Post
by donaldjcheek » Sat Nov 09, 2013 8:09 pm
For anyone interested, here is the original Quartermaster specification for the K-ration spoon. From C.Q.D No. 28G, dated 31 October 1944.
Spoon or Paddle, Wood.
The spoon or paddle shall conform to Type I of Dwg. BW-88, Spoons, Expendable, Wood. It shall be made of smooth, tightly cut veneer, and the edge shall be cleanly cut so that there is no roughness or splintered grain. The spoon or paddle shall be dried to a moisture content of not more than 4 percent at the time of manufacture and shall contain no knots, burls, bark pockets, splints or checks. Selection for color of wood is not required. The following defects will be permitted:
(1) Light stain which does not obscure the grain of the wood
(2) Birdseye or bird pecks, providing grain is not loosened to form an open defect.
The spoon or paddle shall be made of any of the following species of wood:
Birch, paper (white), sweet or yellow
Beech
Maple, sugar or black (hard), or red
The spoon shall be packaged or sealed in a suitable paper sleeve. The packaging shall be performed under modern sanitary conditions in such a manner that either the spoons are not touched by hand after the spoons have been heated to 160º F or the unit is heated after closure so that the spoons reach a temperature of 160º F.
"I think," said Christopher Robin, "that we ought to eat all our Provisions now, so that we shan't have so much to carry."