Author Topic: WWII history find...  (Read 468 times)

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Offline Victor3

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WWII history find...
« on: June 30, 2012, 10:37:58 PM »
 My Son and I were hiking in the desert last weekend and came upon these Garand clips and cases, partially under the dirt...



 Cases are marked SL 42 (Saint Louis Ordnance, 1942). Clips are marked WEP (Wade Electric Products).

 The area we were hiking is within the Desert Training Center, established in 1942 to prepare our troops for duty in Africa. I've found various other WWII military items (50 BMG cases & links, howitzer charge containers, a canteen, etc.) in the same area since I was a kid...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desert_Training_Center

 It's kind of amazing (to me anyway) that these items haven't all been picked up after so many years.
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Offline ironglow

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Re: WWII history find...
« Reply #1 on: June 30, 2012, 11:26:41 PM »
  Interesting find..  Those Garrand clips bring to mind the days when I was first issued  my M-1 (it was well worn by then (1955).
  The loading was accomplished by risking an "M-1 thumb", which could be avoided by holding the operating rod back with the edge of the hand.  The clips were very springy spring steel, which when empty and ejected gave a very audible "ping"..
   I often wondered if a battle experienced enemy would relate this to a momentarily empty rifle.
 
    While very interesting, I am not surprised that these items were not found by this time, particularly in a remote area.  I find that some relics remain undiscovered for a long time. 
      My son was working full time with a Christian youth ministry back in the mid 1980s.  At one point he ws chaperoning a large group of the young people attending a rally held on the National Mall, the grassy expanse which runs between the Lincoln Memorial and the capitol building.  This area it seems is very often covered with people..involved in either rallys or "demonstrations"..
  At one point, while seated under a large tree he rested his hand on the grass, palm downward.  Feeling what he took to be a pebble, he picked it up and discovered a very nice minne-ball.  It was evidently left there when federal troops guarding the capitol were bivouaced there during the 1861-1865 fracas..
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Offline BBF

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Re: WWII history find...
« Reply #2 on: July 01, 2012, 03:46:36 AM »
Try loading the M-1 on a real cold day with gloves on your hand. It is almost impossible NOT to get at least your glove caught in that action.
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Offline mauser98us

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Re: WWII history find...
« Reply #3 on: July 01, 2012, 04:19:06 AM »
What part of the desert training center? I live not too far from Camps Hyder and horn here in Arizona. I have found lots of stuff like that here.Matter of fact between Gila Bend and Yuma roughly along the alignment of I-8 there is a lot of old airfields,foundations of building Etc. left about.Can't seem to find any pics in the national archieves tho. Strange.

Offline powderman

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Re: WWII history find...
« Reply #4 on: July 01, 2012, 09:05:40 AM »
VICTOR. You might be surprised what a metal detector might produce. POWDERMAN.  :o :o
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Offline subdjoe

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Re: WWII history find...
« Reply #5 on: July 01, 2012, 04:06:24 PM »
Every now and then you can find live ammo too.  Over the years I've found about a half dozen .50 BMG live rounds.
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Offline Victor3

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Re: WWII history find...
« Reply #6 on: July 01, 2012, 09:03:43 PM »
What part of the desert training center? I live not too far from Camps Hyder and horn here in Arizona. I have found lots of stuff like that here.Matter of fact between Gila Bend and Yuma roughly along the alignment of I-8 there is a lot of old airfields,foundations of building Etc. left about.Can't seem to find any pics in the national archieves tho. Strange.

 Well, if I told you exactly where it was, you know what would have to happen to you.  8)
 
 I've located two "hot spots" for this kind of stuff. We found the clips/cases near Barstow.
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Offline Victor3

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Re: WWII history find...
« Reply #7 on: July 01, 2012, 10:13:40 PM »
Every now and then you can find live ammo too.  Over the years I've found about a half dozen .50 BMG live rounds.

 Even now that I'm old, when I find something I imagine what the guy who dropped it looked like, what was going through his mind at the time, what happened to him in the war, etc. When I was a boy it was even more exciting.
 
 There used to be an area where there were thousands of 75 and 155 howitzer charge containers all stacked up in neat trapezoid piles 3' high x 30' long, all filled with gravel (it's gone now). My Dad (WWII Navy Vet) and I used to look at them and talk about what the scene must have looked like during training, maybe in 100+ degree temps. "Get that ammo off the trucks on the double and don't drop it! Move move move! Now put it back and start over!"
 
 In the same area there are still multiple piles of empty ration cans with the sardine-can type keys still attatched to the curled-up lids.
 
 I've got half a mind to polish and reload these cases, re-parkerize the clips and fire them from my Garand.  :)
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Offline SwampThing762

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Re: WWII history find...
« Reply #8 on: July 02, 2012, 04:59:10 AM »
Cool find.  The Ages whisper to us in these moments of discovery.

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Offline Conan The Librarian

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Re: WWII history find...
« Reply #9 on: July 02, 2012, 05:52:52 AM »
Don't reload the cases, they may be brittle from environmental factors during the past 70 years. It may mean a trip to a gunsmith to get a case out of the chamber after a head separation. Blowback gas might injure you too. Not worth it.