Have You Seen This ????

[w30bob]

Hi Guys,

Searching the web today I ran across a photo album of what I'd say is one of the most perfectly restored M37s I've ever seen (in my whole 6 week career in military vehicles). Some of you have probably seen this already or know the guy....he might even be on here.....but my jaw dropped when I looked at those engine pics. The time, effort and money he must have spent are a bit mind boggling. My hat's off to this guy!

Here's the link. http://apollosaturn.smugmug.com/gallery ... 93&k=qoMD5

All I can say is "WOW!"

regards,
bob

[WarrenD]

Lots of time and $$$ in that one! Looks great but I wonder if it's ever been driven? Nice to see what things look like when they're not covered in grease, oil and gear lube...

[W_A_Watson_II]

I'd bet they never looked the clean and perfect when they came off the line.

[m15256]

The leak in the transfer case and the dent in the muffler must really drive him nuts.

[Cav Trooper]

I've been there and done that on cars. After a while, they start to deteriorate just sitting, seals start to harden and leak, drive you crazy, almost as soon as you complete the resto, you have to start over. you can't drive it, it will leak and the heat of the engine begins to dull the underhood stuff. Much more fun to have it look good from 20 ft and drive it so others can point and smile and thumbs up, etc. I've had lots people think mine is museum quality but it's not even close. The best I could do is get to the museum parking lot for a visit. Mine still has dings, dents and rust patches that the PO just painted over, they drove me nuts for a little while then, I got over it and just drive an old 54 M37 with pride that it's still around.

[Wayne64]

Bob, As you can see we respect the time and $$$ spent. As Cav alluded to, when you get it that nice one is afraid to drive it! At that point it becomes a hanger queen and may even be trailed to shows. I'm not against the direction he took but I left the dents on mine. Short story; in 76 I totally restored a 47 Indian Chief and rode it almost daily. Showed it in 77 and took second place to a 1940 4 cylinder Indian. Found out later that there wasn't anything inside the crankcase of that bike? To each his own.

[Tanner]

Interesting build, but it's not (to me) worth the effort for it to sit on static display & not be used...

[k8icu]

That's a nice restoration, but not 100% factory rolled off the assembly line correct. The frame and drivetraine (Axles, springs, transfercase(?) etc) should be satin black and not OD Green. Other than that it's one nice restoration. I'm in the drive it and enjoy it class. I've done ground up restorations and I've done make them run jobs in the last 30 years of working on MVs and I enjoy driving them much more.

[52 M-42]

I've spent the last 2 years with a professional restoration guy remanufacturing my truck back to "as new" status as an M-42. It is not stock, as I've used things I like (differences that had been cancelled by June '52, combat wheels, Marine Corps brackets on an army truck, Dual wheel set ups etc). It has a bunch of complete working radio systems and the other stuff to be a Command truck.

It will be driven, however. I may put it in a few shows so that kids can climb all over it and play and get their pictures taken. It may be in some parades, but mostly it will be out in the woods. It's an Amry truck, not a museum piece.

This is the 2nd time I've restored it. The first time was back in the early 1980's. The truck is now 60 years old and after being remaufactured it should last at least another 60 years (I certainly won't). It has served me well and because of that truck I was able to make a land investment that when sold provided my family with a very sizeable financial base for my childrens' future. I know it seems wierd to some people, but I felt that truck was owed something, so it got the best rebuild I could find.

But it will still be an "out in the woods driver".

[Cav Trooper]

Arrgh!!!! The first scratch. Oh well, it's all down hill from there. Done it too many times to try to make them "Factory" Ended up making them too perfect, then they just sit and rot. Yes, drive the heck out it and enjoy all of the attention.

CT

[skinnedknuckles]

I'll throw in my 2 cents. If I can't drive it, I don't want it. Of my current vehicles that I am restoring ( m37b1, m422a1, m29c-without tanks) I plan on driving them. Yes, the m29c weasel will be used in fields and where-ever else I can use it ( no roads-Wisconsin ). I feel that these things were made to be driven, like posted above vehicles that just sit fall into disrepair too. "Pretty" cars and trucks that are not driven don't interest me much at all. I look at vehicles as a living and breathing part of society. Drive 'em so more people then what go to car shows can enjoy them. Its awesome when you pull up at the local eatery in something other than your run of the mill car or truck and you see the little kids faces just light up and they start pointing saying " look mom and dad its a big army truck". They are the ones that will keep this hobby going long after we are gone. Maybe that's why I am also throwing together a rat rod out of what ever I find laying around to keep those little ones interested in vehicles as a hobby. Again,the pretty cars and trucks don't interest me, I kind of feel sorry for them since they are not "living and breathing".
A gearhead of 30 years in Wisconsin

[w30bob]

Hi Guys,

The sentiment here seems to be if you can't drive it then what's the point? I fully agree with that.........but.........I still have to commend anyone who takes the time, money, and resources to really "restore" something. It's truly a "no-win" situation because you'll never get the money back that you'll put into it and once it's complete it only starts to deteriorate again. So it has to be a true labor of love. I can respect that. And who knows....the guy may just be crazy enough to drive it thru a big mud puddle the minute after it's done. Ok....not likely......but possible.

There are also FAR too many people out there who have no idea what a true "restoration" is all about, meaning what it entails, the total cost, and the fact that nothing can really be truly "restored" perfectly. And I don't mean you guys....but you know the kind of people I'm talking about. So when I see a truck like this one I don't focus on what he's going to do with it when it's done, I just understand what's going into it and smile a bit. I'll be driving mine, but I'm glad someone's trying to make one perfect for future generations to see. Afterall....museums need those kinds of things!

take care,
bob

[k8icu]

I wish I could time travel. The reason is I would love to go back in time and go to the Dodge factory (or any other producer of MVs) when they were being built and take one just as it left the factory door and seal it up in a time capsule for all of us to look at. It has been my theory and only my theory that what we think is a factory restoration would be an over restoration. That these vehicles left the factory with imperfections and blemishes etc. Welds not perfectly ground down, runs in the paint, etc. that were good enough for an Army truck but not good enough for the rest of Detroit. My theory comes with some background knowledge. I had a friend who had worked at the old tank plant here in Cleveland (now the IX Center) in the late 60s making M113s for the Amry. He told me the story of how his job was to weld a section of the haul and then gind it smooth. One of his first days on the job the forman came by and asked him what he was doing and he told him that he was grinding the weld smooth. The forman told him "that's good enough it's a f*****g tank not a f******g Cadillac!" Therefore I believe that many of these trucks when they rolled off the assembly line where less than perfect.

[52 M-42]

You are absolutely right k8icu. They were still using these trucks and ambulances when I was in the Army ('68 to '71). Usually, everything worked (well, most stuff, most of the time) but they certainly were not "gorgeous garage queens" by any means. My intention in "re-manufacturing" mine was not to make it "pretty" (which was an unintended consequence) but to "reset the clock" to have this truck outlast me. It will still go thumping around in the woods. It will still carry stuff. Kids will still climb all over it. It will get dirty. In other words, it will still be an Army truck. Like I said, my kids grew up with this truck (one has graduated from college now and the other one will graduate next year) and my wife and I had lots of fun with it out in the woods both before and after we were married. This truck will be in good shape when they get it and hopefully their kids will have fond childhood memories of it. It will probably need to be rebuilt again in another 30 to 40 years and since I've stockpiled a complete set of new and re-manufactured running gear, I hope he and his sister will be able to do it.

Or, they will sell it for whatever reason to do something they want, which is fine. The old have no right IMHO to enslave the future to the dreams of the dead. Someone will probably get a nice truck with lots of 'extras'. I'll be beyond caring.

But, in the meantime two things will have occurred:

One, I will have left the truck and trailer better than I found them.

Two, It will continue to be an Army truck (retired), but still active and occasional dirty (and scratched and scruffy and in need of maintenance).

52 M-42

[JBizal]

Rob Young owns the truck, but Gary Wirth of Hastings, MN restored it. Gary and I work together on these projects.
Gary typically only builds show quality trucks. He has won the national title 11 out of 11 times he has entered his restorations.
John
Midwest Military