Canteens

Black bakelite canteen cup in good condition which sadly features a crack. The cup is nicely marked 7M/S which is an unknown and rare manufacturer. Nice original example.

Black bakelite canteen cup in excellent condition. The cup is nicely marked 3X/S which is an unknown and rare manufacturer which features a small, unknown marking under the MPD code. Rare example!

Textbook late war M42 canteen in good, used condition. The canteen features nice brown leather straps. The cover itself features brown leather riveted loops and rare Dutch made “de Woerd” press studs. Sadly one press stud is damaged. The canteen comes in a typical late war configuration with a black bakelite cup. Nice late war canteen with some rare, interesting and sought after features!

Very nice incomplete pre war M31 canteen in good, used condition. It is unclear who manufactured the canteens marked HJB but they are very rare and this is the first time I encountered one with such an early manufacturings date. Very nice example which is sadly missing the cup!

M31 canteen marked HRE 42 indicating production by Heinrich Ritter, Esslingen. The flask is marked HRE 42, the lid and cup marked HRE 43 indicating one of the last runs before the factory switched to exclusively coconut canteens in the same year. Very hard to find!

Textbook late war M42 canteen in very good condition. The canteen is a typical late war example with a rough wool cover and mixed pebbled and smooth leather on the straps. The green painted flask is nicely marked kvu which is the late war replacement for RFI which indicates production by Rudolf Fissler KG, Idar-Oberstein in 1944. The cup is matching to the canteen and nicely marked RFI 43 which indicates its most probable production very early in 1944. The canteen is in unissued condition and would be very hard to upgrade!

M42 canteen marked CFL 43 indicating production by Carl Feldhaus Aluminium-und Metallwerke, Lüdenscheid. The canteen is a excellent example with matching black phenolic resin cup marked 1W 31. Nice example!

M42 canteen marked CFL 43 indicating production by Carl Feldhaus Aluminium-und Metallwerke, Lüdenscheid. The canteen is a excellent example with matching metal cup marked CFL. Nice example!

M42 canteen marked CFL 43 indicating production by Carl Feldhaus Aluminium-und Metallwerke, Lüdenscheid. The canteen is a excellent example with matching metal cup marked CFL. Nice example!

Textbook M31 (Alum.) large capacity canteen or 1L Labeflasche in very good condition. The canteen is nicely multiple times marked C&CW 43 which indicates production by Colsmann & Co, Werdohl in 1943. The canteen comes in the textbook configuration with its original bakelite drinking cup and webbing straps.

M31 tropical medical canteen marked MN 42 which indicates production by Menesa Metallindustrie GmbH. Neunkirchen-Saar in 1942. The canteen comes in a textbook configuration with a bakelite cup. Nice original example with webbing straps and complete with D-ring!

M31 medical canteen marked WAL 41 which indicates production by Westfalische Aluminium Industrie, Junger & Co., Lüdenscheid. Textbook example that would be very hard to upgrade!

Textbook pre war M31 canteen in matching and very good condition. All the parts (strap, cap, flask, cup and cover) of the canteen are nicely marked CFL 38 which indicates production by Carl Feldhaus Aluminium-und Metallwerke, Lüdenscheid.  The canteen is a typical pre war example with high quality materials and a brown leather strap!

Coconut canteen marked HRE 43. The canteen is in good condition. The canteen comes with its matching phenolic resin cup.

Textbook coconut canteen marked HRE 42 indicating production by Heinrich Ritter, Esslingen. Typical example with first pattern friction buckle closing strap. The canteen is in good used condition and complete with its phenolic resin canteen cup. Nice variant with wide horizontal support strap!

To learn more about the coconut canteens you can read my article about them here; https://fjm44.com/articles/the-coconut-canteen-ritters-mystery-canteen/

Very nice first pattern Coconut pattern canteen in nicely combat used condition. The canteen is in untouched condition and shows traces of real usage and is a nice combat used example! The canteen is a coconut pattern which were only made by HRE, this specific example is nicely marked HRE 42 which indicates production by Heinrich Ritter, Esslingen in 1942. Note that the strap from the closing cap is heavily damaged and almost trough the complete fabric! Nice original example which is rather hard to encounter in combat used condition!

Everything you’ve ever wanted to know about the coconut canteens can be read here; https://fjm44.com/articles/the-coconut-canteen-ritters-mystery-canteen/

Textbook coconut canteen marked HRE 42 indicating production by Heinrich Ritter, Esslingen. Typical example with first pattern friction buckle closing strap. The canteen is in good used condition and complete with its phenolic resin canteen cup.

To learn more about the coconut canteens you can read my article about them here; https://fjm44.com/articles/the-coconut-canteen-ritters-mystery-canteen/

‘Last Ditch’ coconut canteen in good condition. These coconut canteens with simplified harnesses are of a unknown, exact specific design. Collectors discuss two possible specific uses for this design. One being that they are post war reissued with a simplified harness. The second is that they are unfinished examples that have been hastily fitted with a make shift strap and cap system in 1945 as a ‘last ditch’ effort. One could argue that they should have then been dated 1945 but this is not per se a must. I have observed many(!) 1942 and 1943 with 1944 dated buckles. This is a indication that either they kept using the 1941, 1942 and 1943 molds up until 1945 ór simply still had stock which could explain the fact that no coconut canteen bodies are produced in 1944. For a early post war manufacture it would not be logical that the straps would vary as much as they do because a post war peace time manufacture would not have the need utilising every single scrap piece of leather. Nor would it be a necessity in a post war Germany littered with wartime uniforms, equipment and for sure canteens.

This is for me, the most logical explanation that this is a ‘last ditch’ effort in fielding these otherwise unfinished canteens or produced from 1942 molds. Rare variant!

Small auxiliary canteen marked GNL 1 40 in good used condition.

Beautiful and very rare canteen most probably made by the Dutch company VerBliFa (De Vereenigde Blikfabrieken) during the German occupation. The canteen is in used but good condition. VerBliFa (De Vereenigde Blikfabrieken) was the main manufacturer of the Dutch pre 1940 army mess kits, canteens and other stuff, these items were made in the exact same way. Stamped sheet metal and then tinned! The canteen is missing its cup. The canteen is unmarked which is often the case with these Dutch produced canteens. Maybe one of the rarest variant of the M42 canteen there is, and for sure one of the best canteens I have ever offered!