Owens-Illinois Glass Company - Muncie, Indiana, Plant

Glass Mine Baffles

Best Detectors of

Nazi and Jap Armies

TOLEDO, Ohio, Sept. 6 (AP) - One of America's secret weapons for use against both Nazis and Japs is a land mine made of glass.

This was revealed today by Col. J. C. Shouvlin, ordnance chief of the Cincinnati ordnance district.

For months the story of the non-metallic mine was a closely held secret. Its design and mechanism remain even now a military secret.

The glass body of the mine is manufactured by the Insulux Products division plant of Owens-Illinois Glass Co., in Muncie, Ind., on machines designed for the manufacture of glass building blocks.

Development of the glass body of the mine was accomplished through the combined efforts of the Cincinnati ordinance district, under Colonel Shouvlin, and engineers of the Owens-Illinois firm.

Early experiments in the development of non-metallic mines were with other non-metal materials. In order to produce large quantities, however, it was desirable to select a material that could be fabricated automatically. Glass was a natural choice.

Being completely non-metallic, the mine cannot be located by magnetic finders usually used, or set off by electronic detonators.

Fortunately for the war effort was the fact that machines had been perfected in recent years for the manufacture of glass block, used widely in building construction.

The mine known as the M-5, is for use against tanks, trucks, and other vehicular weapons of the enemy.

Ina addition to the glass parts in the mine assembly, certain plastic parts also are manufactured by Owens-Illinois in its plastics division.