The K Ration

The Field Ration, Type K was adopted for use in 1942. It was developed at the request of the U.S. Army Air Force and first used by paratroopers. As with the C ration, the components of the K rats evolved over the course of the war to offer greater variety while still maintaining the need for compact size and balanced nutrition. While the K rats were designed for only a few days' use under assault conditions, the demands of war meant that soldiers often ate them for days or weeks on end, and boredom and complaints naturally ensued. At the height of the war in 1944, over 105 million of these rations were produced.

Early boxes (left) were plain brown card stock. The packaging changed to a set of distinctive color designs (the "Morale K Ration") to make it easier for soldiers to quickly select the "right" meal: brown for breakfast; green for supper; and blue for dinner. Within these colored boxes the meal was contained in a plain tan box; this was twice dipped in wax, after the contents were inserted and the box was sealed, in order to keep the contents waterproof.

Breakfast Unit Canned meat product Biscuits Compressed cereal bar Powdered coffee Fruit bar Chewing gum Sugar tablets Four cigarettes Water-purification tablets Can opener Wooden spoon
Dinner Unit Canned cheese product Biscuits A candy bar Chewing gum Powdered beverage Granulated sugar Salt tablets Cigarettes Matches Can opener Wooden spoon
Supper Unit Canned meat product Biscuits Bouillon powder Candy Chewing gum Powdered coffee Granulated sugar Cigarettes Can opener Toilet paper Wooden spoon

The canned meat and cheese products were individually boxed in 3" x 2 3/4" x 1 7/17 cardboard containers, while the other items were contained in a plastic bag that, according to instructions on the carton, could be reused for keeping other items such as cigarettes, matches, letters, and photos waterproof if the bag was carefully opened.

K Ration Packaging

There were at least two distinct types of wooden K ration containers. Wooden boxes marked "KS" were early war types (as Hudson & Allen's product states), and those marked "K" came later. Gerald Peterson says he has seen both KS and K boxes dated 1944, but the KS crate had the older brown individual meal boxes in it, while the box marked K had the full color Morale K Ration boxes in it.

According to C.Q.D. No. 28H, dated August 31, 1945 (superseding an October 31, 1944 directive), twelve K rations were packed on end in a snug-fitting corrugated fiberboard container. "The arrangement of the cartons shall be 12 in length (major panels facing), 3 in width, and 1 in depth. One row of 12 cartons shall be for breakfast, one row for dinner and one row for supper."

The fiberboard containers were either placed into wooden boxes directly, or sealed in a waterproof triple-ply "bag" of kraft paper or kraft paper, metal foil, and cellophane, before being packed in the box.

The C.Q.D. directive does not give the exterior or interior measurements of the wooden boxes, other than to say the wood was not less than 11/32 inch thick, though the end panels could vary between 3/4 inch or 5/8 inch thick. However, Gerald Peterson says they were 22 1/4" x 12 1/4" x 8 1/4". Alan Batens, of Strictly GI, measured 22" x 12 1/4" x 8 1/2", also from a real specimen. As Alan states, "Mind you, original cases have suffered through the year, and those diensions could vary a little due to shrinkage and damage."

The directive notes that wooden pieces smaller than the full dimension of the box panel were assembled with tongue-and-grooved joints.

"Style 4" of the box had wooden cleats "not less than 5/8 x 1 3/4 inches," but does not state where these cleats were placed on the box; perhaps they are on the underside of the lid, as found in Tamiya's wooden box below.

The wooden boxes were then secured with rust-resistant zinc-coated steel straps, either round (15 or 16 gauge minimum) or flat (3/8" x 0.015 inches minimum). The "Style 1" box had a strap wrapped around the ends of the box, and two straps around the top, bottom, and sides, approximately one-sixth the length of the box from each end. "Style 4" only had the two straps wrapped around the top, bottom, and sides.

The directive specifies markings on the wooden box thusly:

The upper two-thirds of one end of the nailed wood box shall be printed in bold Gothic letters as follows:

CONT ______________ (Contract No.) (3/4 inch letters)
RATION K (2 inch letters)
12 RATIONS (3/4 inch letters)
WT 43 (or 41) CU 1.3 (3/4 inch letters)

The directive also specifies the size of the half moon symbol (3" tall, 2" wide, and 7/8" thick at the center of the moon.)

Near the upper right-hand corner of the front side of the shipping container, the marked end being to the right, the following information shall be printed...in bold capital letters between 1/2 and 1 inch high....

___________ (Name of contractor)
___ ___ (Month and year packed; possible packer identifying code marks)
REQ. ____ (Requisition number; only required on some containers)

Lengthwise across the approximate center of both top and bottom of the shipping container the letter K shall be printed or stenciled in a bold capital letter approximately 3 inches high.

While this directive appears after the war ended, it was the best the Quartermaster Museum could provide and we can assume that any changes were minimal by that point in the war.

I haven't been able to determine why most of the packaging we see in historical photos are the fiberboard containers as opposed to the boxes. It's likely that the cartons were pulled out of the boxes upon reaching the major supply depots in order to reduce weight and space for transit to the front lines. In the Pacific, wooden boxes were used almost exclusively because the humidity quickly degraded even the thickest fiberboard.

1/35 Scale K Rations

Product	DIOART - U.S. WWII (late) K-Rations (129) Breakfast (130) Dinner (131) Supper	Extra Detail - K Ration Boxes (ED-0001) Breakfast (ED-0002) Supper (ED-0003) Dinner	Hudson & Allen Studio (1114) K-Rations U.S. Army - World War II
Number of Items	24 individual cardboard meal boxes per set	12 individual cardboard meal boxes per set.	6 fiberboard cartons each of early and late styles with sleeves.
Historical dimensions	6 15/16 x 3 5/8 x 1 5/8	6 15/16 x 3 5/8 x 1 5/8	Early: unknown Late: 21 1/2 x 12 x 8 (estimated)
Product dimensions	8 x 4 x 2 1/2	15 x 8 1/2 x 3	Early: 21 1/2 x 11 x 9 Sleeve: 21 1/2 x 12 x 9 1/2 Late: 22 x 12 1/2 x 8 1/2 Sleeve: 22 x 13 1/2 x 9
Material and color	Bond paper stock; box colors compare favorably to historical artifacts.	Heavier paper stock; green in supper boxes is brighter than historical artifacts.	Light card stock; color is acceptable.
Instructions	No	No	Yes
Markings	Designs appear to be reproductions of actual rations boxes. Meal names are legible; the rest of the labeling is too small to reproduce clearly in 1/35 scale. The main label is duplicated on the backside of the box; I have seen examples that show additional instructions printed on the backside, rather than a repeat of the meal name and info as on the front panel.	Designs are well produced and meal names are legible; the rest of the labeling is too small to reproduce clearly in 1/35 scale. The main label is duplicated on the backside of the box; I have seen examples that show additional instructions printed on the backside, rather than a repeat of the meal name and info as on the front panel.	Early: US ARMY FIELD RATION K 42 DINNER UNITS MACARONI W/CHEESE WT34, CU1.1, INSP 9-43 fine print and stampings Late: FIELD RATION K, KS, 45 IND. SUPPER UNITS CHICKEN W/DUMPLINGS WT39 CU1.2 PACKED 4-44 fine print and stampings
Comments	Slightly over scale but much better than similar products from Extra Detail. It's best to score the fold lines before cutting the boxes from the sheet because they're so small.	If not for the problem with these boxes being out of scale, they'd be quite nice. The paper is nice and firm and holds the box's shape well. It's best to score the fold lines before cutting the boxes from the sheet because they're so small.	Easy to build and very convincing markings on all sides of sleeve and 5 sides of cartons. As Gerald Peterson notes, it's possible that both versions of these boxes were used in the field in 1944. You may want to err on the side of caution and use the early versions in a North Africa setting, and the later cartons for D-Day and after.
Finished Product	Not available at this time
Final Thoughts	These will be challenging to anyone who is "all thumbs." But the final product is very good.	I passed along information on the size discrepancy to Graham Lawler at Extra Detail and he promptly pulled these products off the market so he could redo them properly.	These do the best job in coming closest to the real thing.

Product	Jadar Model (3508) U.S. Army K-Rations WWII, 1943	Tamiya (35250) M4A3 Sherman 75mm Gun Late Production and (35251) M4A3 Sherman with 105mm Howitzer include boxes and decals.
Number of Items	12 early sty;e fiberboard cartons (two different meal types) with sleeves.	4 wooden boxes.
Historical dimensions	Early: unknown	22 1/4 x 12 1/4 x 8 1/4
Product dimensions	Early: 21 1/2 x 11 x 9 Sleeve: 21 1/2 x 12 x 9 1/2	18 x 12 x 7
Material and color	Tan card stock; color is acceptable.	Styrene and decal; must paint an unfinished wood color.
Instructions	Yes, in Polish, with 4 diagrams.	Yes
Markings	Version 1: US ARMY FIELD RATION K 42 DINNER UNITS MACARONI W/CHEESE WT34, CU1.1, INSP 9-43 fine print and stampings Version 2: FIELD RATION K, KS, 45 IND. SUPPER UNITS CHICKEN W/DUMPLINGS WT39 CU1.2 PACKED 4-44 fine print and stampings	RATION K 12 RATIONS WT44 CU1.4 fine print
Comments	Nearly identical to Hudson & Allen's product in size and markings. Card stock slightly heavier and textured.	Boxes build easily and have "wood grain" on all sides, but also have ejector marks on interior sides and underside of top lid. To have an open crate you need to deal with the marks and remove construction guide tabs. Underside of top lid has three support cross pieces — these may be the cleats referred to in "Style 4." Separate "K" decal for top lid is nice touch, but no marking for side panels. Decals are a little thick; Spray the painted boxes with gloss varnish and use some Solvaset to get them to snug down tight. Weather slightly and cover with a matte varnish.
Finished Product	Photo not available at this time.
Final Thoughts	Depending which area of the world you're modeling in, it may be easier to purchase this product than the original Hudson & Allen item.	Undersized, and some significant markings are missing on the front and back sides, but it's the best of the two wooden rations boxes available, (the other is Tamiya's old 10 in 1 box).