Mike House
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Posts posted by Mike House
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Some parts arrived today so I changed gears from engine to front axle.
Both hubs had play in the wheel bearings. When I took it apart I found that they were not set with a reasonable amount of preload or they backed off over time.
to my surprise I found some good parts behind the drums! That was a plus.
the bell crank was very sloppy, tie rod ends worn out and the passenger side had been welded. I rebuilt the bell rank with new parts and assembled the tie rods. New tie rods and new ends. I didn’t assemble it on the Jeep yet. Still trying to decide if I should open up the closed knuckle and inspect everything. It seems good and tight and the steering knuckle is smooth on the king pin bearings...... probably should open it up.
side note two different style drums on the front axle. One inboard and one outboard. I believe the 3b came with outboard drums.
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Thanks for the advice. I did find the Melling high volume pump upgrade for about 100 bucks. I think I will go that route and with a new time no cover. The shop doing the machine work on my engine said he may have a timing cover in good shape. He used to do a lot of work on these Buick engines.
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You have both provided me with a wealth of info and options. I believe I will do a new timing cover. As for the pump options I will spend a little more time investigating the options. I have a little time to make the decision as I am not rushed to complete the engine build. I am eager to get started building it but don’t want to rush into a hasty decision just for the sake of moving forward.
thanks againMike
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That’s great feedback! I appreciate the guidance. I will have a look at those parts.
Thanks,,
Mike
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When I removed the water pump and timing cover I broke 3 of the small bolts holding the water pump on. Last night I removed the broken bolts and attempted to tap out the holes. When chasing the threads one of the holes that did not have a broken bolt removed I pushed the tap all the way through the thin metal at the bottom of the hole and all the way into the cavity behind the water pump. Soooooo it looks like I will purchase a replacement timing cover. It's better to know now than install the timing cover and find out later when I put water into the oil of my new engine!
It looks like I can get a timing cover from about $90 to $150 depending on the brand. I have read a few reviews that people had trouble getting the distributor to fit properly on the new cover. I will purchase the new cover and check the fit before I put it on the engine. If it's not right I will return it.
Mike
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51 minutes ago, Moses Ludel said:
Thank you for the feedback Moses. I have no need to go any more than 2.5" on a lift. The foot print of this jeep and 31" tires will get me where I want to go!
I will be picking up my engine from the machine shop next week and start the build up. It has been a long time since I have built an engine. I look forward to bringing this one back to life!
Mike
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Thank you for the detailed feedback. The 3b is my favorite of the jeeps as well. I will spend some more time with this carburatore clearly identifying it and sourcing parts for it.
Thanks again for the help.
Mike
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The transmission was all intact but it needed rebuilt. I took it apart and found it to be a T90c based on the tooth count on the input shaft. I am pretty sure that the c model was introduced in the 60s and not the original for a 1956
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I got the rest of the frame all cleaned up and painted! Not sure what to do with the suspension. I am thinking a 2.5" lift.
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Not the best but it will do!
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I found the frame was broken and had a pretty nasty repair job done at some point. the frame was repaired and a big bumper welded on with the frame toed in towards the passenger side about 1.5 inches.
I cut it all out and repaired it.
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I found the frame was broken and had a pretty nasty repair job done at some point. the frame was repaired and a big bumper welded on with the frame toed in towards the passenger side about 1.5 inches.
I cut it all out and repaired it.
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I pulled the tub to have a look at the frame and make repairs.
I found the frame was broken and had a pretty nasty repair job done at some point. the frame was repaired and a big bumper welded on with the frame toed in towards the passenger side about 1.5 inches.
I cut it all out and repaired it.
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I bought this little gem on April 3, 2020. Turns out based the SN I found on the frame it is a 1956.
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I chose this forum to document my project for a few reasons.
1. Mr. Moses Ludel seems to respond to the posts with a wealth of knowledge and great resources. I bought the Jeep cj Rebuilder's Manual as my second investment after buying the jeep!
2. I am not restoring a jeep to its original form. It will be a hybrid of original equipment and new equipment.
3. All of the people using this forum seem to have a genuine love for these jeeps and seem very helpful.
Thanks,
Mike
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It has taken me nearly 35 years from the moment I fell in love with the willys jeep to finally buy a project Willys and build one for myself!
Recently while browsing craigslist I found an add for a 1950s cj3b for $1,500. The pics made it look like a minor rebuild project but of course the guy I got it from did not know much of the history of the jeep. He told me it was half 3b and half M38.....
I bought the jeep and trailered it home.
After several weeks of soaking the cylinders I was still unable to get the F head 4 cylinder freed up. For the next few weeks I did research on an engine upgrade and settled on a late 90's GM v6 with TBI. While trying to find the right deal on an engine I stumbled across a guy selling jeep parts and turned out he had a Dauntless V6 still sitting in a 1967 CJ5. I bought the engine, flywheel and bellhousing for $400. This engine was also seized up as it had been sitting in a field for several years.
I got the engine home and tore it down to the block. The cylinder walls were scored and worn but the block, crank and heads seemed salvable so the block, crank and head went to the machine shop.
The body is in very rough shape. If I had the tools and shop space I would probably rebuild/repair the body. Still undecided on the path forward with the body. Other than I pulled it off and striped the frame down.
Pulled the T90 and Dana 18 apart and found the transfer case to be in good shape but the transmission was a basket case.
I have since rebuilt the transmission and bolted it back up to the transfer case awaiting the motor from the machine shop.
I plan to couple the Dauntless V6 to the T90. This will not be a hwy vehicle or a performance vehicle so for now I will stick with this drive train.
I found the frame broken just behind left front spring shackle so I repaired the break and fish plated the outside of the frame.
And that is where I am at to this point.
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Good afternoon. So I finally pulled the trigger on starting a willys rebuild project. Long story short I am in the process of rebuilding a 1967 dauntless v6 that I rescued from a field full of cows, pigs and goats in North Georgia. The gentleman I bought the engine from was a great dude for the record.
The engine had been sitting in the weather for several years but it did seem to be whole and intact.
The engine is at the machine shop getting machine work done. Nothing major. It will be bored .030 over and have the crank ground. Heads will be next.
So to my question about the carb. As I clean up the parts and pieces to go back on the engine as I rebuild it I found that the carb is in pretty rough shape and I can't locate a tag or SN on it anywhere.
Question: If I were building this project with no carb to start with at all and had to buy a new one what should I buy???
The jeep is not being built as a rock crawler, parade vehicle or any other kind of high performance application. I will drive it around in the woods hunting, drive it to work every now and again and maybe a 150 mile trip to the north GA mountains now and then.
Thanks for any feedback. If this has been covered somewhere else in the forums please point me that direction. I could not find this specific question answered any where.
My buddy in the pic was not impressed with the barn yard jeep find.... hahahaha
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Awesome project. Thanks for sharing. As I begin to make some progress on my 3b I will add a thread for it.
Mike
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Awesome rebuild and story to go with it! I have recently started a CJ3b project and it looks like it will be a ground up rebuild due to the condition of everything on it.
Thanks for sharing.
Mike
1956 Willys CJ3B Rebuild and Restoration
in Vintage Jeep® Vehicles 1941-71
Posted
Moses,
I sure appreciate your feedback and input on this forum! I did not realize that the left side had left hand threads and I broke them all off. Live and learn. I understand the need for left hand threads on semi trucks and the like but is it necessary on these jeeps? I just went back out to the garage and looked at that locking nut. When I installed it I didn't think that there was enough thread sticking through the nut and something didn't seem right. What I found was that I left the old flat washer on the mount and put the new washer on top of it. I removed the old washer and tightened it down correctly. Looks much better now.
As I dig deeper and deeper into this jeep I have found a lot of parts and pieces that look like they were put back together in a rush almost like the jeep was disassembled and put back together just to make it appear whole.