WC53 - Project Big Band Wagon

[WC4DOOR]

Both forums are great, but consider your audience. If you are building a PW, then PWA forum is the place. If your building a OD stocker, then this is the place. Just think, you can get the best of both worlds, just buy another truck, or two, or three. I'm on both forums with four different Carryalls. You get different opinions on the same truck at each forum. After doing a few, I think the OD stocker brings me more satisfaction, but they are all fun to build.
Buy the way I grabbed Ken J,s frame last winter. Good luck with your build, see you on the other forum.

James

[Mcinfantry]

its my old truck. it saw more road time, and far more people commented, rode in it, asked about it than any stock MV. and Ive owned a bunch.

far better to rest-mod one than let it rust into dust in a field while the owners visions of grandeur die a slow painful death.

[WC4DOOR]

But on this one, you took ALL the good, looked at, awed over stuff out of it, and what's left is a major project. There are some major dreaming with this one, and if 20 large bills aren't thrown at it, IT WILL DIE A SLOW DEATH.

[Phil_S]

Speaking in a purely monitary sense, an original restoration would retain higher resale value vs. sitting the body on a Suburban chassis (for example.)

[ng19delta]

I'm sorry, but I MUST disagree with most of your "reasons" for modification. The original engine IS safe to use, and parts are in wonderous supply. I can think of at least 4 or more sources with tons of them.

Second, the steering may not be power steering, but it IS geared with that in mind. So stop being a wuss, and grow some muscles. Here's a tip- never steer when the truck isn't moving. Works great when the wheels are rolling. The vehicles were made before power steering, and are made to perform well.

As to the brakes, they stop the damn thing, and well. IF you drive properly, you have plenty of room to stop. You are not supposed to run up on something and jam on the brakes in any vehicle. Proper stopping starts long before you hit the brake pedal, by moderating your speed and spacing, and then removing your foot from the gas and just rolling towards the stop, allowing momentum to resolve itself, then using the brakes to come to the final stop. And in an emergency, driving skills will help you stop it well.

As to the "undercoating which can't be removed" Horse hockey. ANY coating can be removed. Just takes EFFORT. I've been doing this 30 years(!) on various vehicles from Triumph Herald to Fords to Seagrave fire engines to Jeeps to Dodge WC, and there is NOTHING you can not undo with some effort.

Oh-and NEVER be afraid to drive a slower vehicle in traffic. If the others don't like it, they can damn well pass you when allowed. Otherwise, they can enjoy the day. Period. If you want the experience of driving the truck, GET THE EXPERIENCE OF DRIVING THE TRUCK. If you want to drive something that keeps up to higher speeds, and does all sorts of things, sell the truck to someone who will give it the restoration it deserves, and go buy something more in line with what you want- because it is NOT an old truck.

Someone has sold you an old roll of socks for lunch if you believe all those reasons. Either man up and restore it correctly(and YES they CAN be driven daily- ANY vehicle can, provided it is maintained properly) or man-up and rod it. Don't be a dink and try to "explain" all your decisions to make yourself feel better. If you are going to do it, just do it. But I recommend the full correct restoration route. You will have a much better vehicle, which will give you the feel of the original(as it is one). Otherwise, go get an old Chevy van, punch some windows through, paint it OD with white numbers, and write "DODGE' on the back, and you'll have your authentic WWII Dodge resto-mod. Same concept. You can;t paint a pig and call it a duck. Nor can you resto-mod a vehicle and call it original. It is now YOUR CONCEPT of an original. But it is not original.

Sorry, but I kinda get offended when someone suggests removing a limited genus from the gene pool for their own personal experimentation. It is not all about you- It is about a rare vehicle becoming rarer. Why not see if you can find a postwar "Suburban" they look pretty close, and are not as rare. Play with it all day, give it every nickle mod you can think of. Just don't mod the one which should be restored...

Scott

[Alxj64]

I find it interesting that everyone is making assumptions that makes it sound as though my intentions are half-afforded or slack. That I don't have a concept of mechanical motion or have never operated large equipment, both new, old. I appreciate the quick driving lesson as well however in the many miles I have driven new and old things there have been many times where if I was in the old thing, regardless of driving skills, machine maintanence or proper stopping, the old vehicle would not have stopped and people would have been dead because of simple vehicle dynamics. However, I was operating something with traction better than a bias NDT can provide, but this sounds like an excuse to some so I guess nevermind.

You guys are right, the truck was "originally" a 1942 WC53. Now what is it? It sits in pieces, incomplete, generations of bondo, lead body filler, rust, etc? Is it still a WC53? I am going to promise you this... Nothing in my plans for "changing" this truck, is going to be irreversible. 20 years from now, if anyone that wanted to "restore" this truck. They can. Get it out of your heads that I am ruining it. Maybe look at it as I am just not completing it and prolonging its existence in some sort of WC purgatory. The truck will be closer to restoration than as it sits now or probably has been for a long time. Its cu missing parts with the smashed rear floor and cross member cut out of it, smashed lower gate removed from it, and the bent up frame. Thats all getting fixed... as in "restored", not changed to my "concept" of original, flat out restored. Not cut up and removed, not modified beyond repair. I'm not stretching the hood or the body or anything of sorts. Sure, any coating can be removed, it just takes work. I agree. However this coating gets to stay, until someone else purchases this truck and decides they want to remove it. If it makes you feel better and sleep at night, you can tell yourselves that this truck is just one more that is being stored waiting to be restored properly, but by someone else than myself. Call it a "bubba-job" if you even want. You guys are acting like I am putting it on a trailer and taking it to the scrap yard. The truck will be around years and years. Maybe WC4door is right. Maybe I will be in over my head and in a few years one of you guys will be lucky enough to buy it. Maybe something major will happen in my life and I'll have to sell it to one of you because I have to move and can't take it with me. However, the way people are speaking on this forum makes me want to haul the truck to the recycler, and post a picture of it running through the crusher and then donate the check for a few hundred dollars to the MVPA just out of spite. Makes your stomach turn doesn't it? I would never ever do anything like that but seriously... I am not the one that needs to grow up and get over the situation. A LOT worse things have been done to these trucks. I've seen them with the entire cab cut off. There is one that has been turned into a tractor pulling truck, and the list goes on. Those are the people you should be standing in their yards with the same pitchforks and torches you are waving at me.

Also, I get a kick out of the financial heads up of 20 large bills... The budget I had already planned on... 40 grand... so I think I've got that covered. This isn't my first rodeo, nor my first restoration, nor first resto-mod. I may be a lot younger than everyone here, but instead of being harsh to me about this, lecturing and telling me how wrong I am, more positive progress would be made in helping me do what I can to keep the truck in existence and sway me to keep things stock. Maybe you can change my mind. There is a long road ahead. You catch more flies with honey than vinegar.

[ng19delta]

If this is true: "... there have been many times where if I was in the old thing, regardless of driving skills, machine maintanence or proper stopping, the old vehicle would not have stopped and people would have been dead because of simple vehicle dynamics. " then maybe you should look at HOW you drive. A GOOD driver PREPARES for the 'simple vehicle dynamics" and takes them into account, rather than BLAMING them for accidents. Proper stopping distance and situational awareness create a safely driven vehicle- and if you are in a situation where YOUR DRIVING caused the :"vehicle dynamics" to be such that people could be killed, then you need to work on learning to drive SAFELY. And that goes for the realm of antique vehicles, as well.

Scott

[Mcinfantry]

having worked dozens of traffic fatalities and been involved in federal and state lawsuits, testifying and being the one who was actually hit in the listed vehicle i can tell you that no seat belts and the original floor and drivetrain would have seriously hurt me.


im basing my statement of fact, and experience.

[Alxj64]

If this is true: "... there have been many times where if I was in the old thing, regardless of driving skills, machine maintanence or proper stopping, the old vehicle would not have stopped and people would have been dead because of simple vehicle dynamics. " then maybe you should look at HOW you drive. A GOOD driver PREPARES for the 'simple vehicle dynamics" and takes them into account, rather than BLAMING them for accidents. Proper stopping distance and situational awareness create a safely driven vehicle- and if you are in a situation where YOUR DRIVING caused the :"vehicle dynamics" to be such that people could be killed, then you need to work on learning to drive SAFELY. And that goes for the realm of antique vehicles, as well.

Scott

Obviously you've never had someone coming head-on in your lane and had to make a manuever to avoid becoming dead. Obviously you've never been sitting waiting to turn left and a vehicle comes over the hill behind you and certainly is not stopping so you dump the clutch and keep the wheels straight to only get partially accelerated in the direction you are now moving rather than being pinballed from sitting still. The vehicle I was in had the power and capability to get out of the way, and the steering responsiveness and roll stabilty to swerve into a lane and then back again to avoid the next vehicle rather than me telling you a story about how a head on accident killed someone because I was "driving an old truck that wouldn't move and now that truck is gone too".

And its obvious that you say above that its "My" driving. Its not MY driving I am worried about. Its the idiots that change lanes across traffic in front of me that with no proper amount of distance, speed manipulation, or effort on my part, can I prevent their actions but only respond as best as possibe so I am going to prepare myself as best as possible with the best equipment possible.

[SlyGareth]

I wonder if this fellow axj64 rides motorcycles as well and is a proponent of "laying it down" in order to avoid an accident... as this would follow his stated driving style and need to "warp" out of a situation while pulling a trailer downhill at 90 miles an hour with the stereo blasting...as opposed to driving an properly restored vehicle at speed listening to the sounds of the engine, drivetrain and the roadnoise "music" of a historic ride.

[Gordon_M]

It's me again, and I have that button handy .......

There's been a few good points made here but we are verging on negativity again, so I'll just say welcome to the new contributors and maybe lock this thread for a bit - let the head of steam die down.

Right - duly unlocked at original poster's request.

[Alxj64]

Okay, so lets try this again.

Have done some more work on the truck. As was mentioned before, the rear of the truck was smashed pretty badly. Both rear corners, the rear lower gate, and the lower cross member were crushed and crumpled in. Both sides of the body had waves in them and even the battery box door wouldn't shut properly because of the "shortening" of the body on the frame.

So in order to get the truck back to its original length I start making a lot of relief cuts and used a porta-power ram and several hours of push a little and reposition, push a little and resposition, over and over. Then one things started to square up again, I cut the rear crushed portion of the sheetmetal floor (yes I know not original) out and also cut the rear cross member out.



The rear pillar corners were already badly rusted from years ago and were "patched" with a few poorly wire welded (flux core it appeared) patches and a LOT of body filler. The wreck also greatly distorted the framing inside the cross member where the hinges mount. Also, you can see the top of the frame is bent up. That hole is where the body mount bolt was previously and it was a 1/2" dia. Grade 5 Carriage that was sheared off during the wreck. Both sides were sheared actually. I believe the sheetmetal floor saved this truck from being a complete and total loss.

[Alxj64]

You also may have noticed in the post above some sort of weird metal frame clamped to the gate opening. Thats the new frame work I am building for the new rear lower gate. The one that came with the truck is still too narrow, even after massaging it and re-shaping it, to properly fit the opening. It appears that its just had too much material cut out of it over the years in its numerous "rebuilds". So, I am building an internal frame and skinning it like the original gate.

Frame outer legs with openings for the latch rods.


Top plate with the radius


And test fitting it into the opening.



Also, I believe I can use a shortened and modified version of this same top cap plate as a cap plate for the lower cross member. The dog is always interested in what I am doing. Whenever I am in the shop he is usually laying on my welding blanket in the cab of the truck... until sparks start flying and then he groans and has to find somewhere else to lay.

[Steve K. CALIF]

Alxj64, I am with you 100% on your ideas for the truck. Your workmanship will prove the value of the time and money invested worthwile, too. Good luck on the project, I look forward to the finished Carryall. Steve K.

[Ray Edsall]

G,Day all . ..Look,s like a duck ,Quacks like a duck ,walks like a duck . Then it must be a wc53 . By the way . Good looking Australian Blue heeler . A lot of Dingo in there pedagree . Keep up the good work . Ray