Looking good, I too have been looking for a truck cab, Hard to find, I have everything but the cab, also have a 36 ford rear truck cab, but missing roof. Looking good. Does anybody know of truck cab from top of roof to back that looks similar to a willys truck? Willys truck cabs have the round look for sure on top back.
Sorry for the delay on updates. I was so pissed when I found out that the Mopar 8 3/4 rearend housing that I was going to use was bent that I have been spending more time on my O/T '71 Road Runner. I did score a bunch of cool **** at the Portland Swap Meet including a new housing. I got a cool old Deist parachute for $20- I had to soak it in a bucket of detergent for 2 days to get rid of the rat piss smell. Also got some hemi parts including a set of vintage Crower valvespring retainers, head water block offs and a Offy remote thermostat housing. Found a '50 Chev pickup firewall for $20 that has the perfect recess, a set of 15 x 10 slots and a pair of rag slicks to mock up the rearend, a Limeworks column drop and a glovebox door. It was a killer swapmeet for us. I plan on getting back on track in the next couple weeks and will post updates. Thanks for all the support The chute after a good wash and Troy had a few beers. The firewall Rear tires A little mockup Some of the other parts
ive got this pile of parts collected up to build a three springer sos what you gonna dowith the springs that were too weak? they will likely work good under lt wt 4 cyl and lt. car.
They are 29-10.50x15. I am actually going to run a 30" tall tire, but these will work for mocking up the truck.
I wanted a mag for the hemi but the $500+ wasn't in my budget. I got a nice Chev mag from a fellow Hamber for $200 and spent another $100 at the machine shop. Got the idea from an old thread here on the HAMB. Cool part is that it's not a locked advance and should be a little more streetable. Re***embled it and installed in the motor today. Now I have a Ronco mag for my 392. Time to fit the firewall. Chevy form After the mods The tool I made with a Dremel from an old nut driver to remove the special base nuts. Not pretty but it works.
Killer Idea on the Mag....I always wondered how guys sell a "frankenstein" mag for so much money when its just a sbc with an adapter base! Killer thread next time Im in the area Ill have to look you up....Race
The Willys is kinda mothballed right now. Life has recently gotten in the way and I haven't had time to work on it again. I wll be gettiing back on it soon. Thanks to everyone for the great comments. I've seen the Hothead's distributor adapter but it makes the mag stick way up IMO. I wanted it to look like it was made for the motor.
Well winter is here and I finally got some time to work on the Willys. I did get score some parts this fall between the HAMB, CHRR and the local winter swap meet. Also got a original rear sump pan, NOS oil pump and a set of wheelie bars.
Modified the $20 '50 Chev firewall that I bought at the April Portland swap meet to fit the Willys. The engine doghouse was the perfect size. I just made a pattern off of my cowl and cut to fit. It left plenty of room to get the mag and oil dipstick out. What I started with: How it ended up: Now back to welding.......
It was a pretty productive Sunday. The firewall is welded in. I spent the rest of the day making a patch panel for the back of the cab and cutting up one of the '48 Chev cab corners to make the corner for the Willys cab. I recently found a couple tools at an estate sale. This one came in handy today to punch spot weld holes in the patch panel. ' I have no idea what this one is but it was $1.00. Any ideas? Hers is the starting point: Here's where I ended up. I will modify the trans tunnel when I move the ladder bars crossmember and weld the driveshaft loop in.
Good progress, now we need to see more ............................... Posted from the TJJ App for iPhone & iPad
I enjoy seeing the use of donor panels from other trucks. Shows you don't need somebody to build exact parts to make a decent repair.
Made some good progress this weekend. Troy came over and spent a few hours working the bumps out of the roof while I built toe boards to connect the firewall to the floor. I can't afford Halibrands but I did see some wheels at SEMA this year that I liked. I ordered a pair for the rear. I had a vacation day today, so I decided I wanted the Willys to be a roller. Just finished up a little while ago. Sorry, some of the pictures are dark. That happens way too early this time of year. I still have a bunch of finish welding to do, but it sure felt good to see it roll for the first time.
Sits nice, though you might consider putting a back brace on the housing as there is a pretty big span from the ladder bars to the housing ends and you've got a lot of grunt up front and the tire to go with it.
The plan is to do a back brace with a parachute mount and install the wheelie bars that I have. Thanks for all the great comments.