1952 M38

joebuck · Post by **joebuck** » Sat Jun 27, 2020 8:49 am

What would be the Rolling weight of a M38 ? I know the gross weight etc but is rolling weight different? Thanks

Post by **wesk** » Sat Jun 27, 2020 10:18 am

There are many weights involved in the operation of a M38.

1 - Empty weight is usually without fuel & oil and no extra on board equipment or cargo.

2 - Gross weight is usually the max allowable operating weight.

3 - Rolling weight usually refers to the jeeps average operating weight which usually includes tools, oil, gas and a driver.

The only source we have for weights are the shipping data plates in the dash plate sets. There were two plates. One for the early 1950/51 M38's and one for MC34351 & up. However the shipping weight plate describes Empty Weight to include fuel and oil. So if you add your driver's weight you would have what you are calling rolling weight.

RonD2 · Post by **RonD2** » Sat Jun 27, 2020 8:26 pm

Hi Joebuck,
I'm a rookie --- never heard of "rolling weight" before. Gross, net, tare, and payload are what I'm used to hearing with vehicles and trailers.

A good source for weight, payload, and other specs that affect M38 performance are on pages 16 and 17 of the Army technical manual TM9-8012 Operation and Organizational Maintenance.

It's not uncommon for data plates to be missing, but there's not much reason for missing tech manuals....

...especially when they're free for download from this great forum!

Good luck!