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Welcome to eWillys.com, a website for vintage jeep enthusiasts. I update this website nearly every day with jeep deals, jeep history, interesting reader projects, jeep related info, and more.
These quick searches can help you find things on eBay. People list in the wrong categories all the time, so don't be surprised to see brochures in the parts area for example.
The links to posts below show jeeps grouped by models, condition, and other ways. Some of these jeeps are for sale and others have been sold. If you are unsure whether a vehicle is still for sale or not, email me at d [at] ewillys.com for more info.
There are plenty of interesting, unusual, historic and surprising stories related to Jeeps and their owners. In addition, some of these features have nothing to do with jeeps. This link will display all featured stories starting from the latest.
Looking for parts and not sure where to go? There are a variety of large and small new and used parts sellers both online and offline.
Importantly, the allure of buying a project jeep can be romantic. The reality of restoring a jeep can be quite different, expensive and overwhelming without the right tools and resources. So, tread carefully when purchasing a "project". If you have any concerns about buying a vintage jeep, or run across a scam, feel free to contact me for help, comments or concerns .
Farrell Fox shared this photo of what I call a “Sedan-Jeep” on Facebook. There was no year or caption. I loosely define a sedan-jeep as one which has had some kind of custom top and/or fenders, added that make the jeep a little more car-like.
Blaine shared these two ads from the February 1966 issue of Popular Science. The jeep ad appears on page 71 and the engine adapter ad was published on page 227.
This seller has a series of photos of the Chevrolet lightweight prototype.
“1942 Chevrolet US Army 1/4 Ton Jeep Truck Prototype Press Photo. Original
Details: W 10 x H 8 x D 0.1”
2. View all the information on eBay
“1942 Chevrolet US Army 1/4 Ton Jeep Truck Chassis Prototype Press Photo. Original
Condition: Looks as though it was likely cut from an 8×10, possibly had two photos on 8×10 sheet”
3. View all the information on eBay
“1942 Chevrolet US Army 1/4 Ton Jeep Truck Prototype Press Photo. Original
Details: W 10 x H 8 x D 0.1″
There are some great illustrations that accompanied this patent filed August 15, 1950, by Friedrich Schmidt on behalf of Auburn Machine Works.
According to the filing, “An object of this invention is to provide means for digging trenches particularly suitable for mounting on a conventional vehicle such as a truck or jeep without any substantial modification thereof and driven from the vehicle power take-01f. It is a related object to provide novel means coordinated with the digger portion of the device for enabling the vehicle to be advanced positively at a speed which is only a fraction of the normally obtainable minimum speed and with the engine operating at full rated R. P. M. I”
This photo appeared in the February 03, 1945, issue of the Saturday evening Post, page 18.
Dan shared this early Gee-I Jeep toy. Someone ought to like this for the price.
https://offerup.com/item/detail/622295627/?_branch_match_id=636002163807956657
“The Gee I jeep is in good condition with all original paperwork box. Rare piece to find. Was made in different years this is the first. You can color the Jeep any color you want.”
UPDATE: **SOLD** Was $2000.
Kris is selling this newly chromed front bumper and parts.
“This is a freshly chromed full front bumper assembly for the Willy’s Wagon or Truck. This should also fit the Jeepster. Not only are these parts very hard to find but chrome shops are getting ever more difficult to find. Especially shops that do work like the top notch work done at Decorative Industrial Plating out of Helena, MT. This bumper is in perfect condition and is truly show quality chrome. All chrome carriage bolts, nuts and washers are included! Bumper is located in Butte, MT.”
Chris snagged this unusual item off of eBay. I’d really like to know when this was produced, because some of the font details are fairly close to the look of the Jeep font in 1945.
This auction starts pretty cheaply on this very 1960s looking brochure (pics are from an older auction)
“Up tonight I have more from several lots of literature I recently Acquired. Here I have a 1961 Jeep Brochure. This is 7 and 1/2 by 11 inches folded, opening up to 15 by 22 inches. Decent shape with wear as shown. A neat piece of Advertising to display with your classic.”
No updates Saturday. Ann made sure I got a few hours of sleep, but am back at it with Dad now, though he’s finally sleeping a little, when not grumbling “damnit” and quiet chants of “watch, watch, watch” . . .
This past Thursday morning Ann and I arrived in the hospital to find Dad ready to die. And, by that, I mean he was in a hurry to get home that day, because tomorrow (Friday) he had to die. There was little emotion to it; just certainty in a matter-of-fact way. As he stated his position, the nurses told me he’d had a bad night Wednesday night, and that they had had to drug him, which didn’t do much good they added, and have someone present to keep him calm.
At this point, the 85-year-old man (who from his face still looks like he is in his late-60s and who the staff took for someone who was full ambulatory and ready to return home to live, not die) is bed ridden. He has spent the last two months in either the hospital or rehab, the latter of which he hadn’t successfully completed. His former 210lb body has shrunk to a 158lb shadow. His heart is pumping about 20% of what it should, causing a number of issues.
He’s aware of all this; he feels like crap; he can’t sleep well; and he’s just done with it all.
So, all morning on Thursday we discussed his wishes and exactly when he planned to die. Eventually, perhaps clearly being understood, and knowing mom had a long planned “girls trip” over the coming weekend (with her friends from high school), a break my tired mother really needed, that just happened to start on Friday (the day he planned to die), he decided to switch his upcoming death to this coming Tuesday, the day after she returns from her trip. It was important to him that she go on the trip, so he was willing to wait to pass.
These are strange conversations to have. But, hey, if he can last through Tuesday, we’ll take another few days with him.
Following that meeting of the minds, on Thursday afternoon we met will palliative care to arrange hospice. Then, Dad was pulled off IVs, etc. He was happy as a clam, except for one issue. He wanted to go home NOW.
Appealing to his practical self, I told him in order for him to return home and have Medicare pay for it, and insure mom had help when he was home, we had to go through certain steps. That meant he couldn’t go home until Friday. This line of reasoning resonated with him and kept him calm.
But I was still concerned he would get agitated at night, so to help him, I reassured him that I would stay with him until he went home. That made him happy, which was strange as he was normally the stoic person who told us when it was time for us to leave the hospital when visiting him.
So, from Thursday morning through Friday evening, I spent time adjusting him, getting him a snack (because his diet restrictions were removed), getting him cocoa, and whatever else he needed. And, of course, I continuously had to answer why he couldn’t go home right away and appeal to his logical brain that certain hurdles had to be jumped (example, hospice had to delivery equipment to the house) in order for him to return home. During that time, he slept in mostly short stints of a few minutes here and there.
On Friday night, dad finally came home, arriving in the evening. I can’t tell you how close we were to not returning on Friday, as the hospital equipment had to arrive at the house before they would release him. And here I must thank the St. Francis Hospital staff in Federal Way, who organized everything we needed to insure that should the hospital equipment arrive by 5:30pm (our deadline was 5:30pm or he would have had to stay an extra 12 hours), that Dad would get released immediately. Literally, five minutes after I got the call that the equipment was finally arriving 4:45pm Friday afternoon, and after the doc and social services had already left for the weekend, the nurse had me signing the paperwork to let him go.
So, he arrived home in an ambulance and was wheeled inside the house on a gurney, happy as a clam. He asked and received some Chinese food. He was able to pet his dog again.
Now, his goal is to last until mom’s return on Monday, then go to sleep on Tuesday and not awaken, or as his stroke-altered speaking style puts it, “I will then be six-feet under, flat”. We don’t want to burst his bubble, was we suspect he still has at least a few weeks, but if he can will himself to pass on Tuesday, then we all support him.
Due to his stroke 17 years ago, it’s been a long road for him to this point. He’s tried lightly to recover. So, if he’s ready to go, so be it. He’s earned it.
UPDATE V: This post has a comparison of Husky hub backsides.
UPDATE IV: With this ad August 1973 ad in Four Wheeler Magazine, Husky seemed to want to make it clear that Selectro hubs were Husky products, even though some Selectro stuff had been marked with Dualmatic references over the years.
This is the first full page ad for hubs that I had seen in years from Husky or Dualmatic. Perhaps they were struggling with a branding issue (seems likely to me), so this was the company’s answer.
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UPDATE III: You can find a closer look at the Dualmatic hub-with-levers variations on this post.
UPDATE II: Here’s an example of a more standard Selectro-style hub with the Free-Lock branding. It’s the first example I’ve been able to document. It looks more like the heavy duty kind of Selectro.
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UPDATE: For more information on the twin-lever Dualmatic designs, check out this post.
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ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED JULY 8, 2019: Once again, this is more a working post than a polished one. And, it’s a long one. It kept growing and growing as I learned more (and became more confused).Of course, I am left with more answers than questions.
Essentially, I’m trying to figure out when Selectro hubs popped onto the 4WD scene, who controlled them, and how they evolved. That led to looking at Husky, Dualmatic, Watson and FreeLock hubs. I don’t have all the answers just yet … here we go …
Map of companies related to Jeep products in the 1950s-1970s. You can learn more about Thor and White Automotive here.and Free-Lock here.
TIMELINE & DiSCUSSION:
1959/1960?: The Husky Company launches it’s line of Husky Hubs out of Aurora, Colorado. This hub one of two pieces of evidence of the Husky Company’s existence in Aurora; it has the Husky Company name and location on it:
https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/early-hub-depository.825602/
A second piece of evidence was uncovered on a document found by Maury; the Husky Company was located originally in Aurora, Colorado.
From this website: https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/early-hub-depository.825602/
Based on the information on the hub, the Husky company already had a patent awarded (not just filed, but awarded). So, which patent was that? My best guess at the moment is that this 1958 patent awarded to Clark Peterson has the most elements in common with the Husky Hub.
Given there were a couple intervening years between the patent (awarded in 1958) and Husky Hub (unclear when it was brought to market, but I’m guessing 1959/1960), it seems possible that the company altered the design before manufacturing it, which could explain the differences between the patent and the finished hub. The biggest reason I think the two are related is that both the patent and the Husky Hub have a narrow bolt down the center, a unique design not seen in another other hubs.
1961: In 1961 a new name was associated with the Husky Hub: Trade Winds, Inc, out of Boulder, Colorado. My best guess is that the Husky Hub company lacked capital, so it turned to Trade Winds (perhaps which bought a controlling stake in the Husky Company?) to re-introduce the Husky Hubs.
In a column titled Underwater Puzzle: A Post War Anecdote, an article shares the story (true?) about a lost jeep. This appeared in the December 1, 1944, issue of the Saturday Evening Post.
This article was published on June 29, 1944, in the Sotoyome Scimitar newspaper out of Healdsburg, California. Mario shared it on Facebook.
Delmar Roos invented and Willys Overland patented this dual-driving-axle suspension on November 27, 1941.
According to the patent, “‘This invention relates to spring suspension for motor vehicles, and more particularly to vehicles of heavy duty or commercial type wherein the four rear wheels are mounted on tandem driving axles.
One of the principal objects of the invention is to provide means of mounting or connecting the axles to the chassis frame in such a manner so as to permit independentl vertical movement of the axles with respect to the frame without setting up undue strains in the connecting means, or materially restricting the vflexibility of the springs as the vehicle travels upon rough or uneven road surfaces or terrain.”
This “Frangible Frame All-Purpose-Farm Implement 2” was filed by Albert H. Stockmar on September 5, 1945.
According to the patent, “The principal object of the present invention is to provide a composite agricultural machine which is capable in a single operation of performing a plurality of related functions such as cutting sta ks. listing beds, leveling beds, planting seed and placing fertilizer.
Another important object of the invention is to provide a composite agricultural machine of the type described wherein the supporting frame is constructed substantially entirely of welded metal tubing which may be relatively inexpensively produced and which will require a minimum of maintenance attention in operation.”
These pics were part of an article in the November 11, 1945, issue of Colliers.
We have returned to Seattle for the next week. Dad landed back in the hospital and we are working through where to proceed from here. So, there may be some spotty updates the next few days.
Thanks to Mitch Carter for dropping by and joining the Eilers Clan Tuesday evening. There were many Wandering-Willys-Jeep-Club-old-member updates. We also laughed over some old jeep stories. Mitch plans to attend this year’s FC-Roundup for the first time. Depending on decisions related to Dad, Ann and I may also make a quick trip up from Tucson to attend on Saturday (we will be mostly down in Tucson visiting a military buddy of Ann’s she hasn’t seen since Khobar) .. stay tuned!
Here are Ann and Dad goofing around a little.
Me, I should know better than to snatch a quick nap when my evil wife is lurking with a camera.
A big thanks to Roger Martin for spotting this at an Ohio antique store and giving me first crack at it. He even wrangled 10% off the listed price. Neither Mitch Carter (who came by the hospital to visit dad — thanks Mitch) nor I nor Roger have ever seen one.
Inventor David Stone filed a patent for a Power Take-Off Mechanism and Drive Therefor, with Willys Motors as the assignee, on August 08, 1950.
This ad may have appeared multiple times, but appear at least once in the January 30, 1943, issue of Colliers magazine on page 29. Included below is a color version supposedly published in 1942.
This April 5, 1941, article in Colliers puzzled me. Through it, the author referred to a train as a “Giant Jeep”. I’ve never run across a reference before or after that time of a train being called a jeep. The article never mentions any reference to the newly created 1/4 ton vehicles, whose ‘jeep’ name was still catching on in the press. It also does not indicate where/why the jeep name for the train originated.
This ad was published in the February 7, 1942, issue of the Saturday Evening Post, pg. 31.
UPDATE: Chief Detective SteveK realized this is actually a CJ-3B. I thought it was a poorly done CJ-3A.
I snagged this 5″x7″ postcard off of Craigslist. For some reason it is depicted with a CJ-3B raised hood bump along the top side of the hood.
UPDATE: I’ve updated these images with corrections and four additional ads. You can a similar listing of Collier ads in black and white. I’ve added two ads that only appeared in the CIO-News, one that only appeared in Colliers, and one Sat Evening Post ad that I’d missed.
Original Post (03/01/2019): I tried to find a listing of all the Willys-Overland ads and their issue dates that were published in the Saturday Evening Post during and after WWII. Unable to find any good resource, I spent the last three days surfing through 250 issues of the magazine using the Saturday Evening Post non-profit site, which costs $15 a year to use. Then I organized them in a way that I hoped would make it easier for me to study them. Hopefully, it’s handy for you all, too. For expediency and bandwidth size, I used low-resolution images to create the files below. Eventually, I’ll go back and replace them with hi res images so that everything is clearer when viewed more closely.
The ads started in May of 1942 (at least that’s the earliest I found) and were published on average once a month. All ads published up to November of 1945 were placed on the inside of the back cover.
On November 10, 1945, Willys-Overland formally introduced the CJ-2A to Saturday Evening Post readers with a more centralized, two-page ad. After that, one or two-page ads for the CJ-2A appeared until August of 1946, when the first wagon ad appeared in the magazine.
UPDATE: As Bill notes, there’s also a May swap meet. That should not be confused with the August Annual show.
This August the National Pike Steam, Gas & Horse Association will be holding it’s annual show in Brownsville, Pennsylvania. This year it will be featuring working jeeps. Learn more about this event at http://www.nationalpike.com.
