My Former WC51 "Flying Control Dodge" - A New Chapter

[Jessie The Jeep]

I began by stripping off the various accessories such as the vacuum wipers, mirror and the canvas fasteners. With those out of the way, the inner screen was separated from the outer and set to one side. I started work on the outer. There wasn't many layers of paint on it, just the white, one coat of olive and primer. There were a few patches of rust that looked bad, but once gone over with the rotary wire brush, the whole screen frame came up looking very clean and new. I'm wondering whether the outer frame has been a replacement. Almost all of the outer frame was stripped to bare metal, except on the inside between the two tubes where it would be difficult to access. They looked in good condition anyway, so were given a light sand to provide a key for the new paint.

The inner screen wasn't touched today, but initial looks suggest it is a little worse condition than the outer. Water appears to have got between the rubber seal and frame, causing rusting which is pushing the frame out away from the glass. I'll get some more olive on the truck tomorrow and then have a look at the inner screen.

[Jessie The Jeep]

October 7th & 8th - More Painting

To look at it, it appears that progress on the Dodge has slowed down, when actually it hasn't. It doesn't change much for another coat of paint, but it's all steps along the way to completion. Most of the main bodywork of the Dodge has now had four coats of paint, with a few parts such as the fenders, tailgate and steps at two to three coats.

On the 7th, after another coat of olive drab on the Dodge, including lamp parts, grille and lamp guards, I moved on to the inner screen frame. It was stripped to bare metal and was red oxide primed both sides along with the outer frame. It was in a poor condition in places due to water trapped behind the rubber seal that holds the glass. I think I can make it last a while longer, but eventually it will loose its fight against the rust. All the grille, lamp guards and fender bolts were cleaned up and primed which took a while.

On the 8th, the frames were painted olive drab on one side. The photos show the rot in the inner frame now the inner to outer rubber seal has been removed. It had been rusted into place, but I managed to free it today. After the inner frame is fully painted and dry, I'll look at reinforcing the frame, possibly with epoxy and using silicone to seal the glass to prevent further water ingress.

Edited October 11, 2021 by Jessie The Jeep

[Jessie The Jeep]

Both mirror arms were stripped and primed today, more olive drab on the Dodge, all the bolts so far removed had their threads re-cut and the steel plate over the front right locker was primed on the outside.

I have also been investigating the chassis number. The original build card from Dodge shows it to be 81722458, built in August 1944. However, a closer look at the stamped serial shows a second number, in a slightly smaller font, which appears to have been stamped over the original number.

This number is 81681824, which according to one file I have, was from May 1944. I don't know if this was stamped during the war, or post war in Norwegian Army service when I know the Dodge had a rebuild. 

It all started by trying to track down the original US Army hood registration number, based on the chassis number and build date. I've narrowed the number down to a range of 173 vehicles using the August 1944 build card serial. I think I'm going to have choose one from the range between hood number 2253695 and 2253868.

Edited October 10, 2021 by Jessie The Jeep
spelling error

[Rootes75]

Sounds interesting, something I like is searching for history of a vehicle. Its good that you have been able to narrow it down.

[Jessie The Jeep]

I can't know the number 100%, but as you'll see in the next few posts, the vehicle itself guided me to the final number chosen for the hood.

 

October 9th/10th - Stencils and Markings

More painting of smaller green bits on the 9th; the screen frames, mirrors and arms, some bolts and the inner screen stays for when it is open. I also started trimming un-needed pieces of wood from the framework attached to roof bow number one. There was some slight delamination of the ply which also needed gluing. 

While the paint was drying on everything, I then started on the graphics for the stencilling. A few test prints were made to check the sizes against the space on the Dodge and all seemed good. The paper prints were tack glued to some thin card and out came the scalpel for a few hours cutting. Not all the stencils are made yet, there's still the Left Hand Drive and No Signals for the back.

[Jessie The Jeep]

I started on the front bumper. The Dodge's new identity is still with the 100th Bombardment Group to match the rest of the fleet. Partly inspired by the Ordnance Depot Jeep markings, I checked up on the 100th BG website and found the ordnance unit there was the 1776th Ordnance Company. This gave me the new bumper markings of "8 * 100BG 1776-O 2" - 8th Air Force, 100th Bombardment Group, 1776th Ordnance Company, Vehicle 2 ( vehicle two simply because the Dodge was the second military vehicle I bought ).

The stencils were masking taped in place and the paint applied with the end of a 4 inch glossing roller; dabbed on. The paint was painted onto card first, then the roller dabbed onto the card to pick up some paint without overloading it with paint.

[Jessie The Jeep]

After the bumper markings had been given around three thin coats, I painted the white blackout markings on the tips of the bumper.

The Army registration on the hood was next. Research showed I had a range of 173 possible vehicle numbers, based on the chassis number. It lay somewhere between 2253695 and 2253868, but there was no way to be sure. When I was sanding the bumper down, I found a number ending in 833. I don't believe it was the original number, but it fitted into the range I had, so my stencil was cut to give 2253833.

[Jessie The Jeep]

The USA and hood number were then painted in a similer way, but using a small piece of sponge foam to apply the paint, as that was more managable on the small stencils.

While the first hood number was drying, I moved to the front for the Prestone antifreeze marking. I still had the stencil from my first Jeep and reused it on the Dodge. Co-incidentally, the Dodge coolant system is still using Prestone antifreeze. Amongst all this, the rear body side stars were added.

Edited October 10, 2021 by Jessie The Jeep

[Jessie The Jeep]

The last stencilling for the day was on the tailgate. The irony is that most of it will be hidden behind the Pioneer tool rack when it is refitted, but parts of the stencils will be visible.

I'm very pleased with the new look and new identity. I can see some additional ammunition crates being made in the future to fill out the back of the truck. The tailgate was hung by the chains for a quick photo.

The rear bumperettes need painting while then receive their stencils. After that, it's the hood star, no signals and LHD stencils to add, plus the name repainting once I've finished painting the screen. It all needs a while to fully harden before I start bolting it all back together, so in the mean time, I'll continue with the front roof bow wookwork.

[Jessie The Jeep]

October 11th - More Stencils and Markings

I took some measurements of the rear panels yesterday to estimate some sizes for the stencils, based on some wartime airfield Dodge pictures. I printed the samples and took them to the Dodge for a test fit. All seemed well, with them all fitting around the reflector depressions and roof canvas rope hooks.

The print outs were then tacked to thin card and the stencils cut out. Back out to the Dodge and it was moved forwards in the garage about 18 inches, so I could work behind it with the door shut, as it's getting really cold now. The bumperettes were then given a few coats of white for their blackout markings. The stencils were taped in place and the painting began. Three thin coats applied with a piece of sponge foam was enough to give a reasonable coverage. The drying time was shortened due to the thin coats and a fan heater to speed up the drying between each coat. It wasn't long before I was able to peel off the stencils.

[Jessie The Jeep]

I then came back indoors to make a paper template for the hood star. Back out again to mask it up for painting. I didn't have any card big enough for a star stencil and the central hinge and proximity of the screen rests resulted in masking being the easiest option. It was brush painted like the truck itself and while wet, I went over with a small glossing roller to take out the brush marks.

With the hood star drying, I went back to the rear of the truck and attached the unit marking stencils to the bumperettes. They were then painted olive drab with the sponge method. The tailgate was hooked back on for another rear end shot looking pretty much complete. It looks quite busy with stencils, but the pioneer tool rack will hide everything on the tailgate and that's how my reference pictures looked.

Around the front of the truck again and the white had cured enough to remove the masking tape. That's all the markings complete, but for the name on the screen.

[Jessie The Jeep]

October 12th - Windscreen & Roof Bow

I spent quite a bit of the day cleaning rubber but started off reassembling both the mirror arms now the paint was dry. Both of the rubber screen seals, the one on the main frame and the opening section, had been overpainted in olive drab followed by black and white from its flying control days. Both rubbers were quite stiff as a result, which probably didn't help them to do their job as intended. The inner screen seal was sanded with 240 grit wet and dry paper over the sink, gradually breaking through the paint until I reached the rubber.

It took a while, but as can be seen from the second picture, it came up very well.

Looking for a faster method for the main frame seal, I ended up scrubbing it with fine wire wool, lubricated with cellulose thinners. The thinners helpded to soften the paint while the wire wool scraped it clean. That also cleaned up well.

Edited October 13, 2021 by Jessie The Jeep

[Jessie The Jeep]

Once clean and dry, I refitted the inner screen rubber to the frame and then used the left over mastic, squirted into a small syringe, to pump it into the gaps around the seal and frame. Hopefully this will keep the water out. Because the rust has already started to force sections of the inner screen apart, just fitting a new glass seal was never going to be a solution to keeping the water out. Masking tape was used to keep the seal still to stop it twisting to one side or the other while the mastic dries.

I then used a scalpel to cut out much of the original rubber glass seal, long since hardened and gone brittle. This left a small 'V' gap between the frame and glass where I added more mastic to stop rain water getting into the frame next to the glass. All the edges are done but for the bottom.

I'm waiting for the current mastic to cure before I turn the screen the correct way up. With the mastic sealing the bottom where the rubber seal is, I should be able to pour some epoxy and possibly some milled fibreglass fibres into the rotten area of the frame to reinforce it and keep water and oxygen away from the already badly rusted internal structure of the frame. It should give the frame a few more years of life without complicated welding repairs.

Edited October 13, 2021 by Jessie The Jeep

[Jessie The Jeep]

I also started painting the roof bow and wooden frame behind the cab. There were a couple of areas that needed some filling where other wooden parts had been removed. That was going to take a while to dry, so I left that to set and painted a first coat on everything else. I can catch up on the patches with a quick sand and early coat of paint in the morning, then probably the whole thing again later in the day.

Edited October 13, 2021 by Jessie The Jeep

[No Signals]

14 hours ago, Jessie The Jeep said:

October 12th - Windscreen & Roof Bow

Looking for a faster method for the main frame seal, I ended up scrubbing it with fine wire wool, lubricated with cellulose thinners. The thinners helpded to soften the paint while the wire wool scraped it clean. That also cleaned up well.

Bit late now, but Nitromors, or similar, would have worked.

[Jessie The Jeep]

1 minute ago, No Signals said:

...Nitromors...

I wasn't sure what that would do to the rubber, so didn't try, even though I had some in the workshop.

[Enigma]

Looking good.

Just goes to show that you can keep busy on the same vehicle. if you want.

[Jessie The Jeep]

October 13th/14th - Windscreen & Roof Bow

The bow frame was painted olive again on the 13th and set aside to dry. I then turned my attention to putting the screen back together. Like the Jeep screen, the design of the Dodge is the same, with the inner frame opening to 90 degrees to slide in or out of the outer frame. Two interlocking curved pieces of metal form the hinge. When everything is new, that's how it's meant to work and sometimes it's a bit tight. The Dodge was at the other extreme. The screen slipped into place very easily and I'd greased the joint to be sure, but I'd just got it into place and it fell out!

I think the two curved interlocking pieces of metal that form the hinge, have been over extended at some point in the past and have opened up a little. This was allowing the inner frame to drop out of the hinge slot. I'd get one end in and the other would drop out before I had time to close the inner screen so the hinge closed up more. Eventually with lots of huffing and puffing and some blocks of wood to support the frame and stop it dropping while I fought with the opposite end, I got it together and closed. I was able to stand the frame up the correct way to allow gravity to fill the rotten part of the frame with epoxy resin and milled fibreglass fibres and finally, mastic to seal the remaining glass joint.

With the frames together again, it gave me the space available to work out the stencil size for the name to be painted back on. All the little canvas fasteners were soaked in cellulose thinners which brought all the old paint off and they were then repainted and left to dry in my curing cabinet ( basically an insulated cupboard with a halogen bulb ). A stencil was cut for the name, in the same font as before, but in bold rather than standard. With all the checkers on the old Dodge, the name was lost a bit in the glare of the contrasting black and white. Now in white on an overall olive truck, it is probably more noticeable.

[Jessie The Jeep]

I'd noticed that the ply on the cab bow was delaminating in places. So on the 14th, the frame was inverted and a ton of PVA glue run into all the laminations before clamping it to dry. It was only cheap shuttering ply, rescued from a skip in 2008, so it's done quite well. Once fairly dry, a few short screws were added to keep the laminations secure, so the clamps could be removed and the wood painted again. This was the third coat of olive drab, as the previous checkers were still visible at two coats. It darkens a little as it dries, so I'll see how it looks once fully dry.

Re-assembling the screen accessories was next, the canvas studs, the vacuum wipers etc. The splines on the wipers were almost non-existant, so a little epoxy was added to help secure them. From the looks of them, they'd been glued before. All the canvas screws vacuum hose screws and wiper motor bolts were then touched up with olive. The rear view mirror had just been held in place by a bent strip of metal, clamping the mirror arm against the screen.

It's been like that since I got the truck, but I welded up a new bracket which would clamp the mirror more securely and bolt into the same holes in the screen. The tailgate was bolted back onto the truck next, with plenty of grease in the hinge points. I was going to fit the reflectors while out there until I realised they looked a bit scruffy and the machine screws needed cleaning up.

The screws and reflectors were brought into the workshop, cleaned, sanded and some red primer added to bare metal areas, ready for olive later tonight. While out in the garage, I also picked up the pioneer rack and brought that back in to clean up and re-paint. As it stands now, it would look a little out of place on the freshly painted truck. The same probably goes for the jerry can holder.

[Jessie The Jeep]

October 15th/16th - Reassembly

After painting the pioneer rack morning on the morning of the 15th, the wind screen was refitted back on the Dodge. I got my first look out of the screen, over the now olive drab hood, at the big star. It's strange after seeing the checkers for so long.

The four reflectors were fitted too and the bench seat chains, which had been removed for the Flying Control truck, were refitted. The rear left locker has a snapped hinge. For a while, I tried to free the rusted bolts to get the hinge off to weld, but the machine screws are rusted solid. I do have a plan to free them.

The tatty canvas covers from the bench seat chains, were moved to the tailgate chains, to protect the paint work. The fabric is rather brittle having suffered from ultra-violet light. I have some spare thin olive drab canvas material, so Lynne has said she can sew some new covers. For now, the tatty covers will do to protect the paintwork. Amongst all of this, I've been cleaning up more nuts and bolts and painting them so the various parts can be refitted. I modified around twenty small coach bolts to fill in the aerial mount and other holes in the rear panels to keep the rain out.

The last job today was refitting the grille and head lamp guards, which was going well until I dropped on nut and it vanished. When it fell, I heard a clunk like it hit some wood. I searched the floor for ages before finally finding it wedged in the chassis rail where the front bumper mount bolts are. No idea how it managed to bounce to there! Eventually all twelve bolts were tightened up and the grille was done. Just the fenders to bolt up and the headlights to put back together, then the front end is complete. Once everything is back on, I'll touch up the paint on the bolt heads.

The Jerrycan bracket and door hinges were brought indoors to the workshop, after a bit of a tidy up in the garage. The bracket was sanded and a first coat of olive drab applied. It won't be long before the Dodge is ready to go and I've already got an event to attend in November for Remembrance Sunday. That will make two events with the Dodge in the same season, but in a completely different scheme!

[Jessie The Jeep]

First thing on the 16th, I fitted the pioneer tool rack to the back of the Dodge. The back no longer looks overwhelmed by stencilling. I'll leave it a few more days to harden before I fasten the tools back on. We then needed to call in on the old house ( which is still waiting for the sale to complete ) so I didn't get back to the Dodge until after lunch.

Once back, I bolted the fenders back onto the truck and then turned my attention to the lights. The mounting bolts are also the earth connection, but both parts were rusted. They were wire brushed clean and then tinned with solder for a more corrosion resistant contact surface.

The headlights were then reassembled and after refitting the rear indicator, the truck was run and the lights checked. The indicators only work when the engine is running.

[Jessie The Jeep]

Twenty small coach bolts were fitted into the rear panels to fill the aerial mount holes and other holes of unknown origin. A little mastic was added around the base of each head to give a better waterproof seal. The white on the 'D' of speed was touched in with a brush afterwards.

After that, I removed the rear right locker lid. This was a roll up lid that I made when I had the meteorological instrument panel fitted over the locker and the normal lid wouldn't open.

I no longer needed the roll up lid, so refitted the original lid that I kept after removing it eleven years ago. There's still a few little jobs to do, but the Dodge is very close to being finished now.

[steviem]

Cracking work there, I need to fill some damage on the MB inner screen prior to glazing,  did you use epoxy. 

[Jessie The Jeep]

1 minute ago, steviem said:

......did you use epoxy. 

For the screen repair/reinforcement, I used epoxy, thinned ever so slightly with methylated spirits and mixed with milled fibreglass fibres to help bind the epoxy together and give it more strength. If you have any fibreglass mat, you could pull some strands out and chop them into small pieces to mix in. The bottom rubber seal was put in with mastic so the bottom of the screen frame was watertight, which meant the epoxy couldn't run straight out of the bottom of the frame. On my Jeep a few years ago, I filled some rot holes with epoxy and iron filings.

I did repairs by brazing on my GPW frame, but I had another frame as a donor for metal of the right shape and section. The Dodge screen wasn't far enough gone to need big chunks cutting out, but needed some reinforcement.

[steviem]

Cheers bud, did you use silicon or glass tape,  I'm doing this job last.