M38 Jeep Restoration

Rifleman, thanks for the encouragement! As I've said before it's a big project that can seem overwhelming at times, but keeping the end product in mind keeps you going.

Hey Claven, you're right it looks good but I have a buddy whose MB motor looked great, however it had spent a couple of winters outside before he bought it and had an unseen crack. It was only when he had it magnafluxed that they found the crack - saving rebuilding a pooched engine.

For everyone else, I'll work on an update as soon as possible. I did a bunch of work today on the back bumper but didn't have my camera with me (aint that always the case...). A friend grabbed a pic or two on his cell phone but I have to get them from him.
 
As promised here is the update on the back bumper work. Apologies for the lack of initial pictures, as I said before I forgot my camera the first day.

The story: I could tell that the back bumper was in rough shape initially, but once I took the bumperettes off and I took a closer look the truth came out. Looking closely 3 different people's handiwork could be seen. At some point I'm guessing that someone backed in to something and decided to replace the "wings" at the ends. Instead of removing the whole bumper they cut it at the body, and welded on new wings. Not too hard to work with except they welded the bumper to the frame and while welding they welded over some of the rivets holding the bumper on.

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The next thing that was done (I assume), was when the bumper was wearing thin, someone fitted and inserted additional backing sheet metal in to the bumper. Over the years this held the moisture against the bumper and both sides slowly rotted away..

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So, I made the decision to replace the bumper. Out came the cut-off wheel and the air chisel (best tool for the job!) and I went to work. Wow this was a hell of a lot more work than it initially seemed! Progress was slow and steady, piece by piece, until the bumper was done.

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Then I had the leftover rivets in the frame to deal with. Some popped out no problem with the moil point on the air chisel, while others were a pain in the nuggets...
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The really stubborn ones (especially the welded ones) had to be ground right flush to the frame before they came out.
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After much racket and sweat expended the last one gave way.
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So, bumper off, ready for the new one! I am also planning the rest of the required frame work. The MB and M38A1 both came stock with a MG Pintle mount plate on the frame while the M38 didn't. I've been looking around at different add-on brackets and such, but does anyone know how the provisions were made in-service?
 
Looks like cylinder #2 had some ring issues and/or valve seal problems. Nothing that a new set of rings and reconditioned valves with seals couldn't fix.

I have not seen one of those offsetting heads in person, and even then only in pictures in old shop manuals. I'd love to work on that baby. :D
 
While I work through planning and quotes I have kept working on cleaning up some of my smaller parts. As I didn't want to sand blast my water pump and risk getting media in the bearing, I tried an interesting method that I heard about recently - Apple Cider Vinegar!

Day 0:
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I placed it in a basin, impeller down, and filled the basin until just below the window leading to the bearing.
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Schmutz started floating off immediately!

After 24 hours I checked in on the progress. The vinegar was now completely black and the metal was notably cleaner:
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The results were decent, but I figured that I could simply leave it for longer and the results would continue.

So on day 5 I checked it again. By now the vinegar was pitch black, had a thick scum on top, and was fizzing and bubbling away. The results were very impressive!
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So after seeing how well it worked on the one side, i flipped it over to do the pulley. This is how it looked after about a week. Keep in mind that I started with clean apple cider vinegar :)
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I pulled it out, gave it a brush and quick wash in hot water, oiled to keep from rusting:
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Not too shabby, cheaper and more "environmentally friendly" than CLR :D

Trying to decide on the best course of action to get it cleaned to be painted before re-installation.
 
Engine removed and on the stand.

Setting up the hoist
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And out she comes
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Removing the clutch assembly and fly wheel to mount the engine on the stand.
The clutch is a little worn, but not to the point of doing damage to the fly wheel.
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A look inside the bell housing. Not sure what the purpose is of the string... but then again it isn't the first time I've seen a military vehicle held together with para chord!
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The engine on the stand:
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Definitely looks liike it should clean up well. Just be careful removing this broken manifold bolts so that you don't need to get custom stepped studs made for an oversize-hole. That's a bit of a PITA.
 
Shrapnel said:
The military should specify stainless steel for all vehicle body parts... That would be much better for us!!! :)
Click to expand...

Not a great idea.

Stainless, in general, is too brittle for a high-vibration application like a jeep. To get suitably tough material with the right hardness and elasticity in stainless would be cost-prohibitive and likely not be as corrosion-resistant as you would like in a salty road environment.
 
Steady progress...keep it up. I miss having an old rig to wrench on.

I love the apple-cider vinegar trick! A tablespoon also cures heart burn and acid reflux...

:D
 
Shrapnel said:
The military should specify stainless steel for all vehicle body parts... That would be much better for us!!! :)
Click to expand...

It would definitely be nice to not have to deal with rusted nuts and bolts. The nuts and washers in the best condition are actually all made of brass! No corrosion and no binding when trying to get them off.
 
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Almost finally at the bottom:

Pulled the transmission off the frame.
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Then I turned to the steering, removing as much of it in one piece as possible.
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Next it was on to brake lines. This proved to be quite a task as I had to be as gentle as possible to preserve as much of the shape as I could.
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Brake lines laid out and labelled:
Font:
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Rear:
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Finally it was time to remove the axles. The long nuts at the end of the U bolts were rusted positively solid so I had to cut the U bolts.
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I'm having a little bit of trouble with seized spring shackes. Tomorrow I am going to try drilling out the seized nipples and scraping out the old grease so that I can get penetrating oil right inside.

This is how it stands now. Frame on the ground!
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Do you have a set of torches (propane/acetylene)? Even a small b tank or a Mapp gas (yellow bottle) on a high temp hand torch will get nuts and bolts hot enough to make dissassembly a lot easier.
 
I have a small propane torch which I've used on other parts, but the nuts on the U-bolts were very long and rusted solid throughout.
 
What are the parts availabilty like for the Jeep?

Is it NOS, Used, Afternarket and Repro?

What are the toughest parts to find?
 
Parts are out there, you just have to decide how particular you are going to be about originality and correctness, as well as the decision if your jeep is going to be an occasional driver or a show-room piece.

Parts exist in various forms. Whether they are good quality reproductions, non-specific newly made interchangeable, original parts that have been refurbished (very few), or NOS which are increasingly difficult to find.

I am finding that the largest sources for parts are in the states with dealers such as Kaiser Willys (http://www.kaiserwillys.com/) or Army Jeep Parts Inc (https://www.armyjeepparts.net/). However, there are sources up in Canada with Willys Acres having the most comprehensive parts availability that I have found so far. (http://www.willysacres.com/)
 
The first day of physical rebuild has arrived! :cheers: The frame is now mostly blasted and primed.

How we began with limited reclaiming.
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And then realized just how fast you can blow through a 50lb bag of sand... Final method:
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The sun set and it was too dark to finish the frame so we moved indoors to prime what had been completed.
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Frame's original serial number uncovered. There is supposed to be a 5 next to the 2 ('52) which you can see faintly.
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As she sits right now. The rear section still has to be completed, along with the underside.
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