Willard Battery Cover

1941 - 1945, Willys MB & Ford GPW jeeps, NO EBAY, Craigslist or COMMERCIAL SALES.
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Savannasbob1
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Re: Willard Battery Cover

Post by Savannasbob1 » Sat Aug 21, 2021 6:24 am

Looks good,


arnob38
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Re: Willard Battery Cover

Post by arnob38 » Fri Sep 17, 2021 11:19 pm

Looks very good indeed.
Looking forward for the production build, and hope that you will be able to ship the 6V Optima Cover to France :P

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whatthecrunchyo
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Re: Willard Battery Cover

Post by whatthecrunchyo » Thu Sep 23, 2021 4:58 am

These things can’t come fast enough!
1944 Willys MB 305597 (2-15-44)

cmk-2
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Re: Willard Battery Cover

Post by cmk-2 » Sun Nov 14, 2021 3:37 am

Any update?

Hal Joyce
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Re: Willard Battery Cover

Post by Hal Joyce » Sun Nov 14, 2021 9:01 am

Rare communication, do not have a clue?
MB SG 110169 body 13869 Engine 590935
GPW 108703 s/n all matching 3/31/43
Willy’s MBT 11539 11/42 16748w s/n 0213230
1947 CJ2A s/n 87325 engine MC62311 GPW head
:D

Rustman
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Re: Willard Battery Cover

Post by Rustman » Mon Nov 15, 2021 9:32 am

Sorry guys. Day jobs and other obligations have kept us from advancing on production on these. I'm hopeful to resume some test castings next week. I cannot give an estimate of when we will have them in production.

Matthew
1970 Kaiser Jeep DJ-5A Left Hand Drive
1945 Corps of Engineers Welder & Trailer
1943 G518 "Ben Hur" Trailer Steel Body
194* G518 "Ben Hur" Trailer Composite Body
http://g518parts.com/

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1942 Ford GPW 352nd
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Re: Willard Battery Cover

Post by 1942 Ford GPW 352nd » Wed Jan 05, 2022 6:01 am

Rustman wrote:
Mon Nov 15, 2021 9:32 am
Sorry guys. Day jobs and other obligations have kept us from advancing on production on these. I'm hopeful to resume some test castings next week. I cannot give an estimate of when we will have them in production.

Matthew
Hello Matthew,
I hope all is going well. Were you able to make any progress?

Best regards,
Todd

Rustman
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Re: Willard Battery Cover

Post by Rustman » Thu Jan 06, 2022 8:05 pm

November/December is a very busy time for my wife and myself. But we did make some progress. Nothing really exciting to share. But we did figure out some processes and have some methods that will result in a better product. But no actual production or pictures to share yet. Sorry all.

Matt
1970 Kaiser Jeep DJ-5A Left Hand Drive
1945 Corps of Engineers Welder & Trailer
1943 G518 "Ben Hur" Trailer Steel Body
194* G518 "Ben Hur" Trailer Composite Body
http://g518parts.com/

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Re: Willard Battery Cover

Post by SGM (ret) » Fri Jan 07, 2022 4:22 am

I'm following the progress towards renewed production of these. I'll be in the crowd ready to order one up as soon as you get there. However, I can appreciate the time and effort that's needed to do this.

I do have a friend who does a good number of small, commercial urethane resin casting jobs and has been for years. He does flawless work using vacuum de-airing and pressure casting. If you'd be interested in getting some info and advice on processes and equipment, shoot me a PM. I'll be happy to put you in touch with him. He's advised and mentored a number of other small business resin product makers.

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1942 Ford GPW 352nd
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Re: Willard Battery Cover

Post by 1942 Ford GPW 352nd » Tue Jan 11, 2022 3:58 am

Rustman wrote:
Thu Jan 06, 2022 8:05 pm
November/December is a very busy time for my wife and myself. But we did make some progress. Nothing really exciting to share. But we did figure out some processes and have some methods that will result in a better product. But no actual production or pictures to share yet. Sorry all.

Matt
Hello Matt,
Thank you for your response. It's good to hear that things are moving forward, even if minimal progress is made, it is still progress. :D

Best regards,

Todd

Jean Georges
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Re: Willard Battery Cover

Post by Jean Georges » Mon Jan 17, 2022 9:13 am

Hello
I am ok for buying 2 willard cases for optima
Do you still have some ?
Thanks
Jean
jeep gp ford 14949
jeep vep ford 6088
jeep gpa ford amphibious
M8 ford
dodge wc 56 command car
dodge wc 53 carry all
Gmc dukw amphibious
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Gmc 353
Sherman M 4 A1
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Harley wla 43
Harley XA

Rustman
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Re: Willard Battery Cover

Post by Rustman » Wed Jan 19, 2022 6:37 pm

SGM (ret) wrote:
Fri Jan 07, 2022 4:22 am
I'm following the progress towards renewed production of these. I'll be in the crowd ready to order one up as soon as you get there. However, I can appreciate the time and effort that's needed to do this.

I do have a friend who does a good number of small, commercial urethane resin casting jobs and has been for years. He does flawless work using vacuum de-airing and pressure casting. If you'd be interested in getting some info and advice on processes and equipment, shoot me a PM. I'll be happy to put you in touch with him. He's advised and mentored a number of other small business resin product makers.
I'll send off a message soon. This process is slush casting rather than multipart molds that can be pressure casted.

Jean,

If you are following this thread you will see that we do not have any cases for sale yet.

Matt
1970 Kaiser Jeep DJ-5A Left Hand Drive
1945 Corps of Engineers Welder & Trailer
1943 G518 "Ben Hur" Trailer Steel Body
194* G518 "Ben Hur" Trailer Composite Body
http://g518parts.com/

SGM (ret)
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Re: Willard Battery Cover

Post by SGM (ret) » Wed Jan 19, 2022 7:11 pm

I'll look forward to it, Rustman.

FWIW, although I'm no expert, I do know that pressure casting can be done with open-top, single part molds. Often (but not always), the casting resin is de-aired after mixing in a vacuum chamber, then poured into the mold. The mold is then put into a pressure tank and the atmospheric pressure is raised using compressed air. The increased pressure actually forces the resin into all the mold details.

Slush casting by rolling the mold around to spread the resin can benefit from de-airing the resins, too.

However, if the finished, box-shaped part that's to be cast is flat and smooth on the bottom, a simple single part mold that's open on the bottom can be used to establish consistent wall thickness and also add gussets and other interior details. The resin is poured into the open bottom, filling the sides, until it's level. For consistency, a shallow pour neck can be added to the mold and the resin slightly over-filled up into it. This works well especially if the bottom edges of the finished piece have radiuses. The pour neck establishes the line where the radius meets the flat bottom and gives strength to the mold in this area (to avoid distortion). A belt sander makes quick work out of removing the over-pour stub on the cast parts.

At any rate, my buddy is the guy to really talk to about this.

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John Neuenburg
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Re: Willard Battery Cover

Post by John Neuenburg » Tue Feb 01, 2022 8:51 am

Who would like to meet the creator of this battery cover, Robert Lentz, AND attend the largest annual military vehicle event west of the Mississippi? The Camp Plymouth Swap Meet & Military Vehicle Show is April 27-30, 2022 in Plymouth, California. I invited him to attend the event and he said yes! He is planning to come out here from Florida to check out the show plus do regional tourist things for a couple weeks. That's what a lot of our long-distance attendees do.

So I thought it would be fun to create a Willard Reproduction 6 Volt Battery Cover Discussion Group and Display with Rob as honored guest. This will be Friday April 29 from 10:30 to 11:30 am. Location will be next to one of our three themed MV displays, in this case the Ford GTB Cargo & Bomb Truck Showcase that will be 9:00 to noon. See the activities schedule below.

If you have one of his Willard covers and battery installed in your MV and if you are within range, will you bring it to Camp Plymouth and open its hood during this meeting? Please email me or post a yes. Some will be curious how folks have sealed the top and maybe the terminal-to-top area, what sealer they used, and if they painted the logo, exactly what color? Bring a can of the paint if you can. If you can't bring your MV, how about just the finished battery? Anybody have an original 6v Willard or any other vintage battery to show off?

If you have not been to one of the big Spring swap meet/shows promoted by the Military Vehicle Collectors of California for the past 44 years, check out the flyers below to get a feel for it. Go to www.MVCCNews.net and the calendar page for updates. Also we post info here on the Gee on the Events and MVCC forums.

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Military Vehicle Collectors of California
MVPA 7404
1942 Ford GPW British Special Air Service Regiment Replica
1944 Willys MB
1941 Indian 640
BSA Folding Bicycles
M1942 Command Post Tent

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John Neuenburg
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Re: Willard Battery Cover

Post by John Neuenburg » Tue Feb 01, 2022 9:01 am

Couple more things about the event....
As you have read, Matthew at Mifflinburg Body & Gear has taken over this project. I invited him to attend with some of his current production covers and get a space for also selling Ben Hur trailer parts which is their main parts business. It is doubtful he will make the long journey but maybe he will send us a cover so we can check it out?

People who buy Matthew's covers are encouraged to display their MV with it at this meeting.

Regarding Camp Plymouth, for those who want a campsite for camping or just selling parts or militaria, we have a block of discounted sites at the 49er RV Village. Use the camping form that is linked on the MVCC website on the event page. Do not reserve a RV site through the 49er reservation system (unless you want to pay more). Contact them to pay your deposit AFTER you are assigned a discounted site by our coordinator. This form is also used for spaces on the fairgrounds side across the fence, which is where our Tent Sector is.
Military Vehicle Collectors of California
MVPA 7404
1942 Ford GPW British Special Air Service Regiment Replica
1944 Willys MB
1941 Indian 640
BSA Folding Bicycles
M1942 Command Post Tent


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