1953 Off Road Rescue/recovery Jeep

[oldtime]

Fully agree Jim. I just wanted to test the Jeeps capability and don’t recommend 2WD when 4wd is warranted. Let’s just say I pushed it very hard in 2WD.
Never ran a 4 speed in a Willy before and found first gear to be near equal to a regular flatfender down in low range.
The standard Powr Lok dug in plenty well, nearly as good as having 4wd.
The extra rear tire spin surely had an influence on the tread chunking. But I also encountered lesser extent tread chunking up front.
I am very disappointed in the tires. IMHO the absolute worst tires I have ever run on a Jeep.
Yes a lot of the runs are just scenic but the run up to Hancock although not technical in the least was rough as a cob.

 

[Ol Fogie]

Willys Group Index 23 Steering

Double TRE knuckle
Otherwise standard Ross system in VGC

I carefully aligned and adjusted the axles with proper toe in. This thing tracks perfectly with steering wheel exactly straight ahead and Ross box on center.
Initially the steering play was very tight. But after the FCT the steering has loosened up notably.
At the FCT I came to realize that any and every mechanical shortcoming a Jeep has will become manifest during seven days of the FCT.
Any Flatfender Jeep that withstands the full seven days of touring without so much as a loose bolt is ….one perfect Jeep !
During an all day trip up a railroad grade to see Hancock alpine lake my jeep vibrated out two of the crossmember bolts.
Otherwise Andy and myself had a near perfect seven day tour.



Willys Group Index 24 Brakes

When I put 10” self adjusting Wagner brakes on my 1953 3B I used a NOS Wagner standard single bore master cylinder.
Also used standard tubes all the way from cylinder to the steering knuckles.
At the knuckles one must change out the early “S” tubes.
In there place a set of “Z” tubes are installed and everything fits directly up to the 10” NOS Wagner wheel cylinders.


Willys Group Index 25 wheels

Wheels used on this Jeep are the typical standard. Kelsey Hayes 4.5” X 16”.

I bought this particular set of wheels many years ago from Midwest Willys.
Harry let me go through the big stack of wheels he’d had. In this big stack.
I found a matching set with zero rust.
Pulled those out and we then mounted them on a Jeep spindle to spin them.
We spun each wheel and found that all had less than 1/16” deviation from true.
A Very impressive set of old wheels to say the least.

The tires mounted are tube type 6.50 X16” STA Super Traxions.
Size wise I consider them ideal on a 4 cylinder Willy. But Honestly I expected much more from these tires concerning function.
As expected they are a bit noisy when on-road.
And traction seems fair to date but look at this pic. These tire chunked VERY badly during the FCT. Personally I feel this Jeep very much deserves a set of 7.00 X 16” NDT’s.

Other than two lost crossmember bolts this Jeep performed exceptionally well at the FCT.
Between the T 98-A, the Powr Lok and well chunked tires it performed so well that I never once used low range. Nor did I ever engage the front axle during the entire event. In effect it seems that it can travel in 2WD anywhere a standard flatfender goes in 4wd.

Really nice photos. Thanks for posting. Looks like a fun trip. Brings back memories of jeep adventures we often had many years ago. If you have any more pictures of the FCT post them up when you have time.

 

[Jw60]

He didn't use 4wd the weekend before at the offroad park either. He was waiting in line halfway up a hill when he realized the shifter was in 2wd.

 

[Oldpappy]

I confirm that little "Tow-mater" Jeep is a very capable Jeep. The Hancock trip was my favorite of the week, and it tickles me that the picture Ken posted of the lake has me in the lower right sitting on a rock soaking in the view. Beautiful place !

 

[oldtime]

O.K. Andy I give in, cause you done went and made it all official.
The Jeeps finally got a bonafide name now.

“Tow-Mater”

But this ain’t just any ole “Tow-Mater”.

It’s a green “Tow-Mater” !

Red would be a good paint color too and very rarely a guy might get lucky enough to have himself a bright yellow “Tow Mater”.

 

[Jw60]

Man I thought it would be "Wreck-it Willys" or "Wrecker Willys"

 

[Oldpappy]

No matter what it is called, that is one tough Jeep. There was a stretch on that trail which was, as Ken said, "rough as a cob" and it just crawled right over the rocks in 2WD.

 

[oldtime]

Willys Group Index 26 FRAME

This Jeep has a virtually near perfect standard 1953 3B frame.
Many years ago about 1983 during its first full frame off rebuild I did repair the typical cracks about the frame horns.
My weld repair and gussets have performed flawlessly ever since with over 80K miles put on during the Jeeps second life.
The frame was sandblasted and painted long ago with a VERY good 2K DuPont Corlar paint that sadly is no longer available.

Willys Group Index 27 SPRINGS

Currently running a full set of original rebuilt Mathers.
Disassembled; the individual leaves were checked for arch.
Flat leaves replaced with other Mather leaves having proper arch.
All leaves sand blasted and 2K primer with powdered graphite mixed into the paint.
Additional graphite wax was spread in between leaves prior to assembly with OEM NOS center bolts.

Currently has 10 leaves at both front and rear.
The rear leaves seem to be too soft as they will bottom out onto the axle bumpers.
We bottomed out a few times on the CFCT trails.
Andy says he has a set of 13 leaf Mathers on the rear of a 2A.
So now I have plans to rebuild and install those.
Here you see me testing for steering clearance.

Willys Group Index 28 BUMPERS

Original bumpers still intact with the original rivots.

Willys Group Index 29 FENDERS

Just your normal 3B fenders nothing more/nothing less.

Willys Group Index 30 HOOD

Ditto the previous group

Willys Group Index 31 Body

The original 1953 body tub.
The tunnel area was a bit rusty and I needed to modify that area anyway to fit in the T98 with a custom shift tower cover designed to mimic the original appearance.

Willys Group Index 32 TOOLS

Nothing to see here… just move along.

Willys Group Index 33 PAINT

Most everything was sandblasted or on some cases like the engine block was stripped clean of all old paint prior to repaint.
Most all primer was Nason 2K epoxy and acrylic enamel top coat sprayed on within a few hours to help promote adhesion to the primer.
Paint is far from looking perfect but that’s partly because I don’t use any filler.
Not a body man here, I just try for solid metal and zero rust.

 

[oldtime]

Willys Group Index 35 Special Equipment and Accessories

With this grouping we save the very best details till last. This final grouping is what really makes this Jeep unique.

Original tub sports a deluxe Koenig Super half cab.
With roll up door glass and extra rear corner glass that greatly improves driving visibility.
The windshield has dual OEM NOS Trico vacuum wipers.

Includes a Sparton signal switch.

The engine has optional 7.5/ high compression head.
Also a NOS Skinner fuel sediment bowl.

The exhaust is a copy of the factory.
All made from stainless including the OEM copy hanger brackets excepting the OEM style muffler itself.

Clutch and driven disk I are OEM Heavy Duty Auburn 9-1/4”. Very smooth operating for a HD clutch.
Has a T98-A removed from a 1956 CJ-5.
Was near pristine to start with and carefully and fully rebuilt with a genuine Borg Warner complete rebuild kit. from the 1950’s.
Has a Rebuilt Warn 25% OD unit (rear shift 29 tooth version)

Has genuine Power Lok differentials at both front and rear.

Just to test out the drive trains effectiveness,
I ran it all week during last years Fall Color Tour in 2 wheel drive high range.
Never once used 4wd or low range.
No I did not run the toughest trails.
And yes virtually every trail reached the limit for 2WD high range use.

Has NOS Wagner 10” brakes new cylinders, shoes with the self adjust backing linkage.

Double knuckle with button head stud conversion and one piece tie rod to eliminate the possible death wobble.
Front axle also has Selectro front freewheeling hubs.

Last but not least is the rear mount Jeep specific Braden friction clutch winch driven by a Spicer 18 H PTO unit.
The winch has 4 speeds with reverse plus rpm throttle control.
The winch drum spools 150’ of 3/8” aircraft cable.
The friction clutch mechanism is a safety feature allowing one to limit the pull force.
So you don’t ever need to worry about breaking the cable.
The winch boom itself is of my own design.
For starters it was mounted into the the frame via a special design X bracing inside the the strongest boxed area of the frame.

The boom angles up/down (3 angles) and extends out to double the length if required.

The large bronze bell roller self pivots 360* for angled pulls.
Topped off with a NOS Unity spot light one can see the work from any angle.
THE END

 

[68BuickV6]

Wow Oldtime, what an incredible Jeep! I'd love to build some kind of wrecker setup like that for the B120.
I think you've built the perfect factory 3B.

 

[Jw60]

 

[Oldpappy]

I rode with Ken in this incredible Jeep during the FCT. It handled some pretty tough terrain in 2WD when most of the others were in 4WD. It is a very impressive and tough little Jeep.

 

[wheelie]

Great looking ride and very well built. Likey.