WWII USMC "Zinc-plated" Canteen Cup ("E.A.Co. 1943") SCARCE EXC+++ for Sale

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WWII USMC "Zinc-plated" Canteen Cup ("E.A.Co. 1943") SCARCE EXC+++ For Sale

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WWII USMC "Zinc-plated" Canteen Cup ("E.A.Co. 1943") SCARCE EXC+++:
$39.75

M1942CANTEENCUP “Zinc-plated” with the 2nd pattern LIPwith the dangerously sharp 'raw' edge from the Enterprise Aluminum Company of Massillon, Ohio.

EXCELLENT +++ condition!!

SCARCE, scarce, scarce variant Cup manufactured ONLY during the 1942-1943 fiscal year by several of the contractors!

Known to collectors as "ugly cups" due to the thin "Zinc/Tin-plating's" tendency to become mottled over time. This has acquired the 'patina' of storage age," but I do NOT believe this example was ever issued. There are no spoon or fork scratch marks on the interior, nor any evidence of a beverage or food staining, only the long-term Depot storage effects of condensation!

This example dates from the first half of the war! This is what would have been issued to the USMC personnel deployed to the Southern Solomons or to Iceland, paired with a Canteen of WWI manufacture. Both the Marine Corps and the Army were expanding exponentially. This would be correct for the Army's earliest campaigns in North Africa and the Mediterranean Theater!

ThisSCARCE example of a M1942 "Zinc-plated" iron CUP is from the "ENTERPRISE ALUMINUM COMPANY" of Massillon, Ohio, known for their line of aluminum cookware, but especially their proprietary line of coffee makers, i.e. the Drip-o-lator, introduced in the 1920s which revolutionized home coffee brewing.

+ The Cup is handle-stamped:

U.S.

E.A.Co.

1943

+ WithAluminum being declared a 'conserved metal' 1942 and these "plated" or "tinned"Cups appeared for ONE fiscal/production year only, 1942-1943,before being removed. Many are marked "I.C." meaning that though still serviceable, onceturned in, it was not to be reissued. These M1942 "Zinc-plated"Cups with the "Raw-edge" Lip and theirsplotched, mottled appearance (known among collectors as the "uglycups" due to their inability to resist discoloration and corrosion), have alwaysbeen SCARCE, but more so with each passing year!

+This particular example is the EARLIEST iteration of the M1942CUP with the often splotchy-mottled, formerly BRIGHT"Zinc-plating" and the dangerously sharp, unsupported "Raw-edge"LIP which was believed to help dissipate HEAT at the Lip.

+ZERO rust on the exterior, but superficial corrosion and discoloration of the zinc on both the exterior and the interior.

+ ZERO bends or dents to the unsupported "Raw-edge"LIP (which is often observed on virtually all of the surviving examples).

+ ZERO dents or scratches to the BODY of the Cup, only the superficial corrosion of the plating!!!

+ In anattempt to conserve Aluminum for aircraft production, "Tinned" or zinc-platedIRON, highly susceptible to rust, was substitutedmid-yearin 1942 for ALUMINUM for most items outside of aircraftmanufacture. These typically appear with a very mottledappearance with a great deal of corrosion due to the loss of plating.This examples DOES show corrosion of zinc-plating inside wherethe Canteen sat, but no deep pitting.

+ ZERO scratched initials, A.S.N. or"I.C." whatsoever.

+ By theend of 1943 the Quartermaster Department declared this modelobsolete, and it was issued "Limited Standard" thenas the Cups were turned into a field depot, stamped "I.C.",and another iteration of the M1942 Cup, one with "Folded-edge"LIP design was introduced... and eventually, by war's end,numerous contractors returnedto production of the WWI"Rolled-edge" LIP design! The over-stamp, "I.C."was used since the Civil War by the Quartermaster Corps to designateequipment (muskets, saddlery, or ordnance, etc.) that was deemed tobeeither 'obsolete', or no longer 'serviceable,'...orboth!This Cup was 'technically serviceable'...butobsolete...yet obviously issued!

See the "National Archives Photograph III SC 198710" of a display at Fort Chafee, Arkansas, in November 1944 of canteens, cups, and mess equipment. This model cup "Identified by the SHARP LIP" is "nor 'CS' or "Combat Serviceable"!!! (Courtesy of Kenneth Lewis' DOUGHBOY TO GI: US Army Clothing and Equipment 1900-1945, Norman D. Landing Publishing, page 210.)

+ Theonce highly-reflective finish on the exterior is has now acquired a dull sheen and scattered smudges of discoloration, but this example has retained its overall distinctive 'plated' appearance. This NOW SCARCE early war exampleof a "Zinc-plated" example hasauthenticating 'patina' of real age and most likely very careful use in "combat service." 99% of the plating remains, the exception being the very very bottom of the interior of the Cup!!!

+ Thisexample is in VERY RESPECTABLE condition; ZERO dents, scrapes,scratches, but with the usual long-term storage traces of corrosionstaining on the interior from the past 80 years of storage!

+ The"Cadmium-plated" Steel HANDLE locks in placeperfectly and the ATTACHMENT PLATE (secured with fourround-head rivets!) functions and locks in place perfectly.

*****

The Enterprise Aluminum Company of Massillon, Ohio produced numerous items of mess gear, cookware, as well as Canteen Cups for the War Department during WWII. In 1914 with the backing from Richard E. Bebb, Blaine Zuver founded the Enterprise Aluminum Company in Massillon. The former Massillon Rolling Mill was the site for the new company.

The company produced an extensive line of "BASE METAL COOKING HOLLOW WARE-NAMELY, COFFEE MAKERS, TEA KETTLES, COVERED SAUCE PANS, POTS, KETTLES, DOUBLE BOILERS" under the following trade names: Drip-O-lator (1928), Fresh-O-lator (1931), Century (1947), Heirloom (1948), Champion Craft (1950), Royal Chef (1952), Famous Chef (1956), Cook Queen (1967), Colony House (1967), Premier (1969), Nucote (1975), Slate-Cote (1977), Nouvelle (1982), Ashcraft (1984) and Monarch (1984).