1951 M38

Just have the highway patrol/ state police to do a vin inspection. I had to do that and it wasn't a big deal. Most Willy's owners I speak to have had to do it, since parts and pieces over the years get swapped around.

I just had mine inspected less than two week ago by the state police. They've seen this kind of thing before. They know what your going through, it's more common than you might think with these old Willys.

 

Thanks. I’m on it.

 

Today was a big success. I got the required auto-theft VIN inspection and obtained a bonded title on the M38. IF the vehicle and purchaser are eligible for a TX bonded title the additional cost over the sales tax and fees is $150.

Following that I installed the new cowl gasket and new latches on the windshield. Then the windshield on the cowl. Now it looks a little more complete.

I will say that I bought aftermarket windshield latches and they will work. But I think they are a little too "universal" and do not bolt up exactly. I will have to drill one screw hole at the top. If I had to do it again I would probably wait for OE so they fit better. Oh well.



Now on to wiring, brakes, fluids and the oil filter.

 

Did a little work on the old crusty lights. I took them apart and replaced sockets as necessary. It only came with one tail light so I purchased another from eBay. Not a perfect match but they will look great for me. The blackout inserts were removed so I can use the clear glass and add a bulb. There are no turn signals. I am wiring the entire JEEP from scratch and will use all LED bulbs.

Cleaned and painted. The light on the top right is the original right rear blackout. I am replacing it with a match of sorts.


Tail lights.


Brake lights.


Parking light.


Now to get them installed and wired in.....

 

Looking good all cleaned up!

 

In this process I discovered the ground to the grille is sketchy. I am going to run a separate ground to the grille and body. It's amazing how much time it takes to rebuild the lights and make it all work.

 

Found this on the inside of the passenger side windshield frame while scraping around today.

 

The dash on the M38 is illuminated by two bulbs in housings. They have red lenses that are glass. Very pretty red glass.....



.... that doesn’t bounce....



That’s $17 I didn’t want to spend.

 

That's super cool!

 

Worked on the wiring awhile. I think I'm done under the hood. I am awaiting some dash refinishing I can finish that up. The plug wires still need to be addressed.

Before


Today




And installed a headlight guard. This is a MD Juan part. I had to bend it and drill out the holes to install it.

 

I have been scraping red paint and it comes off somewhat easy.





I have also removed the rear wheels and drums. I am replacing pretty much everything except the couple of brake lines that are almost new. The brake fluid had been leaking above the pumpkin and built up quite a bit of fluid and south Texas dust. It was about 1.5" thick. I guess that is why the MC access panel in the driver's floor was left open. The front brakes worked (somewhat) so refilling the MC is easier than fixing the brakes.




I had to buy one of those hub pullers to remove the rear drums. I was so afraid that I would have one of those impossible situations where I would need the puller plus heat, big hammer, etc. The drums just came off without a hitch. Inside I discovered that the rear brakes had not worked in quite a while. The brake shoes were rusted to the pivot adjusters on the bottom and to the wheel cylinders on the top. I used PB blaster and a little time. Then I whacked them with a ball peen hammer to work them a little. I also removed the wheel cylinders which gave a little flex room. Then they came right off with not too much effort. The drums are original and show no signs of wear. I guess if the brake shoes don't move and the friction material is rotten you wouldn't get too much wear.
Today I will put it back together and then move to the front. All the new parts are here so I need to get busy.

If you are in the North Texas area and need to borrow the hub puller please let me know. I would rather see it get used than gather dust in my garage.



And BTW. I bought the wrong color yellow paint for my Cub LoBoy. So anything that needs paint is turning yellow around my house. The garden hoe between the seats was the first victim and then the backing plates.

 

Just waiting for the voltmeter. The speedo works off gps. No fuel gauge until I need or find a new tank. The clock fills that gap. Still need to obtain a momentary push button for the clock.

 

Your gauges look good. Where did you get them? I'm going to convert my M170 to 12 volts and my dash panel looks about the same as yours.

 

Thanks. I bought it all on eBay. First a set to replace the standard set only 12V.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Jeep-Willys-Speedometer-12-V-fits-1946-66-CJ-2A-3A-3B-M38-M38A1-Gauges-Kit/263033709924?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649


I ended up selling the speedo, ammeter and fuel gauge when I found these:

GPS SPEEDO
https://www.ebay.com/itm/85mm-GPS-Speedometer-Car-Auto-Tuning-Speed-Gauge-Digital-Odometer-80MPH-130Km-h/293187405794?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649


CLOCK
https://www.ebay.com/itm/52mm-Clock-Gauge-LED-Backlight-Waterproof-Marine-Automotive-Black-Surface/303389836683?_trkparms=aid=111001&algo=REC.SEED&ao=1&asc=225073&meid=f831385ea9e44ab0b1ee184271c5a877&pid=100290&rk=1&rkt=4&sd=303389836683&itm=303389836683&pmt=1&noa=1&pg=2060778&_trksid=p2060778.c100290.m3507


VOLTMETER
https://www.ebay.com/itm/12V-DC-Round-Mechanical-Analog-LED-Automatic-Voltmeter-Voltage-Gauge-Meter-New/223652382839?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649


The may not exactly match but I am ok with that. They are black and will have red backlight so that works for me.

My glove box was missing a latch so I got this on Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01AOHYQXU/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This is the setup I had on my 67 and it worked very well. Turned out ok on this one too.

 

That looks increadible, what paint did you go with. Nice job!

 

Thanks. A little touch up needed but it blends well. It is Rustoleum Forest Green. It's the same paint I used on this.

 

Won't you need a fuel gauge?

 

No fuel gauge until I need or find a new tank. The clock fills that gap. The current tank is a home-made tank which appears to be a square steel tank. It is much heavier than a standard tank. Unless that tank fails, or, I trip over a new one cheap, I am going to rely on a stick in the tank.

 

So if I readin into this right, your current fuel tank isn't equipped with a float mechanism?