Item Description
Original Item. Only One Available. This is a tremendous piece of equipment, a deactivated non-functional M2A1 flamethrower in its original transit chest. The transit chest measures 22½ x 33½ x 19”. The flamethrower has been fully deactivated, and is missing integral parts for use and the tanks have been punctured. This is being sold as a display piece. Like all deactivated ordnance, this flamethrower is Not Available for Export.
This is a gorgeous example of an M2 Flamethrower that started life as an M2 Flamethrower during World War II, and was reworked and upgraded to be converted post-war to an M2-A1 for use during the Korean War and after.
The transit chest of this example has a great deal of remarkings, with dates including 1950, 1952, 1955, and 1957. The nozzle and handle of this example are of the original World War II era, as the data plate lists it as M2, instead of the updated M2A1. The data plate on the nozzle reads:
CHEMICAL WARFARE SERVICE U.S.A.
PORTABLE FLAME THROWER GUN M2
R.F.S. INC. SERIAL NO. 30 LOT N4-40
The data plate on the fuel tank backpack reads:
CHEMICAL CORPS U.S.A.
PORTABLE FLAME THROWER FUEL TANK M2A1
SERIAL NO. ECD1150 LOT RED78 3/53
The middle of the three tanks has a great many repack stamps including dates of 1960, 1963, 1966, 1969, 1970, 1972, and 1974, so this was a flamethrower that saw continued use & reuse through Korea and into the Vietnam War. The fuel tank backpack still retains its 1950s dated replacement straps which still work well (We tested them and carried the pack around).
The original fuel hose is still intact but is very stiff from years of storage and is very difficult to connect to the tank and nozzle. They will connect but it is awkward to display together due to the stiffness. There are a couple areas of weakness in the hose and repetitive bending will eventually lead to breakage. So please be very careful when setting this up for a display!
The markings on the front of the transit chest are:
FSN 1040-368-6068
FLAMETHROWER PORTABLE M2A1
1 EA
LOT NO RNC 570-1 5/55
SERIAL NO NC-2297
REPACKED PER MWO CML 13 DTD
4 SEPT 52 W/C I DTD 23MAR53
WT 110 CU 8.5
C&P NC 3/57
PRESERVED METHOD II
DESICCANT
MARCH 57
DO NOT OPEN EXCEPT
FOR USE OR INSP.
The inside of the lid of the chest has a lubrication order L03-375 which has a chart of the gun for the portable flamethrower. This order is dated 11 OCTOBER 1951.
This is a tremendous example of a Flamethrower with parts dating to World War II, with a Korean War dated fuel tank backpack and a transit chest that’s been packed and repacked several times. Given how valuable these were to the Army, it makes sense that it would have gone through a great number of alterations, repackings, and overhauls. To find one in this condition is nothing short of spectacular. This spectacular set comes ready for further research and display!
The M2 Flamethrower
The M2 flamethrower was an American, man-portable, backpack flamethrower that was used in World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. The M2 was the successor to the M1 and M1A1 flamethrowers. Although its burn time was around 7 seconds long, and the flames were effective around 20–40 meters, it was still a useful weapon. With the arrival of flamethrower tanks, the need for flamethrower-carrying infantrymen to expose themselves to enemy fire had been greatly reduced.
Though some M2s were sold off, the majority were scrapped.
The M2, which was the WWII model, had hexagonal gas caps and hourglass frames. It was also called the M2-2, M2 for the tank groups and -2 for the wand type. The M2A1-2 is the variation of the M2 devised during the Korean War. These had straight sided backpack frames, vented gas caps, a cylinder sized regulator and a safety valve. These are much more common today than WWII models.
M2A1-7 was a flamethrower used by the American troops during the Vietnam War. It is the updated version of the M2A1-2 unit used during The Korean War.
- This product is not available for shipping in US state(s): California, Colorado, New Jersey, North Carolina, and South Carolina
This product is not available for international shipping.
- Not available for export. Totally deactivated and inert. Legal in most locations within the United States without a license. Please be sure to check your State and local laws and regulations before purchase.
- Not eligible for payment with Paypal or Amazon
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