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How do you mark your bumper?

GoHot229

Member
I'm a Vietnam Vet and many of you out there are too, some from Korea, the forgotten Vets in my opinion, deserving recognition too. As far as parades and all go, I have no problem with folks playing the part, dressing in a period uniform while their enjoying their MV, parade or casual week-end or what-not. But don't BS me with a Eddie Murphy ....oh yea, I was in Duck wow, and bing moo, and wang chung etc. you will only embaress yourself, I was there and I'll know when the BS starts rising, as will just about any Vet. I just thought I'd get that out of the way first.....now I want to finish off my Deuce with the proper letters and unit designation and being a Vet ofcourse I'll be wanting to do it up in my in-country #'s The unit I was in there. I guess it realy makes no difference if you go authentic or not, after all they were all de-comissioned units, and in private hands. I would avoid the door printing (for official use only) from a legal standpoint, it may be cause for a roust by Law Enforcement....or not, but on a military reservation it would ... But really there are more important issues to adress first on your unit, like road-worthiness and such, the last thing should be the paintjob, and then its finished. But we may not all have the same intention for these MV's and get novelty paintjobs, like the one here on the forum painted BLUE CAMO......cool enough, but hardly authentic or the Red Ex-Firetrucks, or the White Watertrucks, Black Guntrucks etc.
 

Lex_Ordo

Member
539
6
18
Location
Long Island, NY
That's where my head was. I wanted the truck to be all 383, to match my trailer.
Since an all green truck would have been a darker OD, with white letters, and this making it the VN era, I didn't want to put white letters and VN era markings on it.

I also didn't want it to look like it was still in service with the 114th Inf, so I chose the solid 383, with the general stencil in black. No bumper marks, and no BS.
Just a restored Military vehicle with no unit ID, and no branch of service. Painted in solid 383 with general stenciling to show it is a military vehicle.
 

jeep-Jeep

New member
304
1
0
Location
Liberty Hill Texas
I left the unit markings off my m38 but have acquired several deuces out of the 36th div which sponsors our MVPA local club and in which we help with many historical events .
my intention is to recover the original markings on at least one of the trucks
 

Bob H

Well-known member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
3,140
160
63
Location
Huron National Forest, Michigan USA
I prefer to use the unit #'s it had.
Althought the truck id is sometimes changed to HQ #.

Regarding having bumper markings vs not.
In my experience, I get the same reactions from people both ways.
The average person just doesn't notice bumper markings.

Yet, in my town, the military could roll through, and better than half the town would assume it was me. :roll:
 

littlebob

New member
1,548
26
0
Location
Baton Rouge LA
For those of you that have restored your trucks...

Did you mark your bumpers with the same markings that came on the truck whether you bought from GL, or private?
Or
Did you mark your truck with another units identification? Ie, your units ID if you were in the service.
Or
Did you make your own number up?
Or
Did you leave it off entirely?

Just curious, as I am trying to decide what to do.
Don't want to seem like a poser eithier, Still not sure what to do with mine, but no numbers require much less work. I thought about using Div, Reg and Btln # numbers for my sons YM unit or the local USMC unit, but will probably leave them plain. To register the hood number in LA it would not be correct anyway. When I am in uniform for the YM functions, I have to explain that I did not serve.
 

Lex_Ordo

Member
539
6
18
Location
Long Island, NY
Well we're all painted!

Bumper marks are gone...
Both sides of the hood, inside the doors & map box have the truck serial #
Fuel tank, battery box, driver's door air tank drain reminder and TPs are all on in flat black.

Truck looks great!
maybe in the future I will add some bumpr marks, but for now it is plain.
 

halftrack43

New member
28
0
0
Location
Lake Grove/NY
I dedicated mine to my Buddy's unit that he served with, since he has helped me so much with it, and so did his men before he retired. I also run there colors during Parades and shows. 1/69 INF (M) HQ-1
Rick
 

Carl_in_NH

Member
834
7
18
Location
Wilton NH
Painted in solid 383 with general stenciling to show it is a military vehicle.
This is exactly what I'm planning on - no unit or service markings, just standard stenciling for things like tire pressure, fuel type, and the other standard cautions and warnings. Simple and basic.
 

dc3coyote

New member
1,393
19
0
Location
Chattanooga TN
I painted USCG on one of mine and parked it on base..The reservists kept climbing on it and trying to use it. They seem to think that just cause its green it belongs to them. One even tried to tell me that he brought it to the unit. I went ahead and blacked out the USCG and wrote MINE on it instead.
 

poof

Dirty Hippie
568
19
18
Location
Wisconsin, Watertown
My Unit In Germany.. Bumper numbers were my vehicle.. I drove an M113 not a deuce
my first vehicle was HQ 111. and was a track.
I had 4 vehicles I drove during the 4 years in Germany
an m577a1 a new 577a2 an m113a1 and a nice M151a2
J.P.
 

kendelrio

Well-known member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
2,677
8,646
113
Location
Alexandria, La
The vehicle, IMHO, is the center of attention at parades etc. When you go to a museum, aren't the displays as accurate as possible? An M/V that is restored is nothing but a rolling museum display.
How many times have you seen museum tour guides in period costumes? I'm sure they weren't in the era they are displaying.

As a vet, I have no problem with someone in a PERIOD uniform displaying their truck. As long as the uniform is worn correctly and with respect and no attempt to pass as a "former" is made, I see it as a representation of a conflict that honors the men and women that served.

Again, my humble opinion and 2cents

BTW, I put my old unit markings on my deuce....
 
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