Pete Ashby

Hello Neil looks like all the old reprobates are signing up to Jack's flag, nice to see you hear and good to hear your going to get another truck again :-) Pete

Hi Richard I'll PM you Pete

Hello Richard I thought it looked familiar, Mmm, nice body will he miss it?? :-D Pete

well it shouldn't take you very long, a half day at tops but this assumes that the lower harness (and by this I am guessing you mean the loom from the bulkhead junction block to the rear lights including the stop light switch ) is compatible with your rear light sockets etc. This is where the trouble can start, the connectors may not match, the wiring colour codes may well be different, the harness may not be converted for things like indicators and duel brake lights for example and so the time and pain increases. :cry: I know that chopping the lot out and starting again sounds pretty drastic but it really is the cheapest quickest option unless you can get an exact match for your current installed loom and the rest of your loom i.e. bulkhead to dash and wing looms are in good condition, otherwise you will end up joining some half decent wire onto a set of fencing wire. I once had a commission to rewire a WC 51 that the owner said just needed the headlights seeing to. When I stood on my head under the dash I couldn’t find a single piece of insulation on any of the wires under there it did really look like rusty fence wire. On questioning him further it transpired that he had had a bit of a problem coming back form a French tour, like all the lights had gone out accompanied by a burning rubber smell and white smoke from under the dash. :oops: Needless to say this job required a full loom it only took two days to remove the old burnt out stuff install the new and test all systems. Pete

Joris I've done a large number of these for myself and other people over the years and the only way to do it is to chop the lot out and start again, anything else will be a waste if your time and money and could result in a burnt out truck. :-o There are some good reproduction Dodge harness on the market via the dealers or make your own. It's straightforward earth return with no frills stuff, I would recommend putting a modern in line fuse box for your lighting circuts, this can be discretely hidden it's just safer than relying on the thermal cut out on the back of the light switch. Pete

My WC 21 has a 6 volt system. The problem is it turns over sloooowly when starting, 1 rev. per push on the starter. :evil: Sometimes a few revs and that's it A few observations, for you to consider. The condition may be due to a number of individual or interconnected problems these are in no order so do the easy stuff first. The starter commutator could be damaged and need facing up, The mica segments may need undercutting The starter dog nose shaft could be bent. The starter switch contacts on top of the motor could be burnt and arcing this will cause heat and a high resistance after a couple of seconds The starter motor bearings could be worn, you can check this by looking for 'striking' of the armature against the pole pieces in extreme cases, The brushes could be sticking in the carries or worn down, The starter earth needs to be really good on all 6v systems, run a jump lead from the starter motor body direct to the battery neg terminal and see if the cranking speed improves, keep it well away from the pos terminal on the starter or you’ll have fireworks !! Check the starter motor is mounted in line and the mounting bolts are tight on the bellhousing Check the battery terminals are in good condition and your cables are making good contact Check your main starter leads are in good condition at both ends Leave the ignition off and all ancillary items switched off, disconnect your battery and jump a good 12 volt one onto your leads, stamp on the crank pedal there should be a marked improvement on cranking speed, if not some or all of the above may be the problem. A few more thoughts but this is getting into the scary expensive zone other than the new engine bit. Has your engine been rebuilt recently ? could be tight bearings and or rings You may have a misaligned fly wheel starter ring gear You may have a distorted fly wheel but this would be extreme If possible I use someone to press the starter (my 6 years old nephew or brother) and apply I the handcrank which works. :roll I would not advise this at all, this is a very good way to break your wrist I suggest you give this a miss from now on. 4l of engine and a steel starter crank can snap your wrist like a twig not good don’t go there. My battery is 120 AH This should be is ok, Hope this may be of help, at one time or another I’ve come across all of those problems above, the big thing is don’t panic and go for the big problems it’s usually the just a bad earth Pete

Hi Just joined so thought I'd better introduce myself I'm interested in WW11 MV's of British, Canadian and US manufacture. I have been restoring and collecting for 33 years (MVT No 555) the list includes the following : Owned and restored: 1942 Ford GPW, 1943 Willys MB, Dodge WC52, Ford F8 FFW 11 cab, Dodge D3/44pt, GMC 353, Leyland Retriever Workshop, Chevrolet C15A 12 cab, FFW 109 Series 111 Land Rover Trucks pending restoration : Dodge WK60, Chevrolet C30 LAA 12 cab Dodge D15 water bowser Trucks restored for other people : 1943 GPW, 1944 Willys x2, Dodge WC53, Austin K2 ambulance, White Scout Car, Dodge WC51 Pete.