Ode to Johnny Cash . . . . and Bubba

I picked this up a couple of nights ago and it reminded me of Johnny Cash's "One Piece at a Time".  It was registered as a 1942 Ford Willys.  But as you can see there isn't anything left from a 42.  The engine looks to be from a CJ3A based on the front mount plate and serial # 3J21600. I believe the frame is also from a 3A. Missing the Body and SN tags, and the ACM numbers are gone - welded tailgate panel and front gusset was hacked for the tilt steering.

The good news is I got it for next to nothing (a trade that I paid under $300 for) and I was able to get it running in about 15 minutes.  It had been sitting in pasture for about a year and a half and the fuel line was cut, the oil pressure gauge was gone.  I used a coat hanger I found in the tub to connect a battery I brought to the coil, connected a 1qt gear lube container filled with gas to the YF carb (fuel pump was missing and the hole sealed) and relied on gravity feed. Held my thumb over the oil line, engaged the starter and it fired right up .  The first 10 seconds were a little rough, but then it idled as pretty as can be. 

My original thought was just a parts jeep, but since I got it home I've come to appreciate all the undocumented history performed by Bubba and plenty of high school kids over the years .  You can tell that this jeep has seen a lot of fun - evident from the poorly executed SOA conversion, the cadillac tilt steering, the headlight visors, and the visor on the fabricated windshield.  It's been both cherished and abused. 

Oh, and it does have the original front seats (unfortunately they were flipped upside down, cut, and welded in as back seats ).

My wife has been mentioning something about an intervention party for me. I don't know for sure what that means, but sounds like it should be fun!  I just hope I have time to get at least one jeep running well so I can take the party guests for a ride!













Edited by rballagh - 09 July 2009 at 9:08pm

That last pic says it all.. . Have fun!

damn, most of the time when i work on mine that jumps into my head. "take me for a ride...hank"

berettajeep wrote: rballagh wrote: My wife has been mentioning something about an intervention party for me. I don't know for sure what that means, but sounds like it should be fun!  I just hope I have time to get at least one jeep running well so I can take the party guests for a ride!   Sounds like fun!!!!!  Jeep does not look that bad for the price.

Hey Beretta - Would you like to come to the party?  After over-hearing my wife on the phone with her sister it didn't sound quite so fun - it sure might be good to have a fellow jeeper there .

There were some well done repairs/mods to this as well as some poor ones.  The hat channels were all replaced with angle iron and look to be a good improvement as far as the structure and stability goes.  The body appears to have been skimmed with bondo and then painted with about 16 layers of paint - the door seam is none existant!  The front and back floor panels were covered with sheet metal (poorly).  I haven't had a chance to dig into it too much, but so far there aren't any big surprises from my initial viewing.


F Bill - Yeah my 5 year old immediately claimed it as his. Makes it a little tougher for me to part out. . . . also makes it a little tougher for Momma to say no!

Bob W - The casting number looks to be 
1-7 (pass rear)
641087-L-W10 A N1-CR-N2

Drivers side rear the only thing I could see was "10"  right above the oil pressure outlet. 

If these numbers don't sound right or if you want me to take some pictures, just let me know. I'm trying to figure out what I have as well.

Mike G - Some day I hope to have those lyrics pop in my head. Right now though it might be a ways off .

Wow...  just one look at that jeep and the first thing I think of is "Someone put a LOT of hours into making that jeep just right."  Whether we like the mods or not, you have to appreciate the amount of time and work that someone did.  I mean Cadillac tilt steering!!!  I never would have thought of that one.  And the body isn't factory, but it looks pretty straight.  You could definitely turn this into a mean trail machine with no guilt whatsoever.  Nice buy.

rballagh wrote: Bob W - The casting number looks to be  1-7 (pass rear) 641087-L-W10 A N1-CR-N2