GM Stamped NOERA Oiler

[pjones]

I recently came across a box of 4" base oilers. They were painted and/or rusty and I couldnt make out the brand(s). A few days ago I put one in some vinegar to soak and cleaned it up today. Not only was I suprised to find that it was a Noera but also that it had a unusual GM (General Motors?) stamp. Has anyone ever seen one like it? I included photos of my other Noera for comparison.









phil

[retro-roco]

Very Cool!!

[lucakiki]

Yes, very interesting! Lucky find for sure.

[Silly's MB]

Nice find Phil, I have never seen one before.

[Nikko]

Hi phil

That is way cool to see that stamping on an oilcan
thanks for shearing the photos with us

Cheers from The North
Nikko

[lt.luke]

I could be WAY off, but I think of "post-war" when I see this. As can be illustrated on such parts as the brake drums seen on jeeps and trailers, the bowtie was the typical way GM trademarked their stuff during and before the war (the bowtie appeared in 1913, but I couldn't find when the [GM] appeared).

[zoob]

Unfortunately, I do not agree. I have several WWII items with the same "GM" stamp on them. Such as: hydraulic jack, jack handle, wheel wrench bar, spark lug wrench, etc. But, this is the first oil can I have seen.

[lt.luke]

Unfortunately, I do not agree. I have several WWII items with the same "GM" stamp on them. Such as: hydraulic jack, jack handle, wheel wrench bar, spark lug wrench, etc. But, this is the first oil can I have seen.

Then I stand corrected

[Wingnutt]

I have several WWII items with the same "GM" stamp on them. Such as: hydraulic jack, jack handle, wheel wrench bar, spark lug wrench, etc.

Please post some photos of these items when you get a chance, zoob. I have never seen or heard of a "GM" stamp on any piece of vehicular accessory before.

Kirk,
What are your thoughts on this development?

[lt.luke]

I have several WWII items with the same "GM" stamp on them. Such as: hydraulic jack, jack handle, wheel wrench bar, spark lug wrench, etc.

Please post some photos of these items when you get a chance, zoob. I have never seen or heard of a "GM" stamp on any piece of vehicular accessory before.

Kirk,
What are your thoughts on this development?

Assuming you are referring to WWII vehicles... In which case me either. I tried to google C1/2 Corvette onboard tool sets yesterday to no avail.

[retro-roco]

Kirk,
What are your thoughts on this development?

I don't have enough historical references to know either way, and in fact don't even know enough to have an opinion I would think that if this was a common piece, we would have seen more of them.

[zoob]

From memory, I think I also have some G506 Chevy tools with the same GM stamp. I an bi expert on computers...and I have never posted photos before....

[retro-roco]

I am big proponent of period documentation, when it is available. This Noera oil can has all the features prescribed by the documentation that I'm aware of, except the GM logo. I have also seen other tools with similar GM logos, but their mere existence does not prove that they were of war-time or even military use.

The government required several manufacturers to remove their logos (is Ford logo jeeps, CCKW's with the GMC cbadge, Chevy's with embossed side panels, etc.) but I''m not aware of this restriction ever having been applied to tool manufacturers.


I'm thinking that as many CCKW's as GMC produced, that we would see a lot of these oil cans, unless they were a small batch procured before the main CCKW contracts were let. (Or were they even CCKW related??)

There is also the issue of the logo indicating GM, and not GMC... I'm not sure what the ramifications there might be.

[Wingnutt]

I don't have enough historical references to know either way...

Me neither, Kirk, but I was curious enough about a few aspects of the logo to do some on-line research this morning.

From memory, I think I also have some G506 Chevy tools with the same GM stamp.

That's precisely one of the aspects that I was wondering about. The idea that Chevrolet and GMC were building G506 and G508 trucks, respectively, in collaboration with each other and the parent company, and the parent company having some sort of centralized acquisition and parts function for both of them? Is that they way it happened? My understanding is that the operations, like the plants, were more independent, with the CCKW's coming out of the recently acquired Yellow Truck division in Pontiac, and the 1.5 tons coming out of the Chevy plant. But I would look for you, Kirk, or Cat Man (I have PM'd him) to correct me if I'm wrong about that.

The other aspect I was wondering about was the logo itself. It looks modern to me with sans serif font. Per Justia, the logo was registered in 1956, first use in 1939. So I ran searches for vintage ads on eBay, hoping to find use of the "[GM]" logo. As one would expect, plenty of GM, GMC, and Chevy ads in 1942, 1943, and 1944. The GMC ads featuring CCKW trucks alongside commercial trucks did not use the GM logo; they used the GMC logo with the fancy intertwined letters. The Chevrolet ads featuring their 1.5 ton trucks used the Chevy bowtie logo. Most of the General Motors ads don't have a "[GM]" logo. The ones that do are either generic (patriotic, or touting diesel power, etc), or are ads for one of their other companies (e.g., Allison aircraft engines, Fisher tanks). And, the letters have serifs. Just for grins, I searched on more modern ads. They still had serifs up through the 50's.

Lastly, I contacted the GM Heritage Center with a few questions and they said they would have their lead curator get back to me next week. Maybe he will know something.

I an bi expert on computers...and I have never posted photos before....

When you hit the 'POSTREPLY' button, look below the white reply box, below the 'Save' 'Preview' and 'Submit' buttons. You'll see two tabs: 'Options' and 'Upload attachment'. Click on 'Upload attachment', and you will be see prompts to able to browse your computer for the folder where the JPEG files are, and add the file to your reply. Or you could PM me, I would give you my email address, you could send the images to me, and I would post them for you.

[Wingnutt]

There is also the issue of the logo indicating GM, and not GMC... I'm not sure what the ramifications there might be.

I was thinking the same thing, Kirk. I was typing my post when you posted. Seems a little ahead of GM running like the Borg.