military .38 special strange boxes

[glindes]

An old timer gave me two fullboxes of RA 58 headstamped 38 Special RN FMJ ammo yesterday. The cardboard boxes are unmarked except the inside end-flap on both are marked K09C. One box is coated (painted?) black on three sides (not the ends or bottom) the other is black on four sides (not the ends). I've never seen any packaging like this. Perspective please. Thanks Geoff

[Charlie Flick]

Geoff:

That is a very strange sounding box or boxes. Posting pics would help us in the diagnosis. However, I will observe that "painting" or obscuring the markings on the boxes would not serve any military purpose I am aware of. (I am ignoring the usual baloney that comes up in these discussions about "sterile" guns and ammo for clandestine purposes. The RA 58 head stamp pretty much tells one exactly where the ammo came from.) Rather, for whatever reason I suspect that the obscuring of the box markings was done by someone outside of the military.

Regards,
Charlie Flick

[Johnny P]

You will occasionally run up on boxes of military ammo with the lot number marked over or cut out. Again, probably an attempt to hide the fact of where the ammo came from as if it didn't have a headstamp.

[raymeketa]

There's an urban myth out there that possessing military ammunition is a federal offense and will get you a hitch in Leavenworth. I don't know how or why that started. But, as Johnny P said, guys will go out of their way to hide box labels, lot numbers, etc. What they do not realize is that they are lessening the value of those boxes which are now becoming collectable.

Ray