Third Party Press

98K Rifle Crate

The thing I don’t quite get is, with millions of 98k rifles made, why are these crates so rare? To the point we’re not even sure exactly what they even looked like, outside of some pics? Even if only a small percentage of them survived, seems like there would still be a fair amount left? Even if GIs didnt want to bother lugging one home or shipping it, I’d at least think they could be found in European collections or formerly repurposed on farms or any other place where sturdy wooden boxes would’ve been useful postwar...
 
Wolfsburg said:
The thing I don’t quite get is, with millions of 98k rifles made, why are these crates so rare? To the point we’re not even sure exactly what they even looked like, outside of some pics? Even if only a small percentage of them survived, seems like there would still be a fair amount left? Even if GIs didnt want to bother lugging one home or shipping it, I’d at least think they could be found in European collections or formerly repurposed on farms or any other place where sturdy wooden boxes would’ve been useful postwar...
Click to expand...

My guess is when 98k's were distributed to forces world wide after WWII a lot of them went in original crates, and the crates met their fate at their final destination...Israel, South American countries, the Middle East, Russia, Vietnam...

There is a scene in the movie "JFK" where they were talking about Dave Ferry running guns for the CIA to mercs and Cubans, where they are loading trucks, and the is at least one crate of 98k's, as it is labeled on the crate, might even be a crate like in this thread...maybe I will put it in tonight and re-watch...but check it out...
 
I don’t think they were repurposed due to size. Awkward empty by yourself, put anything in it, forget it. There were millions of better sized crates around IMO
 
RE crates

My personal opinion is that firewood was scarce in the winter on the Russian steppes and back home in Germany
so many items were burned.
 
IMO the crate in the OP is a Yugoslavian M24/47 or M48 crate that some entrepreneur has added a stenciled Karabiner 98k paint mark to. The construction is exactly the same as the hundreds of them that I used to see at AIM Surplus and Southern Ohio Gun. Even the red paint marks, chalked (?) marks, riveted construction, and staple placement are all the same.

I've owned at least 3 of them, back when AIM and SOG used to give them away or sell for cheap. They had stacks and stacks of them when the Yugo import Mausers were plentiful.

Same deal with the Russian 91/30, M38, and M44 rifles. Piles of those crates they couldn't give away fast enough.
 
Hercules said:
Here are some pictures of an original in my opinion German WWII 98K rifle crate. This was purchased from SOS in 2016. It was part of Mr. Brocks collection. Thanks for any interest.

Brian
Click to expand...

Still a great looking crate Brian. I would own it.

Just of interest I was looking for pictures of post war Russian crates last night (I'm thinking of buying one) and came across this picture from an importers sales ad. Looks a lot yours but just have the one picture.
5d4149045064c45030cd349cd1c71744.jpg
 
I believe these crates are most likely post war Yugo, but have no way to prove or disprove their original origins / I bought 5 years ago from SARCO @ 40 dollars each.

I still have 2 sitting in the garage
 
Wolfsburg said:
The thing I don’t quite get is, with millions of 98k rifles made, why are these crates so rare? To the point we’re not even sure exactly what they even looked like, outside of some pics? Even if only a small percentage of them survived, seems like there would still be a fair amount left? Even if GIs didnt want to bother lugging one home or shipping it, I’d at least think they could be found in European collections or formerly repurposed on farms or any other place where sturdy wooden boxes would’ve been useful postwar...
Click to expand...

You would not keep the crates where you took out the rifles, would you? You would use it as firewood rather than to carry around empty wooden crates. So simply those crates survived which were still in the factory or somewhere in transit. And a whole crate with K98k rifles could not be duffle cut, right :googlie
 
I suspect one of many reasons that K98k crates are so rare, or even non-existent is because it would not be a front line item.

What I mean is that units would have received the crates, issued the rifles, then disposed of them.

What the vets sent home were the time of ammo boxes that would have been found on the front lines.

Just a thought on why probably not many K98k shipping crates exist, as opposed to standard German crates.

Cheers,
-Steve
 
Steve87 said:
I suspect one of many reasons that K98k crates are so rare, or even non-existent is because it would not be a front line item.

What I mean is that units would have received the crates, issued the rifles, then disposed of them.

What the vets sent home were the time of ammo boxes that would have been found on the front lines.

Just a thought on why probably not many K98k shipping crates exist, as opposed to standard German crates.

Cheers,
-Steve
Click to expand...


That to me seems like an excellent analogy. The same theory would go towards U.S Rifles made during the war. Has anyone ever seen an M1 Garand crate marked Springfield Armory made during the war?
 
Steve87 said:
I suspect one of many reasons that K98k crates are so rare, or even non-existent is because it would not be a front line item.

What I mean is that units would have received the crates, issued the rifles, then disposed of them.

What the vets sent home were the time of ammo boxes that would have been found on the front lines.

Just a thought on why probably not many K98k shipping crates exist, as opposed to standard German crates.

Cheers,
-Steve
Click to expand...


Exactly !!!!

Small arms are issued en masse when units are organized / reorganized / rebuilt after combat. The shipping containers may have been cannibalized for wood, but much more probably were returned for reuse to depot.

The Germans could ill afford to waste reusable resources, and knew it.......

All armies do business in more or less the same way when it comes to resupply.

Yes, when things broke down completely in the Spring of '45, there were exceptions.
 
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