willysmjeeps.com

Like so many others before, I have a question about hood numbers. I have an M38A1 jeep and it’s definitely a 12-1954 production vehicle, Serial number 78913(Via the data plates). The vehicle, though highly modified with a winch, 12V, wrong tires,and incorrect engine, has all the attributes of a USMC vehicle.(Lifting bumpers and shackles). I was told it came out of Barstow CA. All numbers were sanded off before I acquired the vehicle. It definitely was Marine green with some Marine markings on it. (Drain plug warnings in yellow etc). Research on this page has shown that a vehicle produced 200 vehicles before mine was definitely an Army 12-54 vehicle with a 2A hood number. Is there a chance that mine was one of the vehicles that was handed off from the Army in the 1960s? Does anyone have a guess what the correct USMC hood number should be for this vehicle?
I’m down to plotting out and painting my last stencils for the hood for Veterans Day. I’m considering just using the army 2A1098 number for this vehicle as it is not a restoration vehicle unlike the others that I own. This number would be 200 up from the known vehicle serial and hood number I mentioned.
I have 4 other vehicles prepped and ready for Veterans Day. It would be nice to have this one numbered.

Steve

Pinning down a Marine hood number is tougher then an Army hood number. The Army hood numbers were assigned in lots to match the number of jeeps procured on each specific contract and they followed essentially in order except for a few hundred delayed jeeps that were late leaving the plant. Over their 10 to 15 years of service with the Army they were bounced around between units and serial numbers became much less sequential within a unit. Then as the Army retired them in the 60's for the m151's they were released to DRMO in many lots and when the Marines decided to rescue them they were of course rescued in many smaller lots. These lots were assigned hood numbers at Barstow or Albany depots as they were processed. As you can see by now the more rigid factory order of serials was no longer possible. As a rule if you cannot find the USMC hood number under your paint, the serial will not help you. The dash "Responsible Agency plate is not a lot of help because those units processed thru the two depots had USMC/USMC responsible agency plates installed. There are very few paths to follow for research an individual M38A1's USMC service.

Thanks Wes for your very prompt and helpful reply. Your answer was pretty much what I suspected. I though that I should at least try as you may have had a vehicle in your lists that nearly matched my vehicle profile.
Tomorrow I’ll fire up the stencil plotter and cross the hood numbers off of my Veterans Day to do list.
Thanks again
Steve