He/She Is Home

Well I brought He/She home yesterday. The parts (steering box bearings) came and the mechanic put the steering box, column and wheel back together. The only problem was that the horn mechanism (consisting of a lead ring and a plastic ring which were somehow attached to the inside of the steering column were broken and irreplaceable. So he (the mechanic) jury-rigged up a way for the long horn button wire to be able to flex when the steering wheel was turned. He (the mechanic) said he didn't know how long that rube goldberg would last.

I'm thinking of naming Her "Blue Goose" or Him "Wander Gander." What do you think? Any suggestions?

Not Enough Parts!

The parts to fix the steering box arrived, two weeks later; unfortunately not all of the parts that were needed and one that wasn't needed. So I have to wait another week before the rest of the parts (steering box bearings) arrive. In the meantime the Jeep sits out in the rain.

Seat Belts

While waiting for the Steering Box parts to arrive I ordered a set of seat belts from MAC (a Model T Ford supplier). I wanted four sets, two for the front seats and two for the back seat. They only had two sets and so, since I don't have a back seat yet, I just ordered the two. That was on January 29. On February 4 I received an e-mail stating that my order was shipped. It arrived last night. In tracking the shipment I found that the seat belts were shipped from Chicago to New York (where MAC is located) before shipping west. They must not have had them in stock.

Sloppy Steering Repair (In Process)

When I first test-drove the Jeep it wander all over the road, really sloppy steering. Someone had installed a stabilizer across the drag links but it didn't seem to help this problem. In negotiating the final deal with the seller, he said he had put in a new bell crank, (which helped a lot, his words). but that he noticed wear on the right socket. He ordered one and sent it to me in the mail because it arrived after I had bought the Jeep. All this activity was brought on by analysis by a friend of mine from Walla Walla who decided that problem was not in the steering gear box, but in the linkages at the front.

When the right socket arrived I found that I didn't have the tools to replace it and so took the Jeep to a local mechanic who installed the right. In the process, however, he found that the sloppy problem was in the steering gear box. He took it apart and found that the worm gear on the steering column was shot. I have ordered a horn button kit, upper and lower bearings for the steering column, a steering column, a gasket for the steering box plate, the short and long bushings and a seal for the sector sector shaft. They should arrive by the end of the week.

To Do List

The first thing I did was to make a To-Do list. So far it consists of:

     1. Transfer the Title. (complete)

     2. Register the vehicle. (complete)

     3. Install seat belts. (done)

     4. Repair sloppy steering. (done)

     5. Fix horn. (done)

     6. Modify directional signals.

     7. Get PTO parts.

     8. Get rear seat.

     9. Modify canvas top. (in process)

Purchase Day

I purchased a 1947 CJ2A Jeep on January 22, 2011. It is dark blue which may indeed be the original color, Normandy Blue. The wheels are painted black; the original colors for wheels with Normandy Blue bodies were Sunset Red and Autumn Yellow with either a Normandy Blue or an American Black pin stripe. The serial number or VIN is 100550 which if one assumes a linear production schedule for 1947 this Jeep rolled off the assembly line in early April.The mileage when I purchased it was 18,418.