TM 10-406)

Post by WWII502 » Sun Jun 21, 2015 6:27 pm

Hey pintle;

Watching good eats, season 13 episode 17: The Curious Case of Curry, Alton Brown makes a tandor out of a bbq grill and a terra cotta pot. It got over 800 degrees for cooking... It looks to be a Heavy Lip 18" pot. I know our German terra cotta is food safe for cooking, but a basic grill and a clay pot could be within the realm of what a cook could create in the field. Especially a cook that would have been in North Africa or Italy that had expierence fight with the Indian soldiers... Just an idea.

pintelhook11over
G-Major
G-Major
Posts: 870
Joined: Mon Feb 08, 2010 7:45 pm
Location: Southern California

Re: MESS OPERATION IN FIELD (ref. TM 10-405/ TM 10-406)

Post by pintelhook11over » Sun Jun 21, 2015 8:21 pm

Hmmm...I'll have to check that episode out.
1942 G7117 No. 389946
1945 G527 Serial no.9218
USN CM3 NMCB "4"
Cat Field SVC/GPS installer
Cat Main shop Mech

WWII502
G-Command Sergeant Major
G-Command Sergeant Major
Posts: 218
Joined: Sat May 25, 2013 9:57 am
Location:

Re: MESS OPERATION IN FIELD (ref. TM 10-405/ TM 10-406)

Post by WWII502 » Mon Jun 22, 2015 8:21 am

pintelhook11over wrote:Hmmm...I'll have to check that episode out.

It was pretty cool. I know you had expressed interest in a tandor and I think this is plausible for the period, materials and ingenuity that the guys would have. Like I said there were a lot of Indian soldiers in Italy and North Africa so they could have easily learned about a tandor. He had a great idea about soaking the terra cotta in water before heating so it wouldn't crack. When I tried my oven conversion they cracked. I think I will try again with the soaking...

pvttab
G-Corporal
G-Corporal
Posts: 23
Joined: Tue Jun 08, 2010 2:04 pm
Location:

Re: MESS OPERATION IN FIELD (ref. TM 10-405/ TM 10-406)

Post by pvttab » Wed Jun 24, 2015 5:11 pm

Hello guys-

I've got several 20 man stoves that I will not use, some complete and others not. If you are interested, email me and I can send pictures. I also have various parts for them too. I picked up several jerry can connectors that allow you to feed the fuel via gravity. I don't use them anymore since picking up 37 range stoves. I'm willing to trade or sell and willing to ship. I'm not looking to hijack this thread, so just email me. Just looking to get these in the hands of guys who will use then in the hobby and keep feeding the troops!

Thanks,
Tab
pvttab@yahoo.com

WWII502
G-Command Sergeant Major
G-Command Sergeant Major
Posts: 218
Joined: Sat May 25, 2013 9:57 am
Location:

Re: MESS OPERATION IN FIELD (ref. TM 10-405/ TM 10-406)

Post by WWII502 » Wed Jun 24, 2015 7:05 pm

pvttab wrote:Hello guys-

I've got several 20 man stoves that I will not use, some complete and others not. If you are interested, email me and I can send pictures. I also have various parts for them too. I picked up several jerry can connectors that allow you to feed the fuel via gravity. I don't use them anymore since picking up 37 range stoves. I'm willing to trade or sell and willing to ship. I'm not looking to hijack this thread, so just email me. Just looking to get these in the hands of guys who will use then in the hobby and keep feeding the troops!

Thanks,
Tab
pvttab@yahoo.com

DIBS LOL

WWII502
G-Command Sergeant Major
G-Command Sergeant Major
Posts: 218
Joined: Sat May 25, 2013 9:57 am
Location:

Re: MESS OPERATION IN FIELD (ref. TM 10-405/ TM 10-406)

Post by WWII502 » Thu Jul 16, 2015 11:35 am

pintelhook11over wrote:Got 2 floor boards, one is pretty rough, it has torched out spots and patch welded plates. The other one in the picture still has remnants of the O.D. canvas "trans weather strip/gasket", I think it had some issues too. If you need one because you don't have a good one, I would probably part with one.

I just needed heat shielding quick because the exhaust pipes were kinda cooking the hay barn post... :lol:

So what floor boards were those????


Post Reply

Return to “Living History / Reenacting Knowledge Base”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 16 guests