Posted: Thu Apr 28, 2016 3:00 pm Post subject: 1964 M38A1 research help
Hello everyone my name is Kim I have a 1964 M38A1. I picked it up last year and I am neck deep in it's restoration. It looks to be an old radio rig. I have come to this conclusion based on the large power cables ran to the back. I will be ready to paint shortly and I have tried to find its bumper number but I have failed! I know it was a special order from the Marine Corp in 1963. The serial number is 7105 95473.
Looks to have all original parts as far as top and doors. It has the F134 Hurricane with T-90 transmission. I still need to find the engine number to see if it is withing a few numbers to be original. Any help you can offer to find it's service file and or bumper number would be great. I have contacted DRMO in the hopes they could help but no one ever answers the phone!
Hello Kim, Welcome aboard. I must ask: Guy or Girl Kim?
The services did not maintain vehicle records after they were surplused out.
The only chance on finding any assignment info is the SF-97 the jeep left DRMO with and any old painted numbers you can find on the jeeps old paint.
Do you have the complete set of dash data plates and the patent plate with that serial on them? That would be an OCT/NOV 63 unit and the Marine hood numbers then were in the 311XXX range.
Your responsible agency plate should match this one.
Patent plate should look like yours.
Engine serial is here. Do not use any heavy abrasive cause the numbers are very light. Use some spray brake cleaner & a dobie pad or scotchbrite pad.
I'm a girl. I have the plate from behind the passenger seat, all other data plates are gone. I have spent hours looking for numbers on the frame and engine but have found nothing. There are really small bumper numbers in yellow but they are not where they should be and almost completely gone. I had the tub sand blasted and primered but I am waiting to do the hood and fenders till I can sit with fine sand paper and slowly try to uncover a unit designation. I really hate to just make up a hood number.
Hi Kim, great to see another contract owner. From my research, the owners are basically up a creek with the contract keeps on finding its service history. The mc keept all their records in writing and was tossed when jeep left. Also from my research and I may be wrong, by the time of Kaiser manufactured the contracts, the engine serials didn't match the jeep plate serials. So basically if you didn't magucaly against all odds get the paper service history book in the volcanic, then markings is only thing left. Even if you have the markings, that will only tell you it's number and were it was last.
It might help if you post your location. Carefully note the location of any holes in the back and on the outside of the body. Those can frequently be matched up to the type of antennas and radio racks that they had installed and can be a big clue in determining in determining what was in your jeep. Look for signs of the axe, etc be relocated since the radios were often mounted on top of the rear wheels in place of the axe. Also take a close look at the generator and see if has a higher than normal output. Also look for signs of the big 100 Amp rectifier that were mounted in front of the grill for many radio trucks. My M38A1 Jeep still had a MRC-35A data plate on it along with a 75 Amp generator that was specially built at a USMC Depot. On mine the rear seat was replaced with a large box for spare radio parts and the two rear seat brackets in the back were cut off flush with the sides of the wheel wells. Oddly, my Jeep was a 1952 that was converted to MRC-35A but the only other surviving MRC-35A was converted from a 1963 jeep!
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