BACKGROUND: Although the German army of WWII still utilized a large quantity of horses the standard infantry division, prior to 1943, would have contained roughly nine hundred assorted gasoline powered vehicles that would have included staff cars, motorcycles, prime movers and trucks and tractors. As with any location in a moist continental climate, as in Germany, rubber tire vehicles were prone to slippage in icy winter conditions which resulted in the use of traction chains. The traction chains were produced in a variety of patterns with some designed for specific vehicles and others for general usage. Of Note: An example of this type of traction chain was featured in an advertisement in "Die Wehrmacht", (The Armed Forces), magazine in February 1938, (page 6), and the April 29^TH 1942 issue, (page 14), also has a Fritz Hetz Kettenfabrik advertisement for "Raupengreiferkette", (Caterpillar gripper chains). The Fritz Hetz advertisement includes the text, "Neuartige Konstruktion eines Greifers: Die Kette wird auf der Innenseite das Rades mittels einer Oese in einen Haken eingehängt und dann, wie unser Bild zeigt auf der Außenseite durch eine einfache Hebelkonstuktion eingeklinkt. Diese neue Methode macht das Anheben des Wagens überflüssig, vereinfacht die Anbringung und spart Zeit.", (Novel construction of a gripper: The chain is attached on the inside the wheel by means of an eyelet into a hook and then, as our picture shows, on the outside by a simple lever construction latch. This new method makes the raising of the vehicle superfluous, simplifies the operation and saves time).

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: The tooled, steel construction winter traction chain consists of two roughly, 3 3/8" long steel, end rods connected by heavy, coiled, springs to each side to permit the chain to conform to the contours of a tire. Each of the end rods have a small triangular side panel with punched holes which secure heavy, tooled steel, chain links. The traction chain shows moderate to heavy surface spotting through-out. The traction chain has no visible manufacturer’s markings. Neat vehicle accessory.