Repro, Wartime, and Post-War CarbureterRing & Pinions, Jerry Cans, Carburetor, Eye Bolts and more!

Quite the busy week with lots of busy work on the Jeep! After two days of soaking in fuel, the NOS Ring and Pinion are clean! I continued work on the fire extinguisher decal, and finished the 1943 Jerry can! I replaced the safety strap eye bolts with correct F ones, and replaced the borrowed carburetor with a new one!

With a wide angle on the phone, the Jeep sure looks mean and mighty from this angle!

Last week, I chronicled how I finally got a chicken dinner… err, New Old Stock ring and pinion to replace the damaged set on the rear GPW axles I’m restoring to put on the Jeep. Here’s a look at the set with the wax paper wrapping. It hasn’t been unwrapped since WW2.

After unwrapping the items in last week’s update, I discovered that the set is actually a GPW set from December 1944!

The parts had a lot of left over wax and a heck of a lot of goopy cosmoline (a wax-like petroleum-based corrosion inhibitor) on all the items, so the ring and pinion went into my large bucket of gasoline, which is one of the best ways to clean items! There they stayed for 48 hours soaking.

And after taking them out, the pinion was totally cleaned and ready to go, the ring had a little bit of cosmoline still in the grooves. So after some wire brush scrubbing with fuel, back in the bucket of fuel it went!

With the pinion now clean, you can see the marks really nice. A nice Ford script and several numbers. The 416 matches the 416 on the ring.

After another 24 hours in the fuel, the ring was nice and clean. Here’s a look at all the cleaned markings found on it. It’s dated December 22, 1944. GPW #4210. A nice F stamp, and a hand marked J, perhaps the worker? Then there’s an unknown F24 and 4-6… finally, a 416 matching the marking on the pinion.

Final bit of cleaning is taking pipe cleaner to clean out the bolt holes.

The bolts, lock straps, and the crown nut were cleaned by sitting in tool cleaner liquid for the same two days worth of time. After a quick rinse, they came out great looking!

Close up of the F stamps on the lock straps.

I put the bolts in the carrier with the lock straps to make sure everything fit good. After that, it was time to actually install them!

Here’s the ring on the carrier with the bolts added torqued to about 35 foot-pounds. One thing to watch out for is the lock straps twisting with the bolts as they are torqued down. I had to unscrew them to re-bend the lock straps. And that’s about as far as I’ll be going with the axles for now. But hopefully, in a few weeks, I’ll be starting back up on them once the ring and pinions are set!

One final thing to note is that the NOS ring and pinion set did not come with a spacer sleeve. The one on the right is the original one that was damaged along with the rest of the ring and pinion during the spider gear explosion. The left one is from the post-war CJ ring and pinion I got from eBay. They are identical in every way and should be interchangeable, one of the few items.

Moving on, so the last few weeks I’ve been perfecting accurate decals I made for wartime SOS fire extinguishers. I have a post-war Model 85 that I made a smaller sized decal for until I can find a wartime one with the full 6×3 decal size. I replicated the decal from scratch matching the fonts, letter placement, and shapes as close as I could. My first attempt I printed it on thicker card stock and spray glued it on, but it didn’t want to stick to the paint.

After trying several different mediums that didn’t work, I found some gold foil sticker paper that seems to work. Here’s the latest print test. There are two full size 3×6 labels for the wartime Fire Extinguisher (MB on the left, GPW on the right). The smaller post-war one is on top.

Here are a few other mediums I tried, each has a slightly different look to them. The middle is the gold foil, while the left is the cardstock. On the right is a paper that was just too textured, so I won’t be using that. I like the look of the cardstock, so I will continue to test out different ways to turn it into a sticker.

Back to the gold foil sticker, I decided to try an experiment and used some Rustoleum matte spray over the gold foil. It actually came out a lot better, with the sheen textured and much less reflective gold. The matte, surprisingly, didn’t make it completely matte but instead a satin sheen. Exactly what I needed. Here’s both versions of the decal with the over coat.

After applying the smaller decal, it looks pretty good! It’s still a bit too shiny, so I think I’m going to try and make it a bit more matte with the spray, and if that doesn’t work, I’m going to try the cardstock (which is perfect) again.

It’s pretty close to what I want, just a little too much reflection. So once I mute that, the sticker version will work.

Next project, two weeks ago I finally found a wartime jerry can at a local flea market. It has the original paint on it and was in pretty good condition, though a bit dented.

Built by Chattanooga, it’s dated 1943. I decided to remove all the paint and do a full restoration of the can as it will replace the post-war one on the Jeep currently.

Took a few days of wire wheeling and sanding, but eventually, I got all the paint off. It’s tough to tell in the bottom photos, but all the paint is removed and only some small spots of rust that won’t come off remain.

Because the small dents bothered me, and I didn’t want to undo the welds to open up the can to push the dents back out (and attempts to hammer it out from the inside with a small hammer weren’t working), I decided to just use some bondo to smooth out the dents.

After a few hours of sanding, adding more bondo, and sanding again I finally got it to where I got it. There’s still some residual paint under the handholds on top, which I couldn’t get a wire wheel in to, so I instead hand-sanded that area as best as I could so at least it’s smooth.

I used some filler primer in some of the areas where there were some uneven spots and then primed it on top of that. I had to do a few sanding touch-ups after it dried.

Finally, I strung up the can using wire with the vent holes that are in the cap threads, and painted the entire thing with a final coat of paint. I then used a scotch pad to rough up the paint once it was dry (pictured) so the OD Green had something to cling to.

And after two coats of 33070 OD Green paint with the air gun (gallon from Ron Fitzpatrick Jeep Parts), it was almost done! Here’s a look at the before and after. It’s come a long way! There’s still some dents in it on the side that won’t be seen (and gives it some character).

Here’s a look at the bottom before and after. I straightened out the dent in the lip under the markings as well.

Next up was the cap. I removed it from the can (which ruined the original cotter pin), put it in the bucket of gasoline for 2 days, then wire wheeled/sandblasted it. I then hit it with red oxide primer.

The next day, I hit it with 33070 OD Green (from Ron Fitzpatrick Jeep Parts spray paint version). I also cut down a new cotter pin to match, and the small washer to hold the cotter pin. I also began to prep the other items for the jerry can, such as the original rubber gasket and the red octane tag.

After the can was totally dry, I popped off my 1970s can on the Jeep, and put this one in. You can still see the dent slightly on the left side, but it’s much better than it was. That was a good dent. I put the octane tag on to make sure it fit on this can.

Here’s a look at the octane tag. I think it adds a little bit of color to the Jeep.

Here’s a look at the other side how it curls over. Since I was going to take it off again, I planned on straightening out the tabs before I permanently put it back on.

And that worked out, as I realized the paint was starting to flake off. This was because it was painted then the tag was flat, so the paint was stretching. I decided to flatten it out, strip the paint, and partially bend it back into shape before repainting it again.

Here’s the progress from wire wheeled (that original red on there was tough to remove), then primered, and finally red paint back on. Since it’s already partially bent, it shouldn’t flake this time.

Here’s a look at the new cotter pin attached back on the cap chain and put through the hole on the top of the can.

It wasn’t easy to get long nose pliers in there to bend the cotter pin, but I managed to do it. With the washer there, it is holding really well and just like the original.

That rubber gasket I took off the cap was hard as a rock. 70 years old, it was hardened pretty good. I read that if you boil water and put it in there, it should soften up a bit. So, I figured it was worth a try. I boiled some water and placed it in for about 5 minutes…

And amazingly, it mostly worked! The super hard gasket was actually a bit pliable! I was quite amazed. It was pliable enough that I could put it back on the cap.

While I was waiting for things, I also touched up the canvas water bucket with another misting of the 33070 OD Green spray paint from Ron Fitzpatrick Jeep Parts. It actually works when you mist it lightly and doesn’t crack keeping it pliable.

*Note – The next few photos have weird color balance as the fires in California have made the light outside a yellow color* Here’s a look at installing the Jerry Can. Here’s a look at the can on the jerry can holder.

Pull the top strap, which is connected to the top of the carrier with rivets, through the area under the handles.

If you have a water bucket, slip the bottom strap between the straps on the bucket BEFORE you strap things down.

Now slip the top strap through the buckle on the bottom strap. Pull up hard on the top strap so it tightens the Jerry Can down. You don’t want it loose on the carrier.

Finally, I put what’s rest of the top strap back down into the buckle again like this. Done!

All done! It looks pretty good, glad to have a wartime jerry can on the Jeep finally!

Mail call from Ron Fitzpatrick Jeep Parts! A nice collection of items for the next two week’s projects! I got two cans of Red Oxide spray paint, one can of 33070 OD Green spray paint, two Ford F safety strap eye bolts, two GPW passenger seat brackets, a carburetor diffuser gasket, and a JMP Carter WO Carb!

And as you saw in the other shot, when you buy over $300 worth of items from Ron Fitzpatrick Jeep Parts, you get a hat! I didn’t even think about it when I bought the items! This is actually the second had I’ve gotten from them, and both are different styles. Pretty cool.

Kicking off all the items, I got a pair of GPW style passenger seat to tub floor brackets. My Jeep had custom made ones, and I wanted something that would be correct for a GPW. My Jeep also has the seat connected via bolts. which I wanted to attempt to make it look riveted. I’ll be covering all this in next week’s update.

Another pair of GPW items I got were two F marked Safety Strap Eye Bolts. The ones on my Jeep currently are, from what I can tell, not even something from a Jeep. I wanted to change those out with F stamped ones. These eye bolts are what the Safety Straps on each side of the Jeep hook in to. The GPW and MB differ in that a GPW has these set horizontally while the MB has these set vertically.

Here’s a close up look at the F stamp on these eye bolts.

And here’s a look at one of the eye bolts that were on my Jeep. The reverse side has markings that are not found on GPW or MB Jeeps, and the eye bolt itself is a different size. As you can see, it is mounted horizontally as GPWs were.

Here’s a look at what was on the Jeep (top, yellow arrow), which you can see has a much longer threaded stud, and the base of the eye bolt where it meets the threads is skinnier. The bottom two are the pair I got with the F stamps, the top one (red arrow) I’ve slightly sanded to rough up the paint. It was painted in a darker glossy paint. Rather than taking it down to the metal, however, I decided to keep this rather rugged paint as these eye bolts are prone to scratching and paint loss from hooking the safety straps on and off (see the scratches on the top one where the arrow points). You can see that thick glossy paint on the bottom one (green arrow).

After both got a light sanding, they both then got two layers of 33070 OD Green.

It’s a pretty easy install for the eye bolt on the passenger side. You just open the glove box and you can, with a stubby wrench, get the nut off and pull it out. There’s a lock washer on there as well. I have a washer, which is not really needed but adds extra strength.

The one on the driver’s side, however, is a bit of a pain. Here’s a look at the one that was on there. You can see the scratches on the paint from putting the strap on and off.

Here’s why it can be tough to take off and install. This photo is shot underneath the dash looking back towards where the driver’s side switches are installed. The arrow points to where the eye bolt is bolted down. As you can see, it’s sitting right next to the fender blackout light switch, the fire extinguisher bracket, and even the main light switch at the top of the photo. It makes for getting your hand in there a bit tough to do. Make SURE to disconnect the battery as you will be putting your hand in there around all these switches and it’s easy to trip things with a wrench.

It took a bit of work (and many attempts trying to get the nut to screw on with one hand in a very uncomfortable position), but I finally got it on and tightened down. Glad to have two more F stamps on the Jeep!

As mentioned a few weeks ago when I installed the fire extinguisher bracket, I have a custom push-button switch that works in tandem with the floot push-button switch to start the Jeep. I took it off where it’s mounted under the dash (yellow arrow) to get more room to get to that driver’s side eye bolt. I wanted to snap a photo and show where I’ll eventually move it (green arrow) as in the current position it blocks me from putting the fire extinguisher in the bracket. Whoops!

And now on to the main course this week… a new Carbureter! A bit of a back story… my Jeep had a post-war Carter WO carburetor. I had attempted to rebuild it and fix it as it was not wanting to work correctly, but I could not get whatever issue is to stop. So, I’ve been borrowing a wartime carb from a friend for over a year now. I needed to give it back, so I figured it was time to get one. I opted to go with a Joes Motor Pool reproduction, which is a museum quality repro. It arrived from Ron Fitzpatrick Jeep Parts in this awesome retro box.

I went repro over another original as the Carter WO is a finicky machine, and you’re often to find more problems than not with originals. These repros are exactly identical, licensed by the same Carter company, and Ron Fitzpatrick Jeep Parts even goes the extra mile to pre-adjust them to get them to where you can just about bolt them on your Jeep and go! There are not many reviews on these, so I figured I’d go through the whole process for my jeep. The carb is packaged really nice in this box, and it comes with copies of original Carter WO carb instructions for adjusting and maintenance.

And here it is, in all its shiny glory! No assembly required. It comes with a bag of extra parts including two adjustment tools, a brass fuel line elbow, the throttle cable stop, and a nut/lock washer set to bolt to the manifold.

It’s nice it comes with the two adjustment tools (silver ones, stamped with Carbureter), the top thick one is a tool to measure the correct spacing for the carb’s float. The second one is to set the metering rod. I already had the brass metering rod adjustment, which is often preferred as it’s easier to put in the carb when setting the metering rod. Regardless, it’s nice to have these tools!

Here’s a look at the wartime carb on the Jeep that I’ve been borrowing. One of the easiest ways to tell if a Carter WO is wartime or postwar is the number of patents on the bowl. The wartime one has no more than 8 patent numbers. The postwar ones have 12.

Let’s get started! Here I’ve taken off the wartime carb after first taking off the air horn on top of the carb.

Then added a new diffuser gasket, which is a good idea anytime you remove a carb.

Before I put the new carb on, I wanted to do a little photoshoot with all three carbs. Here we see the Joes Motor Pool Carb, the wartime carb, and the postwar carb.

And here are several looks at the three from different sides to compare.

About the only difference I could see on the repro carb is a design difference in the top lid (yellow arrow). Not sure why this was cast differently.

After the photos, I bolted the new carb on the gasket I added to the manifold. I used the new nut and lock washer from the extra parts bag it came with. It fit perfectly on the manifold studs and tightened down perfectly.

One of the nice features on the new carb is the nice carb data tag. Often missing from originals, but these would have been on the carbs originally.

As I was installing the carb and adding the linkages back on, I noticed these scratches on the top of the carb, which looks like the carb was put on a Jeep engine when Ron Fitzpatrick Jeep Parts pre-adjusted them! Those vertical scratches are from an air horn put on and taken off. Pretty cool.

Once I got the throttle and choke cables lined up, the first adjustment needed was the throttle wire keeper which you have to get pretty taught to the point where it doesn’t pull the throttle when the throttle knob is pushed all the way in, but doesn’t have play to where it doesn’t engage until you pull it far.

So, the big test was, will it work? With the linkage in place and everything re-hooked back up, primed the carb with a few manual pumps from the fuel pump… and I started up the Jeep without any adjustments… and it worked!! It was running great…. BUT, the idle was set way too high. That’s not a big deal, as it’s easy to adjust the throttle screw, shown here. I ended up unscrewing it about 2 full revolutions, and the idle was at a good level.

The next adjustment is the idle screw, shown here with the yellow arrow. I ended up screwing it all the way in (with light force, only till you start to feel resistance), then I unscrewed it out 2 full revolutions, which is standard for setting the adjustment. It was set to 2.5 revolutions out, so it wasn’t too far off. The 2 revolutions was perfect for my Jeep. One thing I will have to readjust is the throttle wire keeper (red arrow). After running the engine, you can see it’s slipped a little.

And with those two adjustments, the Jeep was running great. No metering rod adjustments, no float level adjustments… just pretty much bolt on, adjust the throttle and idle screws (which was expected), and away I go! Really excited how easy that was to do. And it sure makes the engine look nice.

Taking the Jeep out for a drive Thursday, I used the wide angle camera on my phone to get some unique angles in the engine with the new Carb.

The engine sure looks nice, and I have to say that it feels to me like the Jeep is running better overall with the new carb. I feel like it’s running smoother and I’m getting more power when I hit the gas pedal.

I thought this wide-angle shot of the engine bay was a bit unique showing off the passenger side items. Lots of little details all over.

And that’s it for this week! Quite a bit of busywork, and next week will have even more! Look for some more F stamp additions, working on the passenger seat bracket, testing out fake rivets, and more! Till next week…