I had a complete one which I passed on to another collector here. I think he has sold off his M38, so the bracket may well be surplus now.
There was another without the actual spare tire bracket out at my favorite surplus store. Can't say that I have seen it in a while but then again I haven't looked.
I think there was a pair of hood latches or something similar on the grill or hood to hold the bracket. Are there any corresponding holes on either of those locations on the jeeps you have found the larger bracket on? If you save and blow up the photo I show in post two, I think you can just make out the hood latches on the grill holding the bracket. I seem to recall on the bracket I found, it had the corresponding hood latch receptacles on the ends.
Certainly it would not meet DOT standards today as it would turn into a missile in the event of a collision. It also gives the operators a reason not to do their daily checks under the hood (not that most of them needed a reason anyway).
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