WTK: What kind of jerry can do I have??

[Kestrel]

I have a very nice WW2 gas can that is marked USMC. It has a small opening very similiar to WW2 German cans. What is it and how much is it worth??
Jason

[Kestrel]

Took a walk out to the barn to take a look, it's a 1942 dated Conco with U.S.M.C. across the bottom. It has a small latching cap on one side of the top, the rest of the can looks pretty much like the rest of my other 30 odd ww2 cans.

Jason

[lucakiki]

All of the USMC cans I am aware of were made by CONCO,and all the years from 42 up to 45 are accounted for.They are not common,and not the scarcest either.Their peculiar feature is the european stile spout/camlock.USMC obiously stands for U.S. MARINE CORPS
Given the strange reactions from some very sensitive souls I will not state a value. Besides,everyone has his own limit. The last purchases by gee friends had a price tag of around 40 bucks,and I bought a pair myself about at the same price.Hope that helps.

[Robert Tofson]

Luca I think USMC stands for Unided States Metal Company or Can. Could be wrong
Bob

[Robert Tofson]

To clarify or confuse the USMC question a little more. This quote is from the "Olive Drab" web site.

"What Does USMC Mean?
The manufacturer will be one of many who made cans in the war years or afterward. You will see names like "BENNETT", "CONCO", "RHEEM", "MONARCH", "NESCO", "MCC", "RADIOSTEEL" (makers of the Radio Flyer in peacetime) and "USMC". It is USMC that causes the most confustion. When USMC appears in the manufacturer line, it is not the Marines. Rather the initials stand for U.S. Metal Container Company, of Miami, Oklahoma. The company is still around, owned by the Elmburg family since 1966. They continue to make the cans for the commercial market under the name Blitz USA, Inc.

If the can actually was procured for the US Marine Corps during World War II, for gas or water, they used a different design. The basic can was the same size and shape, but the pouring spout was similar to the British can with a cam-lock lid. These cans will have "USMC" stamped on one side at the bottom, replacing the "US" or "USA" found on the Army cans.

Most of the USMC cans were manufactured by CONCO. One reported can has markings similar, but not identical, to the usual pattern:

ICC-5L
CONCO
20-5 1/4-44

In addition to the Marine Corps cans, there are examples of "USN" marked Jerry Cans made by ICC Co. and dated in the 1940s.

Not all US style cans with the cam-lock cap were original USMC production. After the war, when thousands of US jerrycans came on the surplus market, many were modified with a German/English type spout for use in delivering heating oil. This commercial modification was made so they would be more leakproof than the US-style screw on lids".

Bob

[David]

It is a can used by the United States Marine Corps, made by Conco. There was also a manufacturer of the cans named United States Metal Container Company, which marked it's cans with "USMC". However, these were marked such on the bottom and have the standard US-style spout. The Marine cans are made by Conco (stamped on bottom), have the German/British-style stout and are stamped "USMC" low on the side.

Greetz

David

[Mark Tombleson]

Here is a photo of one.



And here is the page with the Conco markings

http://ww2jerrycans.com/htm/conco44usmc-1.htm

And here is Dino!’s web page on jerry cans.

http://ww2jerrycans.com/

[lucakiki]

Luca I think USMC stands for Unided States Metal Company or Can. Could be wrong
Bob

Bob, unfortunately the site you mentioned has some slight inaccuracies.
ICC is the interstate commerce commission...
USMC stamped on the side stands for Marine corps, just as USN stands for US NAVY. The brand names are always on the bottom or on the top, never on the side.And until now no other manufacturer than CONCO has surfaced for USMC cans...

[Robert Tofson]

Your right Luca, maybe these posts will provide a good thread of information for others who do a "search" on the GEE.
Bob