Hi guys. Restoration completed after a good wash of white uniform. This jacket with Full Medal. The others i will complete with ribbons.  I am very happy with the result.    Matteo

That's really great work!  Thanks for sharing this!

@Fred Ganskementioned about a particular meat can, so I figured I’d post what I have and what my understanding of this evolution is.    the first official meat can of the army was the model 1872, which was just a tin box to hold your meat ration, separate from the other rations in the haversack, in an effort to keep them from mixing, spoiling, and making an un-cleanable mess. It did nothing to alleviate the soldiers need to purchase plates, cups, and utensils. In 1874, the army hit on a brilliant idea: a “grease tight” meat can that could double as a fry pan, and plate, and along with this beauty, they provided flatware and a cup to the individual soldier.    The first model of this meat can had a slotted handle, supposedly to help dissipate heat, and a centered pull ring to pull the two halves apart. This handle was supposedly flimsy, though the original in my collection appears quite robust, but it does fail to fold out enough to make much of a useable fry pan. The top plate doesn’t seem to be very tight either, so I’m not entirely sure how well this would keep grease from leaking out.    The second model retained the centered pull ring, but had a solid handle, which folds out flat to make a much more proper frying pan. This model too, however, falls short as the top plate does not sit tightly on the bottom half, and therefore probably also leaked and stained the haversack and ruined other rations.    The third model was updated to have an off center pull ring, but retains the solid handle. The off center pull ring may be part of the issue that caused the plate to not sit and seal properly when fully closed, as the third model is nice and tight, and could definitely keep grease from leaking out when stored.    The fourth meat-can here is the mystery. By outward appearance, this could be misidentified as a model 1910, as the top plate is nearly flat. The difference is that this is made of heavy sheet iron, and the 1910s were made from aluminum. This one is definitely marked as “RIA 1903” for Rock Island Arsenal with a production year of 1903. I believe, I have read somewhere that there was an “official” pattern change in 1900, where the meat can was changed again, as were the utensils and the cup. But I’ve only read this once a long time ago, and cannot remember the source.    So that is my understanding of the meat cans in a nutshell. If anyone has any more information, or guidance, I welcome you to let me know!

Today I would like to show off me and my twin brothers Operation Starlite impressions. My brother is portraying a corpsman and I am portraying a riflemen. 

The uniform from the second photo.

https://www.jeffersonfuneralchapel.com/obituaries/elmer-cook-3/  

Thank you.  I don’t know why I said Winchester….  I meant Remington…. It has been a long day.  I can’t wait to get it out to the range.  I had no idea how smooth the action was on these!  

BTT in honor of the 83rd anniversary!