Vintage .45 ACP sent to Russia

[Bjthomas99]

Found a local guy selling a can of these, looked em up online and took a gamble. Brought it home and cut it open. Quite the variety of ammo inside!

Anyone seen these before??

[SNDBGGR1484]

I have a partial box that is headstamped EC 43 but have no idea where it came from. There are 2 places that use the EC abbreviation that I found. Eau Claire Ordnance Plant, Eau Claire, WI and Evansville Ordnance Plant (Chrysler), Evansville, OH

[Outpost75]

This is US Lend-Lease ammo which was shipped over in tanks produced for the Soviets, which were also equipped with Thompson SMGs and ammo. The Russians unpacked and later inspected and repacked the ammo, which is why you see mixed headstamps. Eau Claire used EC, Evansville Chrysler used ECC. I've shot a great deal of .45 ACP ball ammo of that era and it has all been reliable and sure-fire. It is corrosive primed and used the older .206" diameter primer. The brass is of good quality and can be reloaded if washed in soapy water and the primer pockets reamed or swaged to take modern .210" diameter large pistol primers. Sportsman's Guide was selling spam cans of this a few years ago. I got one to see what it was, but when I went to reorder more it was all gone.

Attachment 216310Attachment 216311

[Ramguy]

Until I read Outpost75's post, I did not realize that earlier .45acp ammo had a smaller diameter primer pocket. I remember loading some old FA cases and i had all kinds of issues seating primers, I just thought they had too heavy a crimp, so I would sort them off as they came through the press and stuck them in my scrap brass bucket. Now I know the rest of the story. Thanks!

[robert12345]

I read a story about the Thompson sub machine guns being sent over to Russia, inside US Sherman tanks..
.
In ww11, during a deep Siberian winter, two drunken Russian soldiers got in a gun fight; one shot the other with their tank's Thompson SMG, and the bullets bounced off his thick winter clothing.
.
It was said that the Russians preferred to use captured German MP-40 s over the Thompson, because they penetrated better, and because the MP 40s had folding stocks,,, so easier to get out of a tank, when in a hurry.
.
The Russians were rather unimpressed by the Thompson.

[Bjthomas99]

That's very cool. I have access to picking up 3-4 more cans of this stuff and I'm going back and forth on wether or not it's worth it. There are 756 rounds in each can and they are sealed up beautifully so they would keep for a long time. But it's corrosive ammo.

Those Russians new how to seal spam cans because these things are thick!

[Bjthomas99]

Has anyone seen these in different orientations or packing? Or were all these the same?