Description
Western Super X Rimfire Cartridges – Original Circa 1962 Box
This Western Super X Rimfire Cartridges box is an original circa 1962 package for Western Cartridge Company .22 rimfire ammunition. The box is marked Super X and identifies a 29 grain Lubaloy coated loading, making it a strong mid-century example of American commercial rimfire packaging with clear period branding and load information.
Western Super X Rimfire Cartridges
The packaging uses the bold yellow and red Super X design associated with Western rimfire ammunition of the period. Visible text identifies the cartridges as Rim Fire Cartridges, while the side panel highlights Superior Accuracy, Positive Functioning, 29 Gr. Lubaloy Coated Bullet, and Special Dry Wax Lubricant. Those features give the box more appeal than a generic .22 carton because they preserve the exact marketing language and load identity used in the early 1960s.
Construction / Configuration / Pattern
This is a folding paperboard rimfire cartridge box in the compact commercial format used for boxed .22 ammunition. The outer body is printed in bright yellow with red, blue, and black text, giving it strong shelf and display presence. The end panel is marked 22 and Short, while the side also shows the product code X22S. The main selling points printed on the box include the 29 grain Lubaloy coated bullet and the use of a special dry wax lubricant. That combination reflects the era’s emphasis on reliable feeding, reduced fouling, and clean handling in small-bore sporting ammunition.
Historical Context / Provenance / Development
Boxes like this belong to the mature postwar period of American commercial rimfire ammunition. By the early 1960s, .22 ammunition had become one of the most common and recognizable sporting products in the country. It served for informal target shooting, small game use, plinking, and general utility shooting. Because of that broad market, ammunition makers invested heavily in branding, recognizable box design, and short technical claims that could be understood at a glance.
The Super X name sits squarely within that tradition. Western used it to signal performance and quality, while terms like Lubaloy coated and Special Dry Wax Lubricant reflected period efforts to distinguish one rimfire loading from another. That language is part of what makes surviving boxes interesting today. They do more than identify caliber. They show how manufacturers explained accuracy, function, and bullet construction to the consumer at a specific moment in mid-century shooting culture.
The circa 1962 dating also gives the box a useful collecting identity. It places the piece in the era when colorful commercial ammunition packaging had reached a mature and highly recognizable form. For collectors of rimfire material, cartridge boxes, and American sporting history, examples like this help anchor a .22 rifle display in the right period.
Condition
This box presents well overall as a period paper ammunition package. The colors remain strong, and the main product markings are still easy to read. Light edge wear and corner wear are present, which is normal for surviving cartridge packaging of this type. Even so, the box keeps strong display value because the Super X branding and side-panel load details remain clear.
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