1980's usmc markings needed

[998Junkie]

Would it be completely wrong if I put the BLT 1/8 on the bumper like the army did?

No...while there was a basic marking I remember my m151 had bumper markings.

No markings were wrong until someone told you to take that crap off.

 

[998Junkie]

cool while you guys were floating all around in 1983 I was assigned to Marine Ground defense force, Gitmo bay. Of course that was before it was popular..

At least we know you didn't order the code red.

Diego Garcia or GITMO.... Makes Marine Barracks Gaum sound really good.

Semper Fi

 

[F18hornetM]

At least we know you didn't order the code red.

Diego Garcia or GITMO.... Makes Marine Barracks Gaum sound really good.

Semper Fi

Ha Ha, I dont think any of them sound great.
To think it was the only choice I had while i was in. It was okinawa or Cuba and i thought wow, the carribean...so picked Cuba. Other buddys went to okinawa and got to see the Phillipines and korea...oh well, was great swimming and the beer was cold.

 

[F18hornetM]

Great question. M813RC posted how to convert an Army truck number to a Marine truck number. He may know about the numbers on the doors. I would like to know also as ill be ready to stencil mine in the next few days

 

[Oldfart]

I hate to horn in on this awesome thread, but I have a similar question to the OP. My daughter is nearing a repaint of her 1958 M43 and we were wondering about unit markings for her truck. It appears to be a liberated vehicle because the glove box ID plates are removed and there is a USMC tag on the driver’s side. It is a simple tag with I think 6 digits. It has the Marine style lift shackles and under all the civilian 4 color camo paint we can only find a gray paint. Under the hood and in the cab there are several different shades of OD. Not being able to find any original bumper or body numbers, she is thinking she would like to apply some that represent service in Vietnam. We just can't seem to find examples of Marine vehicles of that era.

Thanks in advance for any help!

 

[M813rc]

Great question. M813RC posted how to convert an Army truck number to a Marine truck number. He may know about the numbers on the doors. I would like to know also as ill be ready to stencil mine in the next few days

All I know about the RUC numbers on the doors is that they will tell you who owns a truck if you know how to read them. One of the guys on here can read them, but it is apparently not just a simple x=y thing! I suspect the first number is the division the vehicle belongs to (1,2,3 for active duty; 4 for reserves), but don't know that for sure.
Again, I am hoping my Motor T son will be able to clarify some of this for us (without violating OpSec, of course) when he gets to the FMF.

Cheers

 

[M813rc]

... there is a USMC tag on the driver’s side. It is a simple tag with I think 6 digits.
...under all the civilian 4 color camo paint we can only find a gray paint. Under the hood and in the cab there are several different shades of OD. Not being able to find any original bumper or body numbers, she is thinking she would like to apply some that represent service in Vietnam.

Vietnam-era Marine trucks would be painted in 24052 or 34052 green (the 2 indicates semi-gloss, the 3 indicates flat paint) with the markings in yellow.

Since the Navy provide all medical services for the Marines, it is possible they may have painted it grey at some point for non-tactical use?
From my observations, all field ambulances used in support of the Marines are painted green or camo with Marine markings.

The 6-digit number on the data plate is the number that would be painted on the hood, and front and/or back of the vehicle. For vehicles like the M43 that don't have a rear bumper, the markings are painted on the body.

CGarbee has an excellent web page on Marine markings of M37's of that era, the M43 should be almost the same -
http://www.garbee.net/~cabell/usmcmarkings.htm

Cheers

 

[F18hornetM]

Pretty cool info on that site about lots of things from that time period

 

[F18hornetM]

My son cut these out for me. He made them from the pics some of you guys posted. Maybe not perfect, but look pretty good. An old Army national guard truck is now offically a USMC truck.

 

[M813rc]

Outstanding.

Semper Fi!

Cheers

 

[Vintage iron]

Here are some pictures of a sample area, that I painted to see if I liked the paint. That is a original USMC Jerry can that has been in storage for 30 years. All I did is clean the can with kitchen cleaner, it was covered in oil. I wire wheeled the area and then primed it with Rustoleum. I let it dry then painted everything with Sherwin Williams premium flat. The color is River Rock 2139-10. The paint covers great and drys fast. I like the WWII USMC olive drab better in flat. I think it looks great! I can't believe my buddy had a original 1965 USMC Jerry can in his shed. Oh, he had the Jerry can strap too. It has never been used. I think it was meant to be!

 

[Oldfart]

Speaking of Marine gas cans, this is one Ghostdriver has commandeered for her M43 from our stock of cans. She is testing OD colors for her M43 on the can. It is a 1943 vintage can. It had been painted red over OD with the word "Training" painted up and down on the narrow sides. There was red primer under the OD paint.

 

[SteveKuhn]

"...Sherwin Williams premium flat. The color is River Rock 2139-10. The paint covers great and drys fast. I like the WWII USMC olive drab better in flat..."

Clarification, because I'm doing a ton of testing right now using Ben Moore products and from the photo your color looks dangerously close to the orig color under the layers on my NYARNG truck. I'm killing myself to duplicate it in acrylic and alkyd. None of the Gillespie is right:

• Was the premium flat acrylic housepaint? What was the product # (not color number)?
• Is the USMC od different in color than the 2139-10, and if so what product and color number?
• Last photo is a little fuzzy. Were all areas painted with the same thing or is the can different?

Thanks.

 

[Vintage iron]

I am going to the shop today. I will take another picture today. I will get the info off the can too. I can tell you that (2139-10 River rock) is almost a perfect match to USMC Olive Drab. well not a perfect match, it is flat instead of low luster! But I am sure Sherwin Williams can mix up that sheen for you too.

 

[Emmett]

There have been some USMC type of unit markings found on vehicles. I have a M109A3 that was bought about 14 years ago. It had the 3 color MERDEC pattern hand brushed on.
On the doors, hood and back door was a diamond, kinda like <10> . The inside was red and the lines outside were yellow.
I have seen Mighty Mites with simmular markings. The RUC number is very common but not always painted on vheicles...it would be interesting when they started the RUC numbering system.

 

[Emmett]

It's also important to note that the USMC had mods that the Army mostly didn't.
Many of the M-35 series trucks had steel rings / hooks welded on the front bumpers and lifting arms installed between the rear axles. Did you ever wonder what that steel pin is for attached to the top of the spring assy???? It's for the lifting arms that also go through that funny bent eye that is welded to the bed.
The M151 has the lifting rings on their front bumpers.
These mods were for lifting the vehicles on ships. There are a few more USMC only mods on different vehicles but those are just a few.

I guess if I was smart I would post photo's...

 

[M813rc]

The loops on the front bumpers are usually referred to as 'paper clips' for obvious reasons.
Oddly enough, I have seen quite a few Army trucks in recent years with the remnants of cut-off paper clips on their bumpers. Maybe when the Marines went to an all 5-ton medium cargo fleet, their deuces were seconded to the Army? That usually went the other way around!

Cheers

Pic 1- paper clips and rear lift shackles on a deuce at the museum on Camp Pendleton
Pic 2- detail of the rear shackle, which I think is referred to as an ECC maybe?

.

 

[F18hornetM]

Too cool, I should make them for ours.

 

[Emmett]

Yea, My 109 has the "paper clips" cut off the front bumper. It's a USMC vehicle. I had a chance but dropped the ball to get the hooks for the rear. The ones I saw were a bit different. Didn't have the rounded eye in the end but large clevis's installed.
Someone told me awhile back that they bought a USA Deuce with the paperclips on the front bumper and I laughed telling him that possible the MC was at it again swapping data plates.
Who knows? Mabye the USA installed them as well.

The plot thickens.
ET

 

[shootist]

Mike

I have the 2 tm manuals for USMC colors and markings
contrary to popular belief everywhere I was actually shocked when I read through them, that their vehicles were marked fairly well for what we percieve as markings... So much so that when I mention this to some an all out argument ensues over it- until I show them the TM.
corp vehicles
started with division/battalion/company/platoon markings in 1943 or 44 I think.
*been awhile since I looked at them *(according to USMC SOP for equipment ID) It was then up to each Battalion CO then each Company CO down the line to decide what got marked and how, hence all the diff markings we see or lack of.
The manuals are large and are of the most recent update sometime in the 2k
range, however when reading through you can see how the markings have changed very little if at all since the original decree, if you are familiar with the Corps break down from division level through squad you already know it is very simple, and complicated at the same time, they are unlike any of the other branches of service. Hope this makes sense.
Let me know if you want a copy and I will give it a shot sending it to you. or maybe mail you a copy if i cant email it..
And you can mark it up how you like