Hi Randy,
Progress is being made, but has slowed to a crawl.  Your typical spring time duties, crazy work schedule, etc...

Since my last update, I have painted the shocks black and started massaging and patching the hood.  It's very rough, but it is sort of special and worth the attempt.  Whitey is an early production 3A.  The hood is original and has 2A characteristics.  Per Bob W's book, the 2A style hood will sometimes show up on the early 3As. 

Well, that's it.  I just didn't think my current progress level was worth an update.  That said, I really do appreciate you poking me.  Tells me you might be enjoying the project.

Tim

Tim, What angle cut did you cut on the 4x4 for your pin stripping block ? I have tried Lowenuf method he used on the 2a page but all the buckets I must be getting are egg shaped I cannot get the 3 1/2 in measurement. I am going to ry a find Ryans post on pin stripping.

I am currently putting the rolling chassis through an extensive test phase.  I drive it often and hard.  Well, not hard enough to break stuff, but hard enough to expose a weakness.

In the mean time, I'm back to working sheet metal.  Many of you remember how bad the tub was on this Willys.  Unfortunately, the rest of the sheet metal was just as abused as the tub.  The fenders are probably in the best condition, so I'm saving them for last.  The grille is straight, but I will need to replace some metal below the headlight area.

The hood and windshield frame were brutalized.  I don't know if I'll end up using them, but I figured it was worth a try to fix them.

The windshield frame has the typical 80 to 100 holes to fill.  Additionally, there was a horrible repair sometime in its past.  I've cut it out and will replace with fresh steel...








The hood is warped and had a hole cut into it.  I'm not sure why.  Maybe the PO slipped a Hurricane in at some point. 

I've started the process of patching, hammer/dolly, and shrinking.  Hoods are tough,  but I figure if I can make this one look good, then there is nothing I can't do!

Tim

1955CJ-5 wrote on 06/18/14 at 14:01:03:


I was thinking the same about you!

It's just another one of those Willys learning experiences that many of us enjoy. 

Tim

I've been making some progress. 

Full discloser...

The hood repairs have been going fairly well, but I've discovered that after many, many hours, I will need to spend many more getting it to a level that I would be happy with.  In the interest of time, and because Walcks had an Independece Day sale, I purchased a new hood.  I will continue to work this hood, but when time permits. 




The windshield has been reworked.  It's turned out nicely.   I had to replace a fair amount of metal and the rag top channel that runs along the top edge.  I welded this on tonight, but didn't take any photos.


I've been looking for the bracket that attaches the support gusset to the frame, but finally decided to just make one.








The grill had some pretty bad rust through below the park light sockets and headlamp holes.









The fenders are not original to this Willys.  Based on the repairs needed, I believe they were once on a Willys that had a V6 or V8 engine which required cut outs for dual exhaust.  They were then put on this Willys where the PO made quick and sloppy repairs to close off the cut outs.  Lee from Minnesota was kind enough to sacrifice an old fender.  He sent me the louvers portion of the driver side fender.  I cut out the old repair and welded the louvers in place.   The passenger fender just needed the old repair fixed up a bit.   And, of course dozens of holes were filled.










The grill and fenders were dropped off at the sandblaster today.  Once returned, I'll make some final welding repairs, then prep all the sheet metal for paint. 

I was hopping to have this done in time for the Fall Colors Tour.   I'm beginning to have my doubts.  Work is really busy right now.  The long hours leave little time for Willys fun.

Tim

Indeed, nice work.  I love seeing home brew fab work and seeing someone to take the time to save old steel.  These parts have been around for decades.  Spend a few good sweaty hours and let it live for decades more.
Brett

I am speechless once again, I love your metal work skills. Great thread!

Gentlemen,
Thank you for the kind words and encouragement.  Coming from this group means a lot.  I've seen the work you have all put into your Willys Jeeps. All very impressive.  Y'all push me just to keep up.



Unfortunately, I must report a setback. As some of you know, I have been driving the chassis on a regular basis. This wasn't to make my neighbors chuckle.   It was solely for the purpose of weeding out minor or major issues before I go through the trouble of a full assembly.

In the last few runs, I have developed a gear grind when shifting into 2nd gear. I also have a weird rumble coming from the bell housing at certain RPMs, but that isn't my concern at this point.

My gear grind is sporadic. At low RPM shifting, it's smooth. At higher RPMs, the grind is subtle, but there. It also does it a bit when shifting from 3rd back to 2nd.

So, I  spent some time this past weekend removing the transmission, and buying a rebuild kit. I found a guy that has NOS blocking rings. Both NOS from India and from the USA. He is going to send me a set of each. I also bought another master rebuild kit that is likely from MD Juan or some other off shore manufacturer.

I have studied all the rebuild guides and videos. I started by taking my current tranny apart, then re-assembling it a number of times while waiting for the new parts.

What was once a scary proposition, has now become second nature.  While apart, I was surprised to find everything looking very good and fairly fresh.  This includes the parts that wear, and the parts that many here have complained about.  Brass synchros looked surprisingly good.  They still have the ridges on the tapered face and don't seem to ride too high on the tapered surfaces.   The 3 little synchronizer plates also look new.  Regardless of the visual condition, I am rebuilding the tranny.

But this has led me to think I may have other issues.  Back to the rumble.  It seems to come from the bell housing...and only at certain RPMs.  I'm beginning to think my issues may be a bad bushing at the back of the crankshaft.  The one that the transmission inserts into.  I took a chance that this and most of my clutch parts were in decent condition.  The one time I decide to go cheap has bit me right In the butt.

So, I went ahead and bought a new pressure plate, clutch, bearing and bushing. 

For a thrasher, Whitey is a real money pit.  This Willys will ultimately cost me more to finish than the OD Willys.  Crazy.


Tim