1943 Ford GPW Build from Rescued 1943 Parts

[70th Division]

That axle and differential look beautiful, I'm jealous! I'm sure you'll have no issues. Great find.

Hello Adam,


That is great to hear !!

I have installed the passenger side backing plate, with all new brakes.
I am going to press out 1 damaged new lug stud tonight, and press a new one back in, so tomorrow I will have it ready mount the new hub
with Timken bearings.

Update:
I have now installed the restored backing plates and complete brake assemblies on both ends of the axle.
The damaged lug was pressed out and the new one pressed into position.
I am now waiting for the nos axle guides to arrive from Sweden, so then I can install the nos leather inner oil seals.
Once that is done, the axles will be installed.

Note : I was lucky to get the last 2 axle guides from Sweden, Jeepest in France is out of stock.
However, today I was lucky to get the last 7 available from a WW2 Jeep Parts in Germany
(Thanks Thierry !!!)
This seems to be a part in very short supply now, and no US or Canadian vendor that I have contacted has any available.

Best Regards,
Ray

[JAB]

Wow! What a great story! I wonder how many more parts like that are still around waiting to be discovered.

[70th Division]

Wow! What a great story! I wonder how many more parts like that are still around waiting to be discovered.

Hi Jeff,

I am sure there are still a lot out there, however I am also sure many sheds are falling down, and parts are getting ruined, thrown away, scapped, etc.

I remember an auction once where I missed bidding on 6 crates of door windows for the closed cab cckw.
They sold cheap, and I think a scrapper got them.

I am sure those were lost from the "remaining" parts inventory.

I would like to think they are still sitting in the Orlando area, as they were sold at the old Northwest Truck Parts auction.

Best Regards,
Ray

[70th Division]

Hello,

I made some more combat rim progress today.

I have one more to do, but only have 3 pictured , but have 4 done.

I have to move this one, number 4, to the back of the barn.

I will get number 5 completed tomorrow !

Best Regards,
Ray

[70th Division]

Hello,


Here is a picture of the eclipse , a night or 2 ago, in the Florida sky, while I was putting the combat rims inside the barn at the time, this looked pretty nice with many stars around the Moon !

Absolutely beautiful !!
God's Wonderful Creation !!

Now this is more like it !!
5 completed Combat Rims with new Firestone tires !!

When working on these tires it is a must to have a few simple tire tools. The first being the tool that screws onto the valve stem .
This you need to attach it and pull the stem through the flap and hole in order to get it in the right position.
Highly recommended, and also put some blue tape on your rim to protect it from getting scratches when you screw the tool on !!

The other tool is to use to unscrew the valve stem, to let air out.
I found this little unit when I was 7 years old along the side of the road in New Hampshire near my home.
I knew at the time I liked it, and now know it belongs on a Jeep Tire pump !!

I taped up the tires, to do paint touch up for the scratches and such, and along the edge of the rim from installing the tire.
The rims were pre-painted before assembling them.

I also started eliminating the pitting on my axle housing.
I am using the metallic filler, and will sand it smooth tomorrow.
It should look great once primed and painted !

Best Regards,
Ray

[70th Division]

Hello,

The axle guides have arrived !!
My first ever package from
Sweden !

The guides are great !
To get started, I decided to tap out
and replace the existing inner axle oil seals, to help clean out the axle tube.
The seals were still good, but I have the nos new ones so wanted to change them.
Interestingly one is an F marked Victor seal, and the other is an F marked M seal like the nos ones, the I wonder what company M stands for ?

Before I cleaned up the axle tube, I placed the axle guide next to the open tube to show what the guide looks like, and the location where it gets installed. It just slides into that recess.
I also oiled them up with gear oil to prevent any rust issues.

I next cleaned up the area pictured, and the inner axle tubes as well.
I then placed the axle guides into position.
Next step was to take the new leather oil seal, that soaked overnight in oil, and placed it into its inset area.
I held it and the disk tool and tapped it in all the way.
Just watch your finger when tapping it in. Work it all the way around, and seat the oil seal into its recessed area.

Once it is all the way in, it looks great and will do its job as designed !!

Both axle guides and oil seals are now installed !

I slid an axle in as a test, and that axle guide worked flawlessly, by putting the axle right in the center of the seal .

It went very well, I also placed the carrier assembly back in, and will torque it down tomorrow.
I will use the permatex ultra black on the bearing cap studs, as well as the cover gasket.

Update :

I put the carrier back in, and bolted the bearing caps down tight.
Making sure that the 7's stamped on the cap and housing each matched their correct orientation for each side !!
I likely have them torqued by hand already as they should be 38 to 42 ft pounds.
The permatex was added to the bolts, after being cleaned up.
It appears that Ford used some type of thread sealant during WW2 assembly.

Update :

Today I double checked the torque on the differential bearing caps, since I had tightened them as much as I could by hand, then used a short pipe to add a little extra, when I first installed them.
38-42 pounds is not that much torque, and my torque wrench only goes as low as 50 lbs.
So I made an educated calculation.
I had taken them off with the same short pipe and wrench, so I am certain that I got it correct and tight putting the bolts back into position.
Then I trimmed the gasket, you can see the little tabs cut away around the carrier gear, this now matches an original gasket.
Then I and added some Permatex Ultra black sealant on the cleaned housing surface, as well as the cover .
Once in position I tightened it down by hand, then waited and hour to put the final tightening on the bolts.
All went well, and this should be drip proof !

Here are some pictures :

After that, I slid the axles into the housing and tightened them down as well.
The hubs and differential turn nicely by hand, everything looks and feels good !
I added a slight film of red grease along the axle shaft to prevent any potential rust on it in the future.

I will order some nos vent caps from Ron to go on the differential covers, as we can see this one is missing its cap.

Best Regards,
Ray

[70th Division]

Hello,

The rear axle is really starting to look good !
After priming , I painted on the Gillespie 2430 olive drab late war paint.
It is such a good paint with great UV resistance properties. It is the only paint I will use for my vehicles !
It lasts !!!

I painted the hub and turned it as I went, so the primer seen on the bolts has been painted over now, after the picture was taken

Here we can see a small 3 stamped on the case.

The next thing I will do now, it to set the brake pads to the correct tolerances with a feeler gauge, as shown by Scott Schiller on Ron's G503 TV via Rumble or YT.

The last thing to do is to change out the pinion oil seal.
That I am thinking of doing once the axle is mounted to the frame.
It takes a ton of torque to set the pinion nut.
When I changed the seals on my 42 GPW, I had to chalk the wheels as it wanted to roll away, in gear !!

If anyone has a better idea of how to change the pinion oil seal, please let me know.

Best Regards,
Ray

[JAB]

Hold the yoke with a yoke wrench....you don't have a yoke wrench? A large pipe wrench (24" minimum) with a cheater pipe long enough for it to reach and rest on the ground, and padded jaws (scrap luan plywood works great)... and now you have a yoke wrench. I like to use an impact to take it off and of course a torque wrench to assemble. I think it's 225 lb-ft but you'd have to look that up. That's if you do it in the vehicle. It's a little more cumbersome on the bench. I made some axle stands, but it's still easier in the vehicle.

[70th Division]

Hold the yoke with a yoke wrench....you don't have a yoke wrench? A large pipe wrench (24" minimum) with a cheater pipe long enough for it to reach and rest on the ground, and padded jaws (scrap luan plywood works great)... and now you have a yoke wrench. I like to use an impact to take it off and of course a torque wrench to assemble. I think it's 225 lb-ft but you'd have to look that up. That's if you do it in the vehicle. It's a little more cumbersome on the bench. I made some axle stands, but it's still easier in the vehicle.

Thanks Jeff !!

I have a BIG pipe wrench, and I also have full set of a BIG sockets that will make short work of a removing the nut.
225 pounds sounds about right .
I read somewhere that the nut takes that great torque setting to set everything tight in the differential.

Many may not be aware of the torque setting required, and just put the nut on tight and then the cotter pin.
A G poster said that your differentials will get really loud if not tightened down properly and set correctly with the torque.

Thanks for all the help on the rear end Jeff !!

Once the new number 1 leaves get here from Belgium, I will be able to complete the leaf spring restorations.

I will start the front axle restoration tomorrow, at least get it ready to work on, and I will put some combat rims and tires on this axle to free up the axle stand .

Best Regards,
Ray

[70th Division]

Hello,

Ok now it is front axle time !
I have three axle options, one being better than the other, but one is one on garage floor and I want it gone from the floor being an obstacle, and put under a GPW !


Naturally, this one is the other one from jeep with the bubba rear axle shim issue.
I looked under the cover on this one, and it is all Ford, looks real good as well.
This front axle was bought as a set with the rear.

I have another one that is complete, and was under the gpw frame that I restored.
I also have an nos front axle, minus all the hubs and axles.

So I guess I will start with getting the one blocking up the floor, looked at and make a restoration assessment.
Both complete axles had their scalloped flanges removed and sold separately before I got them.
I just ordered an nos F marked pair to replace them.
I will also order some shims that are needed.
( Update- I just remembered that I did buy the flanges from this axle, so that is good, I will have 2 sets to restore 2 front axles now )
So looking at the axle, some immediate issues appear.

First thing is the bell crank was trashed out, and was welded up from some damage.

It is also cut off, a total piece of junk.
Next, the bell crank big shaft that is there is junk.
The roller bearing failed and was just a bunch of rollers left on the bottom bearing.

The drift pin that attached it to the axle housing, was a cut down bolt !
It did have a tapered block that fit well , then a nut holding it together.

I will have to find and order a new bell crank, and new mounting kit.
Ron is currently out of them.

The next thing I see is that the permanent little bracket welded to the axle housing that the brass brake T bolts to of course was cut off with a grinder.
I would have to make one of these brackets with a capture nut.
It can be done.

This is what it looks like, and will need a new bracket with capture nut welded on.

This is what it should look like and is axle option number 2.
Next, the brake drum has a chunk broken off of it as seen in the first picture.
I am replacing the drums but still it shows a rough life with its last owner.

Now with all this said, I don't want to not attempt to restore this one, but naturally the other candidates may be better options.
But this is what we try to do, save it all, so I will proceed with this one.
If the bell crank drift pin hole is bad, then this will become a parts unit to build up the nos axle housing.

The carrier and pinion gears look perfect inside, so that is a good starting point !!

But the other axle that is complete can be another option.
I was setting those two front and rear axles aside for a different gpw restoration plan.



Best Regards,
Ray

[JAB]

If the only thing you need to repair that one turns out to be the pivot mount that is welded onto the axle I may be able to provide help. Somewhere along the line I acquired one that was cut off of an axle for "who knows why" and saved it in case I needed to repair one. I don't think I'm going to need it so after I verify that it may be an option for you.

[70th Division]

If the only thing you need to repair that one turns out to be the pivot mount that is welded onto the axle I may be able to provide help. Somewhere along the line I acquired one that was cut off of an axle for "who knows why" and saved it in case I needed to repair one. I don't think I'm going to need it so after I verify that it may be an option for you.

Hello Jeff,

It will be awesome if that is all the repair needed

That would be great if you can find it !!
Let me know what you want for it, as
it would save me a lot of time trying to recreate one !


Best Regards,
Ray

[JAB]

Hi Ray, I dug it out of storage and regret that it’s for a CJ

[70th Division]

Hi Ray, I dug it out of storage and regret that it’s for a CJ

Thanks for checking Jeff !!

The bracket that was cut off this axle is for the brake line T, but
after looking at a good one on another GPW axle, it will be a very simple thing to build, and weld on.
The bracket is 1 inch wide.
Here is what I will try to make :

The bolt hole looks like it is threaded into the metal.
The thread pattern is 1/4 -28

However, upon further examination, there appears to be what looks like a "nut" under the bracket,
making it deeper threaded, than the thickness of the metal !

So my best approach to this is that I am going to get a 1/4-28 nut from Home Depot, and drill a hole for the nut in my new made bracket , then weld the nut into position to hold the brake line T bolt.


Here are some pictures of the bracket I made to replace the missing one :

Now I will put it in the vise and drill it on center, then carefully weld in a nut, being sure not to mess up the fine threads .
It lines up nice where the original one was removed.

I will mark the location, and clean off the old welds, and get this ready to weld on, once the nut is welded into position.

I also ordered a 40 piece tap set from harbor freight so that I have a good complete set on hand for the projects.

Best Regards,
Ray

[70th Division]

Hello,

I got the correct nut, 1/4 - 28 ,
drilled the bracket to fit the nut in snug.
Then welded it in on both sides.

I ground down the top smooth.
It is rock solid, and a new bolt threads in nicely.
When I welded it in position, I used a bolt to protect the threads from damage while welding.
The bolt took some damage, but I have a spare from Home Depot .

I cleaned it up and primed it, and will buff the primer off the ends to get a clean weld onto the axle.

Once it is welded on, I will weld the little gaps on the top around the nut, to keep any water from sitting in there.

Next step is to weld the bracket onto the axle tube.

But of course it started to rain as soon as I clamped this new made part to the axle !!


Ok, a few hours later the rain was gone and everything dried up, so I was able to weld the bracket on to the axle.
It went well, and is attached once again .

The axle will clean up nice once blasted and painted.
Just have to weld up a couple of the top side gaps around the nut, and a rogue grinder cut in the spring mount in the morning.

The next step will be to get the bell crank and shaft replaced.
If that goes well, it will be onto the hubs and associated work cleaning the axles up, and new seals, etc.
New brake drums will be going on as well, so new studs will be pressed in during assembly.


Plus !!!
The rear number 1 leaves arrived from Belgium today, and I can start finishing the leaf springs, and sling the rear axle !!
Thanks Jaap !!



Best Regards,
Ray