1946 Willys CJ2A Jeep

[Art Anderson]

Thought I'd share this one, done from the Hogan's Heroes Jeep kit:

Art

[fordh8r]

Nice "Flatty" you got there Art!

Not to be critical of such a nice build, but is it me or is it a little strange that the Hogan's heroes kit is a 'CJ' and not an 'M' model?

[noname]

Very nice. What kit is this?

[James Flowers]

Nice build of something not seen very often. The red wheels are a nice touch. They would be body colored normally. I would think.

[Art Anderson]

Nice "Flatty" you got there Art!

Not to be critical of such a nice build, but is it me or is it a little strange that the Hogan's heroes kit is a 'CJ' and not an 'M' model?

Uh, it might well be you! Seriously, beneath the bodywork of a WW-II MB, 1945-the 60's CJ2/3, Korean/Cold War M38, and the 1954-about 1970 M38A1 lies the same basic chassis, same wheelbase, same frame rails, you got it

It went sorta like this: First, after the Bantam, Willys and Ford prototype "Jeeps" came the Willys MB (Ford GPA built under license from Willys Overland), then the very first CJ's (Civilian Jeep) in 1945, which was little more than a demilitarized MB. For 1946, however, Willys Overland made some changes, some to get away from the military look (CJ2A had the indents on the driver's side for the trenching (foxhole) tools smoothed out, a gasoline filler pipe was added to the fuel tank (still mounted under the driver's seat, the auxilliary military fuel tank under the right front seat being removed) which exited the body shell just behind the driver, but in a sheet metal indentation, to protect it from being sideswiped in traffic. A pickup drop-tailgate was added (MB had none), and to facilitate this, the spare tire mounting was moved to the right rear corner of the body, mounted up high as you see on my model. The military style trailer towing pintle was removed, and provision made in the rear of the frame for mounting a conventional ball-style trailer hitch. The military-style looped spring steel push bar bumperettes were also eliminated. Mechanically, the engine oil filter was moved from the lower right side of the cowling, to it's position seen in my engine bay. The dual-range transmission was replaced by a more conventional 4spd, with a single shifter, and a second lever was retained to control the transfer case. The dash was greatly civilianized, there being no need for the large, heavy tube-style military radio. In other words, a completely "civilized" CJ came out of the MB/GPA.

However, once the Cold War became a very serious confrontation in Europe, and Korea became a major war with the entry of the Chinese People's Liberation Army in Korea in late 1950, it was soon apparent that the then 6-9 year old MB's were fast wearing out, and battlefield attrition, along with huge surplus selloffs meant more Jeeps were needed for the Army--so Willys simply remilitarized the CJ2A, bringing back most of the WW-II fitments, along with some improvements.

The Hogan's Heroes Jeep kit has all the parts to do a pretty credible M38, complete with your choice of Browning .30 cal machine gun on a vertical mount, or the awesome firepower of the new 106mm Recoilless Rifle (for firing the early RPG). In addition are a pair of Army issue stretchers, to turn the M38 into a battlefield ambulance. In addition, almost all the details are in the kit to make a pretty decent CJ2A.

Come 1954, Korea was in truce, tensions had died down somewhat in Europe, and the Army wanted some inprovements in the Jeep--enter the M38A1, and in 1955, its civilian counterpart, the CJ-5. Now, if you want to build either of these, look no farther than the AMT/Ertl (ex-MPC) Daisy's Jeep--it has the stuff to make either the M38A1 (sans military lug style tires), and also the 1955-59 short wheelbase CJ-5--both these jeeps still used the 1927-introduced, Willys engine first installed in their Whippet low priced passenger car.

So there you have it.

Art

[Art Anderson]

Nice build of something not seen very often. The red wheels are a nice touch. They would be body colored normally. I would think.

James, I did as much research as the existing books, and internet pictures can allow, and it wasn't uncommon for early CJ's like mine, to have wheels that were a different color than the body, from the factory.

Art

[Art Anderson]

Nice build of something not seen very often. The red wheels are a nice touch. They would be body colored normally. I would think.

James, I did as much research as the existing books, and internet pictures can allow, and it wasn't uncommon for early CJ's like mine, to have wheels that were a different color than the body, from the factory.

Art

[Art Anderson]

Nice build of something not seen very often. The red wheels are a nice touch. They would be body colored normally. I would think.

James, I did as much research as the existing books, and internet pictures can allow, and it wasn't uncommon for early CJ's like mine, to have wheels that were a different color than the body, from the factory.

Art

[fordh8r]

Uh, it might well be you! Seriously, beneath the bodywork of a WW-II MB, 1945-the 60's CJ2/3, Korean/Cold War M38, and the 1954-about 1970 M38A1 lies the same basic chassis, same wheelbase, same frame rails, you got it............

..............A pickup drop-tailgate was added (MB had none), and to facilitate this, the spare tire mounting was moved to the right rear corner of the body, mounted up high as you see on my model.

However, once the Cold War became a very serious confrontation in Europe, and Korea became a major war with the entry of the Chinese People's Liberation Army in Korea in late 1950, it was soon apparent that the then 6-9 year old MB's were fast wearing out, and battlefield attrition, along with huge surplus selloffs meant more Jeeps were needed for the Army--so Willys simply remilitarized the CJ2A, bringing back most of the WW-II fitments, along with some improvements.

I had a 60 willys CJ5 not all too long ago and I'm aware of these similarities, thanks for sharing.

Knowing this is what prompted me to ask.

This is the first I've ever heard this. I never knew these Civvy models were ever reenlisted. Cool bit of automotive history. Thanks!

The Hogan's Heroes Jeep kit has all the parts to do a pretty credible M38, complete with your choice of Browning .30 cal machine gun on a vertical mount, or the awesome firepower of the new 106mm Recoilless Rifle (for firing the early RPG). In addition are a pair of Army issue stretchers, to turn the M38 into a battlefield ambulance. In addition, almost all the details are in the kit to make a pretty decent CJ2A.

Come 1954, Korea was in truce, tensions had died down somewhat in Europe, and the Army wanted some inprovements in the Jeep--enter the M38A1, and in 1955, its civilian counterpart, the CJ-5. Now, if you want to build either of these, look no farther than the AMT/Ertl (ex-MPC) Daisy's Jeep--it has the stuff to make either the M38A1 (sans military lug style tires), and also the 1955-59 short wheelbase CJ-5--both these jeeps still used the 1927-introduced, Willys engine first installed in their Whippet low priced passenger car.

So there you have it.

Art

Also good to know. Thanks for sharing your knowledge Art! Also, thanks for the history lesson. Not being much of a historian, I'll be hard pressed to ever remember even half of what you know.

[Art Anderson]

I had a 60 willys CJ5 not all too long ago and I'm aware of these similarities, thanks for sharing.

Knowing this is what prompted me to ask.

This is the first I've ever heard this. I never knew these Civvy models were ever reenlisted. Cool bit of automotive history. Thanks!

Also good to know. Thanks for sharing your knowledge Art! Also, thanks for the history lesson. Not being much of a historian, I'll be hard pressed to ever remember even half of what you know.

In the 6th grade (1955-56 school year), I read, in my "reading book" (as if those were the only books we had to read in school?), which I still have someplace here (ahh, the days before textbook rentals) a fascinating short story "The Affair Of The Wayward Jeep" by the legendary cartoonist, Bill Mauldin (Saturday Evening Post, June 27, 1953). Mauldin set the story in Korea, about a mechanic in a US Army Motor Pool, a General who wished his Jeep would just run, and a wrecked staff car (presumably a flathead V8 Ford). Unbeknownst to the General or his driver, the mechanic jerked the 4 out of the General's Jeep, swapped in the V8, got it all buttoned up just in time for the CO to take an inspection tour of the front. The General's driver noticed nothing out of the ordinary throughout the day, but when they came under enemy mortar fire, he stabbed the gas, and that Jeep "got the h*ll out of Dodge, right now! At 11, I thought the story was cool, it was all I could do to keep from busting out laughing when I had to stand up, give a review of the story in class (Not sure how Mrs. Holder would have taken that!).

A couple of years later, I got a letter from my older brother (8yrs older than me) who was serving in France toward the end of French membership in NATO. He was assigned to the US Army Transportation Corps depot and motor pool in Thionville, France, just across a river from the fortress city of Verdun. In that letter, he described driving an old Jeep from there to Paris (dunno how far that was), and that with it's tired engine, and a governor, the most he could coax out of it was about 45mph.

And, one of these days, I am gonna get inspired to build up either the Italeri 1/24 scale MB, or Hasegawa's 24rh scale one, just so I can do a car from my birth year (the decal sheet in the Hasegawa sheet gives a serial number for an MB built and accepted by the Army in July 1944).

Art

[stavanzer]

I just found this build. Great work, Art!

I like the skinny tyres, and the red wheels. It looks like it could have come from a Southwestern Ranch in Arizona or New Mexico in the 1950's.

[DumpyDan]

Great looking Art, like the plan Jane

[GeeBee]

Very nice clean build ....

 

[afx]

Very nice Art.

[slusher]

Super nice Art.

[Sixties Sam]

Very nice Jeep, Art! It's nice to see one in a different color than olive drab. Good work!

Sam

[D. Battista]

Nicely done...!  and I too like the colors.....   excellent work on the x-tras....

[redneckrigger]

Extremely nice replica of an iconic vehicle!