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M275, 36, 342..

Charlie175

Charlie175

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I've seen a few M275's out there, but they seem rare. Same power as a M35?
I don't think I have ever seen a M36 or 342.

When I was in ('88-92) there were M35's around, but there was a big change to the 5 ton BMY trucks. Our unit had no organic trucks so we depended on other units for transportation, you definitely had a wide range of driver experience. We could get a Platoon in 1 deuce with rucks! Sure would curse the driver that showed up in the winter without the front cargo flap installed.
To help foster unit cooperation we would get the drivers out of the cab and on the range (We got a lot of range time). They rarely got to shoot, so giving them instruction on weapons and shooting them was a lot of fun for them. I tend to think this motivated them to show up on time to pick us up or deliver something.
 
BKubu

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The M275s are from the same family as the M35 (both M44 series), but they have a shorter chassis, different fuel tank, and other tractor-related differences. The M36s are somewhat rare, but they are out there. Also, the M342s are even more rare, but they, too, are out there. 11ECHO on this list has one, for example. I believe COUNTRY also does (or did) have one. My brother was an Army Engineer with both the 82nd and 101st ABN Divisions in the 80s and early 90s. He told me they did have M342 deuce dump trucks, but they got phased out fairly quickly because 2-1/2 tons of dirt/rock/etc. is not much. They then went with 5 ton dumps.
 
Charlie175

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Kind of ironic that all those years ago I barely noticed these trucks and now I own 2.
I looked at a M275 locally but was leery of it as it was at a construction company and they had used it to haul dozers and stuff. I figured they had pulled the snot out of it.
The M818 just looks awkward, maybe its not.
 
HDN

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When I was truck hunting, I considered driving down to NJ to look at a former Marine Corp M36A2 painted tan. I figured it was a Marine deuce since it had the big "paper clips" welded to the front bumper. The M36s are big deuces, having a 17-foot bed with one dropside and a support bearing for the drive shaft going to the rear axles. I think the rarest kind of M36s are the M36A3s - I'd love to get one of those to go with my M35A3! But they're a long truck, longer than the LWB 5-tons, and I don't really have a good place to park a truck that long right now :p It would be cool to get a replica Hawk missile system to put in the bed of one!

I'm not at all familiar with M275s or M342s - anyone have good pictures of those to share?
 
HDN

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Charlie175 said:
My wife is from Penn Yan. Pretty area up there, last time we went it has changed a lot. Lots of Vineyards now...
Click to expand...
It's never a bad thing to stay thirsty in this area ;)

Thanks for posting that picture of the M275! I want to say that I've seen some of those tractors with small cargo beds mounted on them, maybe at the past York, PA MVPA convention.
 
Charlie175

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I can't recall seeing them around (Hawk). 24th ID was at Ft Stewart but it seems that I only remember the Stinger systems. Anyway, glad to meet someone who drove these!
 
HDN

HDN

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Charlie175 said:
What was the difference in the A2 and A3's?
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The A3 deuces were built between 1995 and 1998 or so out of recycled A2 parts. It took about 3 trucks' worth of good sheet metal, axles, drivetrain, and suspension components to built two A3 trucks. The A3 trucks also featured a Cat 3116 diesel with a 4-speed Allison automatic transmission, which relocated the headlights from the grill to the fenders. All the trucks came with in-cab heaters, 3-point seat belts, a suspension seat for the driver, CTIS, 365/80R20 super singles, and split-circuit brakes similar to those systems on the late 80s A2 trucks. Class lights were added to the rear end as well as a bunch of parking lights.

They were built to supplement the delivery of the LMTV where there were concerns that Army Reserve and National Guard units wouldn't be able to fully acquire LMTVs in time. The trucks were built at 2/3 the cost of a new LMTV at the time. The A3 program was also known as the Extended Service Program (ESP), with most trucks built by AM General and some built by some other Army depot. About 5800 total A3 trucks were built.
 
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HDN

HDN

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Charlie175 said:
I didn't realize the other sub-series of trucks (Other than M35) went thru the A3 modernization program.
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According to the TM only M35A3, M36A3, and M109A4 trucks were built. The chassis was designated M44A3, which is a callback to the singled-out version of the 2.5-ton REO chassis from the 1950s. I'm not sure if other M44A3 trucks existed with different bodies than those shown in the TM.
 
SCSG-G4

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HDN said:
The M36s are big deuces, having a 17-foot bed with one dropside and a support bearing for the drive shaft going to the rear axles. I think the rarest kind of M36s are the M36A3s - I'd love to get one of those to go with my M35A3! But they're a long truck, longer than the LWB 5-tons, and I don't really have a good place to park a truck that long right now :p
Click to expand...
The deuce M36's have a 17 foot bed, the long bed five tons have a 20 foot long bed, the 814 model. Member EMD367 owns one, it's nickname is "The Long Easy". He also has to wear two watches when traveling as the front and back of the truck are in different time zones. I have an M36 with an S-280 on it, and it has the paperclips on the front bumper.
 
country

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