MREInfo.com

I cannot even explain how disappointed I am. This Air Crew Lunch was in fantastic shape when I purchased it from the Netherlands. Waited a long couple months for it, and it finally arrived today. Well, it had a big “Inspected by customs” sticker on it which was worrying. Carefully opened the box to find that customs had opened it, cut the bubble wrapping open, and just placed the box on top of the bubble wrap when they boxed it back up. But worst of all, they sliced the box open. I assume when they cut the bubble wrap they cut too far.

I am pretty bummed as this was going to be the holy grail of my collection and I paid a pretty penny for it. Customs policy is that they aren’t responsible for damages. It’s a sad day

A shame they treated this ol' vet like that. Just was returning home. Still though, cuts and all, it's a survivor.

You should feel much safer now

Hate when this happends... Customs policy is that they aren’t responsible for damages. Wrong they are not supose to damage gods in search of drugs and so on, i went to court for a matter like this and won over the customs!

That really sucks. BUT that can be repaired and made close to good. I have restored original ration items and stabilized them for preservation in my own collection. It may be involved, but totally doable. Here is what I would do and have done in the past. Go online and find find clear archival adhesive tape, the kind used to repair documents and paper goods by museums. Also purchase some archival acid free glue, you will need it. Look up some videos on how to un-glue old paper and cardboard (usually with an iron, steam, some cloth, and gently applied heat gradually pulled apart with a thin blade like an x-acto knife or razor blade) Disassemble the box after the glued parts have been taken care of and repair the cut/ tears on the bottom and side from the inside with the archival tape. Once the cut/ tear is repaired, put the box back together with the archival glue and you will be golden. The cut may still be slightly visible, but it will not affect the piece in the long run.

I did my masters work in American history with a focus in public history, collections, archives, and artifact preservation. There are some great tutorials made by museums on YouTube that describe this process that you can watch. In the meantime, I would put the surviving food contents into a zip lock bag, or better yet a vacuum sealed bag. I do this to prevent moisture/ insect damage while I work on restoring my rations and preserving contents for display in sealed clear plastic containers.

Perhaps it's time to call our Congressmen and request action about this stuff.

Militaryration_guy wrote: ↑

Sun Jan 23, 2022 4:12 pm

Perhaps it's time to call our Congressmen and request action about this stuff.

Why should they care?

GunnarTheFeisty wrote: ↑

Sat Jan 29, 2022 12:56 am

Militaryration_guy wrote: ↑

Sun Jan 23, 2022 4:12 pm

Perhaps it's time to call our Congressmen and request action about this stuff.

Why should they care?

They're our voice in government that can change things, if enough of us call them then maybe something will be done.

Militaryration_guy wrote: ↑

Sun Jan 30, 2022 8:37 pm

GunnarTheFeisty wrote: ↑

Sat Jan 29, 2022 12:56 am

Militaryration_guy wrote: ↑

Sun Jan 23, 2022 4:12 pm

Perhaps it's time to call our Congressmen and request action about this stuff.

Why should they care?

They're our voice in government that can change things, if enough of us call them then maybe something will be done.

There's maybe 70 guys active on the forums? Quite a few aren't American. Most are in different states.

Militaryration_guy wrote: ↑

Sun Jan 30, 2022 8:37 pm

GunnarTheFeisty wrote: ↑

Sat Jan 29, 2022 12:56 am

Militaryration_guy wrote: ↑

Sun Jan 23, 2022 4:12 pm

Perhaps it's time to call our Congressmen and request action about this stuff.

Why should they care?

They're our voice in government that can change things, if enough of us call them then maybe something will be done.

Have you written to your congressman?

Also why would they care - I mean the meat import law is there for 'safety'