First off... no one is going to hurt my feelings one bit if someone tells me that something ain't right... because I already feel that way 

Here are the tags... they are held on by screws and who knows what is reality.  The brass Navy plate matches the body tag... so that helps.  The Jeeps original color was Cadet Gray.  Another nod to Navy.  The serial number on the engine was removed some time ago during a previous rebuild when the block was decked... no check in that box.  The engine castings put it at around a 48 and by some sources align with the military applications???  The radiator is a bottom mount which was something changed out in the early 3A series and even though weird things happened between years I am suspicious that it would have made it into a 53?  Have others seen that?  The frame was painted black by the factory... the front cross member under the radiator was also painted body color... and this was not just a splash through the grill but pretty much the whole tube.  Now we get to the next part of the archeology experiment... the side rails on the frame had gray over the black paint. Hmmm... the front and rear diffs have gray on them as well as the front tie rods.  The hubs were first black, then red then gray.  I have seen Civy Cadet Grays with red wheels... potentially painted red at the factory and dressed up with gray for the Navy?  The tub, fenders and grill were all the original metal... all had the same gray base with a whole lot of ugly colors on top.  The engine has the larger military oil filter.  Added a picture of the engine just after bringing it home.

Is there any information on what the Navy did when they bought the civilian CJ3As for domestic use?  Did they dress it up with more gray?  Could a 53 have a bottom mount radiator (could not find the Harris date on the radiator).  Thoughts?

Does it really matter one way or the other... nope.  But if I would like to duplicate as many of these details to get it looking like what the Navy would have done.  The Harris heater I will be installing was not original.   Thank you.

Willys did install bottom mounted radiators at the factory in later years when heavy duty cooling radiators were specified in a contract, like this Navy Jeep.

Can you post a better photo of the Navy plate? It should have the Date Of Delivery which will probably be 12/52.

Thanks for the pictures...I was just curious if it had the M-38 style  instrument cluster and the location of the ignition key....

As I think a little more about this the 453 and the s/n go together fine, so with Bob's input about the radiator it must be a 53..

Get Bob's book for sure....and post pictures of your progress..!

Good eye on the dates Hawk. Interesting indeed..
The 18896 SN is evident on both the patent and data plate. Bonus..

There was another gray on top of the original... lighter in color, and directly under the yellow so I assumed it was primer.  I have found multiple colors and not all of them across all panels.  Factory gray all panels... then a lighter gray assumed primer, a red, a funky 60s/70s metallic aqua, and then the construction yellow that was in the interior of the tub... then the light pale yellow on the exterior.  The PO said that this was a Navy Jeep used for flightline use... and hence the construction yellow.  That does not hold any water based on the construction yellow not to be found on the exterior surfaces and the myriad of other colors underneath.

Good to get a little more of the story and appreciate the feedback... all good to know as I definitely don't want to be telling a tall tale when telling stories about its history.  I guess I just need to get Bob's book  but are there sources available that discuss the story of these Navy Jeeps?

FYI... spent tonight finishing sand blasting the frame... kind of like pulling the string of the sweater... leads to more work... like crack repair 

The registration number on the tag is the hood number. Those tags are cool, they have all the original numbers in one place!

I really don't think there is any advantage to that modified tie rod arrangement. It will keep the toe setting constant when the suspension flexes but will also give more bump steer than the original setup.

Hi Roger,
The bumperette style is the same version found on the MB/GPW, but is flipped over.  The narrow style is a modern version and would not be appropriate for your Navy Jeep. 

I believe the 3A and M38 front bumpers are the same.  The M38 was bolted on. The 3A was riveted on.  There is some lifting brackets bolted to the M38, but I don't know if these should be on your Willys.  Also, I think there may have been a wood filler piece on the M38.

Hawk