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Dodge WC Chassis numbers vs. Bonnet / Hood numbers

AVM Dodge WC Series page 24

Dear Dodge WC enthusiasts,
I would like to share the following and appendices with you.

DOWNLOAD the PDF – Dodge WC-series – Chassis numbers vs. Bonnet / Hood numbers LIST

In recent years I have built a “Chassis numbers versus Bonnet / Hood numbers” list and calculation program for the Dodge WC 4×4 and 6×6 series for myself in MS Excel.
Dodge WC 6×6 … Chassis number series 82 ### ###
To be able to determine the hood number as accurately as possible, for Dodge WC-62/63.
This is based on known production percentages per type and production per year.
And from production data published in various books and the hundreds of now known “Build cards” that are located on various forums and web pages.

I did the same for the Dodge WC 4×4 series / models / types.
Chassis number series 81 500 ### to 81 75# ###
There are only about 256,000 build during WWII.

With knowledge Dodge WC 4×4 series … 51/52/53/54/55/56/57/58/59/60/61/64 … converted into percentages per type, to remain as accurate as possible within the correct range of hood / bonnet numbers of the U.S. Army contract numbers.

However, …
Know that concerning WC 4×4 chassis numbers… In the factories, whole series of 5,000 to 10,000 units randomly were put on the production line.
And so… from storage stocks and stacks whole series of chassis were produced randomly.
Therefore, also the number series of the 4×4 are not just in line and successive.
So, there can be a 5,000 or 10,000 deviations here and there, and thus a month or two differences with your own copy of your build card.
The generated lists are a handle, guideline and an approach.

For the WC-51 and WC-52 I have made a Bonnet / Hood list per year / month.
Based on the contract series of the US Army. (The first two pages in the appendix)

Further in the appendices … an overview with approximately 200+ known chassis numbers from various well-known media such as … www. command-car.com / technik / technikbuildcards.html

Perhaps you can take advantage of this, to determine a reasonably corresponding hood number for your Dodge WC series based on your own chassis number.

See Appendix

Kind regards & green greetings,
Army Vehicle Marking . com

Download / open PDF… click image…

AVM Dodge WC Series 4×4 ChassisNo vs HoodNo v20180316 (PDF)

AVM Dodge WC Series 4x4 ChassisNo vs HoodNo v20180316
AVM Dodge WC Series 4×4 ChassisNo vs HoodNo v20180316

Download / open PDF… click image…

Dodge Serials Book up to 1952 (Compressed PDF)

Dodge Serials Book up to 1952
Dodge Serials Book up to 1952
AVM Dodge WC Series page 01
AVM Dodge WC Series page 01
AVM Dodge WC Series page 24
AVM Dodge WC Series page 24
AVM Dodge WC Series page 25
AVM Dodge WC Series page 25

Some other interesting links for extra research:

http://www.command-car.com/commandcarcom2.html

http://www.t137.com/registry/help/help.htm

http://www.t137.com/registry/help/partspages/SerialNumberGuide/index.html

http://www.t137.com/registry/help/partspages/SerialNumberGuide1920-57/index.html

http://www.t137.com/registry/help/partspages/index.htm

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The WWII Allied & U.S. Star

Possible or impossible? When it depends

“WWII Military Allied Vehicle Stars”

A lot in terms of WWII allied stars, was done even by “free format” and / or lost by interpretation in field orders and memo’s top down, from command to captain, sergeant, corporal to the soldier who had to paint a vehicle.
Except that where consisted “guidelines” introduced by the allied troops like the 1942 US Army – AR 850-5 and some harder to find Commonwealth manuals.

Download as PDF – The WWII Allied & U.S. Star

Before the 1943 Italian Sicily campaign “Operation Husky” and later ETO 1944 France, Normandy “Overlord” / D-Day… it was common for allied vehicles overseas to carry a simple white star as an identifier.

But in the dust and confusion of battle, the allied or “US star” could occasionally be mistaken for a German Cross at ranges over 1000 yards. In fact, tankers and armoured units began painting out the stars to avoid becoming a casualty of ‘friendly fire’, especially from allied air units. The problem got so bad that in this period the term “American Luftwaffe” was coined. (This was a genuine nickname given to the 9th USAAF by allied armoured troops back then.) Experienced units like the 2nd Armoured started painting out their stars altogether.

The (friendly) aircraft recognition circles were completely around and uninterrupted, as well “broken” with 4 and 5 gaps, if they were made from oil board paint mask stencils. There are even WWII photo’s with 8 gap circles.

The broken 4/5 gap circle bands were named “lazy stars or lazy circles” due to the gaps of the paint mask stencils and not filled up anymore to complete the circle band after they were sprayed or painted on a vehicle.

Even “upside-down” inverted 4/5 gap circles upside-down around the stars, like picture left on the 82nd Airborne trailer in 1944 France, Normandy.

There are several thicknesses of the so called “invasion circle” bands around the allied stars. In general, they were 1/5 or 1/7 wide versus the actual star circle diameter! Memo’s from SHEAF (D-Day command) late 1943 / early 1944 prescribe that “the circle band” should be 4 inches nevertheless the star size for friendly aircraft recognition.

For example:
– 1/5 band on a 20 Inch circle diameter star is 4 inches.
– 1/7 band on a 28-inch circle diameter star is 4 inches.
– There are even photo’s taken in Paris 1944 with 4 inches circle-bands around 6-inch stars on the side of jeeps.

The “yellow” circle adopted during Operation Overlord / D-Day 1944 was mostly used by General Patton’s troops. Who were also at the 1943 Italian Sicily campaign / Operation Husky. Even Gen. Patton himself had a yellow circle band everywhere in Europe on his vehicles, like his Dodge Command Car.

British / Commonwealth vehicles were mostly hand “art” painted by the troops.
American troops “brushed away a lot” with cut out stencil markings.

The “crooked” star… “custom” by the British / Canadian / Commonwealth troops, was to stand out from the Americans and they tilted the star, or even put the allied star upside-down on their vehicles.

For more information and or original colour images…Check out the WWII in Colour movie from George Stevens “From D-Day to Berlin”, or check images on the Facebook page of ArmyVehicleMarking.com

The “perfect” WWII U.S. and Allied STAR

Regulation sizing in circle DIAMETER, with the five-star points on a virtual clock at 12:00hrs, 12, 24, 36 and 48 min.

Early U.S. regulations says that the “early red dot” does NOT touch the inner star points.
It touches the inner pentagram lines between the five inner points!

For example, a 10 inch star has a 10 inch circle DIAMETER over its five points. Not 10 inches from point to point.
360 Degrees / 5 star points = a 72 degrees angle.
60 Min / 5 star points = every 12 minutes.

 

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