Repainting & Labeling Ammo Cans

[Ohio Gun Guy]

Well it's been a long winter, and in my search to do something fun in the shop, I started repainting ammo cans and labeling them. I also decided to paint some ammo crates I made to match.

I made some stencils for the calibers I have, I made a modified flaming bomb stencil just for fun, and a "Dont Tread On Me" Snake, also just for fun.

I found it rather time consuming cleaning and repainting the ammo cans. Most of mine are in very good condition so I decided to paint only the cans that need it, and just label the rest. I may repaint them all to match, well see how long this winter lasts. Here are a few representatives of the complete repainted cans and the "old" relabeled cans, with an ammo box.

Here are some pictures (I staged a few photos)

 

[War Squirrel]

Haha! Clever. Most folks I know just leave em the way they got em. You're giving me a few ideas! Great job man.

 

[mikewayde]

Very nice and a great job...

 

[elderboy02]

I like it

 

[Wildyams]

looks good.. but would look better if they all matched

 

[Ohio Gun Guy]

^^^ Yeah, I'll have to just do it (make them match).

 

[Publius1688]

Looks great. I, too, have been hunting shop jobs.

 

[Magichelmt]

that beats my scribble with a sharpie. I may have to follow your lead on this

 

[jpwilly]

Sweet, sure beats my Avery mailing labels.

 

[JWF III]

There was (may still be) a guy on Gunbroker selling stencils for different cartridges that kept the original look of USGI cans. He had some great looking cans pictured. But I never got around to getting some. Now I don't know if he's still around.

Wyman

Just checked, he's still there. Just search for "stencil". They range from $2.25-$3.00 each, with several options to choose from

 

[Mr.Davis]

I love the "Don't tread on me" snake. Well done.

 

[Kaeto]

I leave mine in the original Navy Grey.

 

[Blackrock]

Must be a long hard winter where you are LOL
Great looking job.

 

[gunnutery]

That's pretty sweet, I've thought about altering a grenade symbol myself, just haven't had time or a lot of property to mark it with.

 

[FROGO207]

BTW if you want to remove just the original stenciling from the can before painting use carburetor cleaner in a spray can. It doesn't seem to bother the original finish. Just spray on and wipe off quickly. I label mine with a Dymo paper tape label gun. Not so snazzy as yours however.

 

[bigiron1]

Well done. The Gadsden snake is outstanding!! I have a few South African .308 cans that could benefit from the same treatment.

 

[EddieNFL]

I made a modified flaming bomb stencil just for fun

What does the 'W' on the Piss Pot indicate?

 

[miamiboy]

Sweet. What did you do about the gasket? Did you just pull it out, then stick it back in? I've been wanting to do some reconditioning, but I don't want to lose that tight seal.

 

[medalguy]

If you're really into repainting cans, here's how to make them exactly like the originals. First, clean the old markings off with a rag soaked in lacquer thinner. Too much and you'll remove the green paint too so be careful. Next you buy a set of rubber stamp letters from Rib Type and a base stamp that the letters fit into. Make up whatever markings you want. Duplicate the original markings with your own lot numbers or whatever you want. Use a felt stamp pad with yellow stencil ink, not the usual rubber stamp pad ink. This stuff dries slowly, about an hour to touch. When done clean everything with paint thinner or lacquer thinner and remove the letters from the base and you're ready to do it all over again with another marking set.

This is basically how the government does it, except they use a sheet of lettering since they might mark thousands of cans with the identical marking. The biggest problem is getting the lettering to all transfer to the can. I put a piece of 1 x 10 board inside the can up against the side I'm marking and build up the inside of the can with 2 x 4 scraps until the 1 x 10 is pressed tightly against the side of the can, then stamp the can. This way the can is flat and the stamping will all transfer.

 

[jpwilly]

What does the 'W' on the Piss Pot indicate?

Last name starts with W

 

[Ohio Gun Guy]

I did try paint thinner, denatured alcohol, and break cleaner on the old lettering.

The green paint seemed more prone to coming off, than the yellow lettering??? It did start coming off, but was to much work, only to need to repaint them anyway. SO I cleaned them, then sprayed them.

Yes the W, stands for my last name.