Motion Pictures A Tribute to WWII Vehicles...

Check Out This Truck I Got From Behind An Old Mechanic's Shop!

 

My grandfather owned a road construction company in Illinois in the '50s. He bought a surplus half track, took the box off it and bolted on a crane body and boom. He'd trailer it to the work site and set foundations, pilings, bridge beams, etc.

He took a small piece of the armor plating and made a small work bench for a vise...the top plate is 1 3/4-inches thick, in a 2-inch angle channel frame. It's probably about 2x3...and yeah, it's damn heavy. The crane is long gone, but my dad still has the vise table.

-Brad

 

Cool stuff! The halftrack in the pic is one of 5 or 6 that this guy bought from
a mining outfit that used them to transport explosives. He has been dealing
in military surplus since I was a little kid and when I got older and needed
some $ he always had (side)work for me.

 

I just back from a friends house where we got his 44 Willys running for the first time in 35 years!!!

The back sparkplugs rusted through entirely so we pulled the head and whacked away on the plug remnants until we got them out.

All the cylinders looked perfect and we did a quick carb cleaner spray bomb rebuild.

Hooked up a battery put in some fresh gas and she fired right up.

We got a decommissioned 50 cal mounted on a pedestal like the Rat Patrol jeeps and it should be in the parades next year1

I'll get some photo's of it when we get it farther along.

 

Wednesday I had to pick up some items about 3 miles from my house on a dirt side road I know but never been on.drive about a mile up this back road round a corner and there in front of me is a Halftrack full or fire wood!I dont know how much was on it I'm guessing a bit better than 2 cords because it was 4 feet above the sides.I don't know what era but the ting was in mint shape just painted gloss black looks like the farmer uses it just to haul wood out of his lots.I know where a bunch of those 50$ jeeps are too!guy out here had a warehouse full of the Vietnam era independent suspension jeeps.Yes he was buying them for 50$ each in lots of 20 BUT they are torched into 4 pieces each! this guy was brazing them together and selling them as "used "jeeps !

 

this one is waiting on a shave and a haircut M20