What is this? No guessing- 1942 MB Slat

Nov. 18, 1941 - MB100001 thru Mar. 6, 1942 - MB125809 NO EBAY or COMMERCIAL SALES.
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MB-SlatBob
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What is this? No guessing- 1942 MB Slat

Post by MB-SlatBob » Sun Sep 19, 2021 1:08 pm

I have MB Slat 1942 110730, delivered 9Jan42, and it has a passenger-side covered box just in front of the windshield. I saw one other many years ago, and when I was in the Marine Corps, an old-timer told us that when they landed at Guadalcanal (7Aug42) there were 3-5 jeeps with small, short-range radios that weren't very effective. This box has a corroded hole in the bottom, pretty obviously rusted or eaten out by chemicals around what was likely a drilled hole.
I'm guessing radio/telephone, extra battery, small generator, or something in that vein. Can anyone identify?
Attached is a photo, and also a photo of the landing on 7Aug42, and the man seems to be talking on....something.
I have no conviction one way or the other, but it's there, so I want to know what it is and what I need to do with it to make it right.
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USMC MBs-Guadalcanal-LCVP PO-20-7Aug42 (2).jpg
USMC MBs-Guadalcanal-LCVP PO-20-7Aug42 (2).jpg (6.76 KiB) Viewed 2173 times
1942-MB-Slat-Aux Battery Box (2).jpg


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Bill H.
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Re: What is this? No guessing- 1942 MB Slat

Post by Bill H. » Sun Sep 19, 2021 5:16 pm

The M38 had a battery box located there but it was more rectangular.
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Re: What is this? No guessing- 1942 MB Slat

Post by MB-SlatBob » Sun Sep 19, 2021 5:52 pm

Thanks Bill. Yes, I remember the M38 box. They were from my era.

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Re: What is this? No guessing- 1942 MB Slat

Post by Ed Roberts » Sun Sep 19, 2021 8:22 pm

Curious indeed. Appears to me at first glance to be a modified MB tool box cover, shaped to fit. No idea why and I've not seen anything like this. Looking forward to more info.
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Re: What is this? No guessing- 1942 MB Slat

Post by MB-SlatBob » Sun Sep 19, 2021 8:54 pm

It does not appear to be a field modification. There are no rough edges, no places that look handmade or roughly fit. The sump under the lid is very well made with no cruse welds or bends. It's at least a depot-level mod I'm my opinion

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Re: What is this? No guessing- 1942 MB Slat

Post by Gary C V » Mon Sep 20, 2021 12:11 am

Hi MB-SlatBob,
I seem to remember that either Ford or Willys had a extra battery fitted there for radio use only.
There is a photo somewhere but I can't locate it at this time, sorry.

Cheers
Gary

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Re: What is this? No guessing- 1942 MB Slat

Post by Gary C V » Mon Sep 20, 2021 1:33 am

Found it.

Cheers
Gary
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Ford_12_volt_GPW_Camp_Hood_TX_6-2-1943.jpg

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David
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Re: What is this? No guessing- 1942 MB Slat

Post by David » Mon Sep 20, 2021 2:09 am

Interesting, The jeep in the photo seems to be a later, standard MB, but it might have been a field modification on Bob's jeep?

Btw I have MB II0247, 1 day older than yours :P

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Re: What is this? No guessing- 1942 MB Slat

Post by MB-SlatBob » Mon Sep 20, 2021 3:52 am

Thanks, Dave, yes...Ford and Willys did have a later effort to try extra batteries there to power larger radios and to run the suppression gear. You photo shows the later "S"-mark on the vehicle. They later mounted those batteries in the back, wired in series. I'm inclined to think mine was an earlier attempt or a Depot retrofit, but that makes little sense, because by then, they had the Batts and radios in the back.
Gary....one day younger? Brothers!

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Re: What is this? No guessing- 1942 MB Slat

Post by Mark Tombleson » Mon Sep 20, 2021 1:21 pm

Okay... I have these cowl mounted battery MB & GPW in my files, somewhere and made a list that I posted, somewhere...

viewtopic.php?f=84&t=264634&start=45

Some had hood numbers and some frame numbers listed when they were tested at the various Army testing facilities.

They were testing 12v in the jeep with 26amp, 40amp and 55amp generators.

It may take some time to look into this topic and I'm not sure how early some of the MBs were but the test were in the spring of 1943 if I remember correctly.

I really surprise myself sometimes...

viewtopic.php?t=170203
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Re: What is this? No guessing- 1942 MB Slat

Post by MB-SlatBob » Mon Sep 20, 2021 2:05 pm

Thanks, Mark. Great information. For what it's worth, this MB was converted to 12-volts, and a long time ago.
However, it is an MB, not a GPW, which brings up the next question, did Ford somehow received a no-bid contract to do the experimental/restricted work, rather than maintaining competitive bidding? At this stage of the war, I would think that they'd be grabbing vehicles, as long as they were common.
Also this MB was in my opinion a Marine Corps vehicle. There are some old paint spots (small faded bits both green and yellow) that convince me. Historically, several things were going on: including protection of FDR and the White House, and preparation at New River, SC for the Solomons Campaign by the First Division. Knowing Marine Corps Supply and Maintenance, this makes me wonder if some enterprising Motor T guys didn't copy something they had wind of...

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Re: What is this? No guessing- 1942 MB Slat

Post by Mark Tombleson » Mon Sep 20, 2021 5:06 pm

Jim Gilmore was the contact for data on the cowl GPWs. 8 were made, or so he says for the USMC at the White House.

The links show how many of each were tested and the Navy/USMC went with the 55amp PTO generator.

Do you have a hood number?
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Re: What is this? No guessing- 1942 MB Slat

Post by MB-SlatBob » Mon Sep 20, 2021 5:22 pm

I'm still very gently stripping and have 3-4 days to go, but on the side at the personnel handle, my guesswork seems to be giving me "400........and maybe ...42".....if so, it's out of a series delivered to the brand new 1st Division at New River, SC. I have a photo of 40082, on the beach at Guadalcanal, also a Slat.

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Re: What is this? No guessing- 1942 MB Slat

Post by Michael O. » Sat Sep 25, 2021 2:46 pm

David wrote:
Mon Sep 20, 2021 2:09 am
Interesting, The jeep in the photo seems to be a later, standard MB, but it might have been a field modification on Bob's jeep?
I know this photo well. The jeep in the photo is a Louisville GPW which was probably delivered on 3-24-43. It was shipped directly from the Louisville assembly plant to Camp Hood, TX for radio equipment testing and had the extra battery added there at Camp Hood.

Interestingly, my GPW-104111 (also a Louisville, DoD 3-23-43) has a registration number of 20369245 and the one in the photo is 20369282…only 37 numbers higher than mine. If you study the photo like I have, one can see that at the time it was assembled, Louisville was using the piss-away-from-block type Fram oil filter canister and they were using the “GPW Type II” oil dipstick.
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