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WWII ETO Marked Equipment


285th FAOB
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Yes it was ETO only..... the color stripes are coded to coincide with the 5 digit unit serial number assigned to every unit, down to company level in the ETO. The directive covering the system is contained in HQ ETOUSA document entitled " European Theater of Operations, Preparation for Overseas Movement, Long Sea Voyage" dated 21 July 1943. I searched for years but have never been able to find the complete directory listing of unit serial numbers. It must be the size of a phone book. I published an article on the subject in 1993 or 1994 in Army Motors. Color codes are as follows : 1= buff 2=OD 3=Yellow,bright 4=green, bright 5= grey 6=blue, dark 7= maroon 8=red bright 9= white lead 0=brown dark Color for last digit in unit serial number is middle stripe, next to last digit in unit serial number are top and bottom stripes .

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More info : one of the V Corps movement directives for Operation NEPTUNE states that equipment was to be marked as follows:

Color bars reflecting the higher unit ( Regiment or separate battalion) with the company 5 digit code stencilled above the bars. An earlier version of color bar marking was used in Italy in 1943, but never found complete documentation on the earlier system. It seems a differnt system from the one prescribed in the ETO-POM Long Sea Voyage directive. The only unit serial number data I have is from Movement Tables for units landing on OMAHA beach. Steve McG

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Johan Willaert
The only unit serial number data I have is from Movement Tables for units landing on OMAHA beach. Steve McG

 

Hi STeve,

 

Could you share that with us??? Or at least the units of the 29ID???

 

Thanks

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Great information! Do you have any information on the five digit code of 42781 with the bars underneath that look like bright green,dark blue, bright green? Thanks

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I have two pieces in my collection with the bars painted on them. This one is on a M1935 bed roll issued to Lt. Mel Cummins. He was in an artillery unit in Southern France.

bar_1.JPG

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  • 3 weeks later...

Hi everybody,

 

a few weeks ago I bought a duffle bag here in the area of Kitzingen, Germany. I found the enlistment information on the page of the national archive were it said that he served in the Air Corps. Now I was trying find out more about the unit. The number I found on the bag is 52290, the bars are so faded away that you can't tell what colour they were because the guy who I bought it from used it as a cover for his opening hours sign. And the duffle bag is stamped 1943. I already looked on the website that was posted earlier but I didn't find anything with this number. So if anybody has some information I'd be very greatfull.

 

Thanks already.

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