My new 1954 M38A1

For posting personal or other photos of the relevant G740, G758, M38, M38A1, M170 MV's for this Forum
Post Reply
Maverick1701
G-Sergeant Major
G-Sergeant Major
Posts: 164
Joined: Thu Jan 20, 2011 4:35 pm
Location: Memphis, Texas

Re: My new 1954 M38A1

Post by Maverick1701 » Mon Feb 27, 2017 5:30 pm

My wheels & tubes arrived today. Tomorrow I am off work so I am going to load my new tires, wheels, & tubes in the bed of my M35A2 6x6 and run them down to the tire shop for mounting. I will definitely be sure to snap pics
Chris
1954 M38A1


Maverick1701
G-Sergeant Major
G-Sergeant Major
Posts: 164
Joined: Thu Jan 20, 2011 4:35 pm
Location: Memphis, Texas

Re: My new 1954 M38A1

Post by Maverick1701 » Wed Mar 01, 2017 2:54 pm

Yesterday & today have been big days for progress.
YESTERDAY:
-I dropped off my wheels/tires/tubes at the tire shop. They were SUPER busy so I told them I would pick them up today.
-I finished up installing the new brake pads, springs, wheel cylinder, & "end of the axle" brake plumbing


TODAY:
-I picked up my assembled wheels/tires/tubes
-I totally replaced the braking system of the jeep. all hard/soft lines & master cylinder.
-After finishing the brakes I couldn't resist... I bolted on the new tires and man does it look sharp!!! (I am totally biased though)

The next big project is installing my new wiring harness.
WP_20170228_12_55_18_Pro (2).jpg
tires/tubes/wheels in deuce bed going to tire shop
WP_20170228_12_55_18_Pro (2).jpg (163.9 KiB) Viewed 6871 times
WP_20170301_14_58_36_Pro.jpg
assembled wheels/tires
WP_20170301_14_58_36_Pro.jpg (204.26 KiB) Viewed 6871 times
WP_20170301_16_42_39_Pro.jpg
old braking system parts
WP_20170301_16_42_39_Pro.jpg (212.19 KiB) Viewed 6871 times
WP_20170301_17_02_25_Pro.jpg
new shoes
WP_20170301_17_02_25_Pro.jpg (149.48 KiB) Viewed 6871 times
WP_20170301_17_02_34_Pro.jpg
new shoes 2
WP_20170301_17_02_34_Pro.jpg (150.56 KiB) Viewed 6871 times
Chris
1954 M38A1

Maverick1701
G-Sergeant Major
G-Sergeant Major
Posts: 164
Joined: Thu Jan 20, 2011 4:35 pm
Location: Memphis, Texas

Re: My new 1954 M38A1

Post by Maverick1701 » Sat Mar 04, 2017 3:21 pm

things are moving along quite nicely.

Today the G/F was in town so I enlisted her assistance with bleeding the jeep brakes. I had only one leak. There is a brass washer on either side of the front/rear distribution block at the end of the m/c. One of the washers had stuck to the old m/c during removal. I did not notice this while installing the new m/c. Thankfully I kept the old m/c for this exact situation. I installed the missing washer which fixed the leak.

We bled the brakes successfully. I decided to go with dot5 for several reasons. The main 2 reasons are:
1. My m35a2 runs dot5 so its easier to keep track that all my military vehicles = dot5 and all my civilian vehiclles = dot3
2. In my experiences dot5 has done better in vehicles which see more time sitting vs daily driving.

I am making progress on the wiring harness.
During the brake work today I also noticed in my drivers/rear leaf spring pack I have a broken leaf/spring (the top leaf in the pack has sapped)
Chris
1954 M38A1

Maverick1701
G-Sergeant Major
G-Sergeant Major
Posts: 164
Joined: Thu Jan 20, 2011 4:35 pm
Location: Memphis, Texas

Re: My new 1954 M38A1

Post by Maverick1701 » Sun Mar 05, 2017 8:29 pm

More news on the Jeep progress.

I made it home from work around 530pm. I changed my clothes and was off to work on the Jeep. I finished cutting out the old wiring harness, removed my tail-lights (I have two new ones coming via snail-mail), and fully installed the new wiring harness.
The whole process took between 5-6hrs. I was done by 1045pm (my back was sore from being hunched over for so long & I was super hungry).

The most difficult part of the install was connecting all the Douglas connections. The connectors on the new harness were a bit tight. I was forced to use to use pliers on most of the connections.

The only items not hooked up are: tail-lights (they haven't arrived), horn (fenders are not installed and it mounts on the fender), and blackout drive light (my M38A1 didn't come with one).

Attached is a pic of my "old parts tub" which now contains all wiring & brake bits/pieces which come standard on an M38A1.
Attachments
WP_20170305_22_34_50_Pro.jpg
WP_20170305_22_34_50_Pro.jpg (150.13 KiB) Viewed 6843 times
Chris
1954 M38A1

Joe Gopan
Jeep Heaven
Posts: 49841
Joined: Sun Mar 02, 2008 12:37 pm
Location: Proving Ground

Re: My new 1954 M38A1

Post by Joe Gopan » Mon Mar 06, 2017 5:06 am

Do not forget to use 3/8" Shake Proof (Int/Ext) Toothed Washers when installing your taillights. If you do not have access to shake Proof, use External Tooth Washers. The lights need a good ground. have some liquid soap handy and carefully pre position the rubber grommets on the Douglas connectors, they are made to be a tight fit.
2011 MVPA PIONEER AWARD - MVPA #1064
HONOR GRAD-WHEELED VEHICLE MECHANIC SCHOOL 1960 - US ARMY ORDNANCE SCHOOL(MACHINIST) ABERDEEN PG 1962 - O-1 BIRD DOG CREWCHIEF - 300,000+TROUBLE FREE M-38A1 MILES
LIFE MEMBER AM LEGION-40/8-DAV
7 MIL SPEC MAINTAINED MV'S
COL. BRUNO BROOKS (ARMY MOTORS) IS MY HERO

Maverick1701
G-Sergeant Major
G-Sergeant Major
Posts: 164
Joined: Thu Jan 20, 2011 4:35 pm
Location: Memphis, Texas

Re: My new 1954 M38A1

Post by Maverick1701 » Tue Mar 07, 2017 8:57 pm

Ben Dover wrote:Do not forget to use 3/8" Shake Proof (Int/Ext) Toothed Washers when installing your taillights. If you do not have access to shake Proof, use External Tooth Washers. The lights need a good ground. have some liquid soap handy and carefully pre position the rubber grommets on the Douglas connectors, they are made to be a tight fit.

thank you sir! I make sure to use the grounding washers on all four bolts.


Today I installed my new tail-lights (the old ones were pretty far gone). Unfortunately they came wired with Packard connectors (the new military standard) as opposed to the Douglas connectors (the old standard). I didn't want to cut any wires (I am going to try and build some Packard-to-Douglas jumper wires in the future) so I was able to connect the Douglas connectors to the Packard connectors with the help of some electrical tape (they already somewhat fit together anyway...but just somewhat).

I re-connected the batteries and did some testing of the new wiring harness. All the lights work but I have a few strange issues. The instrument panel lights work only on bright...on the dim settings I get nothing. Also if I push the blackout light selector all the way up I can activate my headlights (that shouldn't happen). Those two symptoms lead me to believe that the culprit is my light switch I bought used off eGay.

Tomorrow after work I am going to pull the switch off my M35A2 6x6 and try it in the jeep since I know that switch is fully operational. That will tell me if the issue is the switch, if I mis-wired something in the dash, or if I need to look elsewhere.

Another issue I will be tracking down is when I turn on my ignition switch, my gauges don't turn on. I don't know if my gauges are jacked or just not getting power.

Another issue I need to take a look at is my brake light switch. It worked on the initial light test & then just stopped. when I press my brake pedal my little am/fm radio plays significantly more static. So that leads me to believe I have something electrical activating when the brake pedal is pressed. A possible cause of this issue is related to a cover plate which covers the tail-light & trailer wiring. The issue started when I replaced that plate. I am going to remove the plate tomorrow and see if the issue persists. I don't really see the panel causing issues but you never know...stranger things have happened.
Chris
1954 M38A1

Joe Gopan
Jeep Heaven
Posts: 49841
Joined: Sun Mar 02, 2008 12:37 pm
Location: Proving Ground

Re: My new 1954 M38A1

Post by Joe Gopan » Wed Mar 08, 2017 3:03 am

Be careful, it only takes one 24 Volt short to instantly ruin the harness.
2011 MVPA PIONEER AWARD - MVPA #1064
HONOR GRAD-WHEELED VEHICLE MECHANIC SCHOOL 1960 - US ARMY ORDNANCE SCHOOL(MACHINIST) ABERDEEN PG 1962 - O-1 BIRD DOG CREWCHIEF - 300,000+TROUBLE FREE M-38A1 MILES
LIFE MEMBER AM LEGION-40/8-DAV
7 MIL SPEC MAINTAINED MV'S
COL. BRUNO BROOKS (ARMY MOTORS) IS MY HERO

Maverick1701
G-Sergeant Major
G-Sergeant Major
Posts: 164
Joined: Thu Jan 20, 2011 4:35 pm
Location: Memphis, Texas

Re: My new 1954 M38A1

Post by Maverick1701 » Wed Mar 08, 2017 4:49 pm

Ben Dover wrote:Be careful, it only takes one 24 Volt short to instantly ruin the harness.
I am trying to be careful. I really don't want to buy another harness @ $800.


I am hoping it's a bad switch since they aren't too expensive (like $13 for a new one). I am going to pull the panel off first and see if functionality returns to the circuit.

Also my carb rebuild kit arrived today. I have never rebuilt a carb before (just taken apart & cleaned) so I am a bit apprehensive. I may take it to the local mechanic and see if he will let me watch over his shoulder as he does the rebuild so I can watch/learn.

I am off tomorrow and the high temp is 81* so it will be a GREAT day to work on the Jeep. I'll report back with my findings.
Chris
1954 M38A1

Maverick1701
G-Sergeant Major
G-Sergeant Major
Posts: 164
Joined: Thu Jan 20, 2011 4:35 pm
Location: Memphis, Texas

Re: My new 1954 M38A1

Post by Maverick1701 » Wed Mar 08, 2017 6:14 pm

Good news on the electrical side. It turns I wasn't pressing my brake pedal hard enough to activate the brake-light switch while testing last night. I was using my hand to test the lights last night as opposed to my foot. Once the switch had enough pressure (when I used my foot) the brake-light came on w/out any issues.

also I tracked my gauge power issue to a faulty "wiring harness to ignition switch" wire. I bought a new set and apparently the wire which brings main power to the ignition switch was DOA. I have checked with a test-light as well as a voltmeter.....and "he's dead, jim".
I am trying to get the seller to send me a replacement wire. I may try to splice it through just so I can continue testing my stuff until the new wire arrives.

I pulled the light switch from the M35A2 and stuck it in the M38A1 and everything worked well. It turns out my used eBay military light-switch is only partially functional....so I will be ordering a replacement switch here in a few min.
Chris
1954 M38A1

Joe Gopan
Jeep Heaven
Posts: 49841
Joined: Sun Mar 02, 2008 12:37 pm
Location: Proving Ground

Re: My new 1954 M38A1

Post by Joe Gopan » Wed Mar 08, 2017 6:22 pm

Be aware of the little approximately 1/8" X 3/8" weight that holds the check ball in the bowl, they have a habit of falling out when the open fuel bowl is inverted. Jeeps do not run well without those two items.
2011 MVPA PIONEER AWARD - MVPA #1064
HONOR GRAD-WHEELED VEHICLE MECHANIC SCHOOL 1960 - US ARMY ORDNANCE SCHOOL(MACHINIST) ABERDEEN PG 1962 - O-1 BIRD DOG CREWCHIEF - 300,000+TROUBLE FREE M-38A1 MILES
LIFE MEMBER AM LEGION-40/8-DAV
7 MIL SPEC MAINTAINED MV'S
COL. BRUNO BROOKS (ARMY MOTORS) IS MY HERO

Maverick1701
G-Sergeant Major
G-Sergeant Major
Posts: 164
Joined: Thu Jan 20, 2011 4:35 pm
Location: Memphis, Texas

Re: My new 1954 M38A1

Post by Maverick1701 » Mon Mar 13, 2017 7:35 pm

The new ignition wire arrived today. I installed when I made it home from work and now I have power to my gauges. The fuel gauge works great. The others I will have to troubleshoot using this method: http://willysmjeeps.com/downloads/instruments.pdf

The generator gauge only has one connector on the back but the wiring diagram shows two wires which should be connected. Any ideas here? I haven't figured anything out...but am still researching.

I went to rebuild the carb today and I discovered several issues. 1. It turns out I bought the wrong rebuild kit....doh! 2. I thought I had a carter-YS when in fact I have a carter-YF 928SD. Apparently the PO replaced the real carb with a CJ3/5 carb. I also noticed that I am missing some parts from my carb. Specifically the link which connects the throttle arm assembly to the pump.

So....what do I do now?
My first thought was to buy a used carburetor off eBay & rebuild (that way I would get those specific missing parts & still have the experience of rebuilding my first non-motorbike carb). If I am going to spend the money on a carb, I would rather buy the correct carb for my jeep not one made for a cj3 which seals poorly w/the 1/2 civilian & 1/2 military cobbled together intake system.

What are y'alls thoughts? At this point I am looking at buying the "real" carb for my jeep (since I am already spending the money). Specifically, a carter-YS 950S. They run about $275 from midwest military.


***ADDED A FEW HRS LATER***
I was able to get the voltage meter sorted. It turns out the wiring harness company sent me an incorrect wiring part...but I was able to MacGyver a solution.

I have a spider harness which branches power from the ignition switch to all my gauges. There is a 5 "leg" harness & a 4 "leg" harness (depending on which gauge you have....volt or amp). The wiring company sent a 4-leg and I should have had a 5-leg spider harness. The 5-leg harness supplies straight power to the voltmeter (one input) while the 4-leg harness uses those two wires shown in the diagram (which I mentioned in the last post) to supply amps. This turned out to be an easy fix.

It turns out I have an extra power wire coming off the ignition switch (this extra wire is used on newer military vehicles but it is extra when the new style switch is used on older jeeps). I used some of my old wiring & made a jumper wire from the extra switched ignition wire to the voltmeter (which is the exact same thing the spider harness does) and my voltmeter now reads good voltage. One step closer.
Chris
1954 M38A1

Joe Gopan
Jeep Heaven
Posts: 49841
Joined: Sun Mar 02, 2008 12:37 pm
Location: Proving Ground

Re: My new 1954 M38A1

Post by Joe Gopan » Tue Mar 14, 2017 4:38 am

Your Jeep has had the Volt Meter added, the vendor selling your harness would normally supply the harness for the ammeter as this is how the 1954's were wired. A 5 wire spider can be used and the extra #27 wire hooked up to the Voltmeter. When ordering harnesses for M-38/M-38A1 it should be checked to see if the previous owners have installed non standard gauges or components that have Packard connectors. That extra wire on the switch is #85 and was added for a heater installation.
2011 MVPA PIONEER AWARD - MVPA #1064
HONOR GRAD-WHEELED VEHICLE MECHANIC SCHOOL 1960 - US ARMY ORDNANCE SCHOOL(MACHINIST) ABERDEEN PG 1962 - O-1 BIRD DOG CREWCHIEF - 300,000+TROUBLE FREE M-38A1 MILES
LIFE MEMBER AM LEGION-40/8-DAV
7 MIL SPEC MAINTAINED MV'S
COL. BRUNO BROOKS (ARMY MOTORS) IS MY HERO

Maverick1701
G-Sergeant Major
G-Sergeant Major
Posts: 164
Joined: Thu Jan 20, 2011 4:35 pm
Location: Memphis, Texas

Re: My new 1954 M38A1

Post by Maverick1701 » Tue Mar 14, 2017 5:25 pm

Ben Dover wrote:Your Jeep has had the Volt Meter added, the vendor selling your harness would normally supply the harness for the ammeter as this is how the 1954's were wired. A 5 wire spider can be used and the extra #27 wire hooked up to the Voltmeter. When ordering harnesses for M-38/M-38A1 it should be checked to see if the previous owners have installed non standard gauges or components that have Packard connectors. That extra wire on the switch is #85 and was added for a heater installation.
Thank you sir. You are totally correct on all points. The wiring company did ask me several questions , unfortunately I couldn't answer one or two of the Q's because I was ordering while at work and couldn't walk outside and check my Jeep.

I knocked out a few minor things today after work. My replacement headlight and new military light-switch arrived today. When I made it home from work I mounted up the fuel/jerry can mount/holder (it has taken me a few tries to get the right sized bolts), installed the new headlight, and installed the new military light-switch. I tested the lights and everything works great now.

I also uninstalled my incorrect spider harness and will be exchanging it for a 5-leg spider harness via snail-mail. I thought about just keeping my jumper cable fix but I decided against it for two reasons. 1. I want it fixed & working correctly 2. I want to keep that spare 24v power output free in case I decide to add a 24v accessory (a small 24v-to-12v inverter, ham radio, etc). It is usually used for a heater on the newer vehicles so it can support an average sized accessory...but I don't plan on adding anything which pulls a heavy load.

I also ordered a Carter YS950S carb from a fellow jeep guy on Facebook. I am going to check it out once it arrives and decide what to do. If everything is there, I'll pick up a rebuild kit, rebuild it, and slap it on the jeep. If it turns out that it is more of a core then I'll but a rebuilt one from a jeep supply company and send them this one to fulfill my core exchange fee.
Chris
1954 M38A1

Joe Gopan
Jeep Heaven
Posts: 49841
Joined: Sun Mar 02, 2008 12:37 pm
Location: Proving Ground

Re: My new 1954 M38A1

Post by Joe Gopan » Wed Mar 15, 2017 5:15 am

The details you are encountering are the same others new to M-38/M-38A1 and are very helpful to others. Don't be bashful. These Jeeps accumulate little fixes and better ideas almost the same day they first got into civilian hands. I have seen many messes that put these Jeeps into disrepair resulting in short lives at volunteer fire departments.
2011 MVPA PIONEER AWARD - MVPA #1064
HONOR GRAD-WHEELED VEHICLE MECHANIC SCHOOL 1960 - US ARMY ORDNANCE SCHOOL(MACHINIST) ABERDEEN PG 1962 - O-1 BIRD DOG CREWCHIEF - 300,000+TROUBLE FREE M-38A1 MILES
LIFE MEMBER AM LEGION-40/8-DAV
7 MIL SPEC MAINTAINED MV'S
COL. BRUNO BROOKS (ARMY MOTORS) IS MY HERO

Maverick1701
G-Sergeant Major
G-Sergeant Major
Posts: 164
Joined: Thu Jan 20, 2011 4:35 pm
Location: Memphis, Texas

Re: My new 1954 M38A1

Post by Maverick1701 » Fri Mar 17, 2017 8:45 pm

My Jeep progress is a waiting game at the moment (waiting on USPS/UPS). The only Jeep tasks I could complete today after work was re-install the passenger fender (it has been off since I initially removed it back 2-ish years ago) and re-rivet by data plates on the body panel.

Apparently the rivets which came in my rivet kit are the wrong type. I need to find some which are flush with the "rear" of the riveted surface (since that surface lays flat on the dash of the jeep). The current rivets I have are not flush which causes the data plate panel to not set flush against the jeep dash (and it looks odd).

I found a guy on my M38A1 Facebook group who had a correct model carburetor for sale (Carter YS950S). It arrived today (now to start the rebuid). I also ordered a set of new hard fuel lines. The correct fuel line setup should have hard lines going directly to the carb. The PO of my jeep replaced some of the hard lines with a re-routed soft line.

Once I finish the rebuild & the new hard lines arrive I'll slap everything together & can re-install my drivers fender, hood, & windshield.

I'm also waiting on the replacement spider harness to arrive from (due to possible litigation this name has been blocked) Jeeps.
Attachments
WP_20170317_20_51_19_Pro.jpg
WP_20170317_20_51_19_Pro.jpg (58.5 KiB) Viewed 6717 times
Chris
1954 M38A1


Post Reply

Return to “- PHOTO GALLERY -”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 5 guests