Rooting around my anxiety closet is my old friend and WW2 vet, Willy. Willy came to us through attrition. He belonged to a friend of a neighbor and has been stored in our barn for ages. When the owner died, he left it to the neighbor, who gleefully gave it to us.
The military has a policy of "de-mob", or making war surplus unfit for civilian use. For vehicles, that generally means being cut in half or fours. Willy was cut in half, then re-welded by the folks that created Big Foot.
Oddly, no one remembers when that was, and Willy hasn't been touched since. The original owner's plan was to rebuild the beast and donate it to a museum of some kind. Those are thin on the ground now.
I gather the engine is seized, every last nut, bolt, gasket and hose needs to be replaced and a bit of body work may be necessary. If I "invest" $10,000, I may end up with a $1000 Jeep.
A glance at the other side of the barn got me wondering. If anyone remembers why Gretchen was abruptly parked please let me know. I may want a car soon.
Enjoy what's left of your weekend.
Toad
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3 comments:
Dear Sir,
I regret to inform you that Willy isn't a Willys at all. He's an M151 MUTT. And he's much younger than you think - a veteran of Viet Nam rather than WWII. But he looks complete, so probably worth more than you might suppose - to the right person. Bigger basket cases than him have been revived.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M151_MUTT
Scott
Toad, I think that I would have to agree with Scott. Before being commissioned I was in armored recon during Viet Nam and we used those. They have an independent rear end that folds up like an old VW Beetle which made them a little unstable. I'm guessing that is why it has something resembling a rollcage attached.
Thanks guys I need to remove a bit more rust and look for details. I'm humbled by your knowledge.
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