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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 .
Chris added this unique and undoubtable rare Turner Mower matchbook cover to his already extensive collection of jeep-related matchbook covers.
A Turner mower brochure can be seen under #3 on this post. http://www.ewillys.com/2017/03/03/mowers-for-the-early-jeeps/
And, more info on additional Turner jeep-related products: http://www.ewillys.com/2020/06/10/1948-turner-stationary-hay-baler/
Though this photo of Billy Graham smiling in a jeep is undated, Billy Graham’s website indicates he arrived for his visit in 1952, then stayed over Christmas into 1953, as another photo of him in Korea is dated 1953. More Billy Graham Korean War pics can be viewed here.
View all the information on eBay
“This is an original press photo. Graham, Billy. Billy Graham in jeep in Korea.Photo measures 10 x 8.25inches. Photo is dated –none.”
UPDATE: Steve shared this link about a ‘Lady Jeep’ article written for the Heinz Center, which led me to Amazon. That listing included a date and magazine for this ad … the August 31, 1946, issue of the New Yorker. And, there’s a better pic on Amazon.
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Originally published May 19, 2019: This ad was on google image search, though it was gone from the actual destination page to which Google directed me. So, I have no date or magazine name to identify when this ad was published. It treats the Army jeep as a tomboy and the wagon as a Lady.
You’ll note that the patent number 2854111 is the same one connected to this single lever design: https://patents.google.com/patent/US2854111. Read to the end, as this patent number appears connected with an odd looking, Dualmatic-related hub.
This post is all Scott Gilbert’s fault. We got talking about the different color of Dualmatic hub labels on Sunday and, suddenly, my Sunday afternoon vanished into research!
This post leverages the great work from the CJ-2A.com’s dualmatic twin-lever page and the ih8mud hub forum about Dualmatic twin-lever hub variations. For the record, I’ve never owned any of these hubs, so I’m leveraging pics and the internet as best I can. It is a working post. If you have corrections or comments, please let me know!
If only I had each set of hub in front of me I might have a better shot at highlighting the differences (height and faces), but I do not have them. So, I’ll just do my best with the faces and some documentation for dating purposes.
I was going to use the CJ-2A page’s nomenclature, but after studying the different faces, I think it’s better, as I hope you will see, to expand the styles types:
Design A: Recessed center, full ribs, sharp-ended ribs
Design B: Raised center, full-ribs, sharp-ended ribs
Design C: Raised center, full-ribs, round-ended ribs
Design D: Raised center, one-end of both ribs recessed from the edge, all round-ended ribs
Design E: Raised center, both-ends of ribs recessed from the edge, all round-ended ribs
Design W: These were marketed by and stamped as Watson hubs (hence why I call them Watson hubs), but also stamped and sold by third-parties like Sears unstamped and unbranded.
Before we begin with the twin-lever design, let’s look at the single lever design. Dualmatic’s founder Charles Simonsen’s original patent was for a single lever design.
This photo may highlight why that design didn’t hold up well and why support was needed for the cam levers:
This photo was found on a G503 forum. You can see that the lever has been highly stressed.
CONJECTURE: If the bending of the single lever was even a somewhat common occurrence, then it would explain the shift to a dual lever, rib-supported design. One of those early designs may have been the Design W or the Watson hub seen at the bottom of the post, but it seems to me that when full of mud and small debris, that loosening the levers would have been difficult. So, my theory is that the next idea was Design A, which is the earliest one documented with a specific date.
DESIGN A: The earliest example of a Dualmatic hub with a date comes in the form of this April 1958 advertisement in Popular Mechanics. For our purposes, this would be Design A. It has full, un-rounded ribs and a recessed interior
Design A hub with recessed center, full ribs, sharp rib ends.
Design A hub with recessed center, full ribs, sharp rib ends.
Design A can also be seen in this undated brochure, most likely pre-1963 given the lack of full-size jeeps:
Curiously, Design A was still around in 1964, as evidenced by this 1964 Montgomery Wards catalog ad below, but a new type of style appeared, which I call Design C, with a raised center (for branding I assume) and full, but rounded-ribs (and around as late as August 1965 in a Four Wheeler Ad):
Designs A & C Dualmatic hubs. Lower pic — Design A hub with recessed center, full ribs, sharp rib ends. Design C Dualmatic hubs with raised center, full ribs, round-ended ribs.
DESIGN C: Here is a better pic of Design C. You’ll note that the sticker branding is colored black. So far, the consensus is that there were three different colors of stickers, black, blue and red. Again, when each was used and why they changed is uncertain:
Design C Dualmatic hubs with raised center, full ribs, rounded-ended ribs.
DESIGN B: At some juncture, Design B was introduced. Design B had a raised center and full, sharp ribs like Design A. You’ll also note that this has the red center branding sticker: Continue reading
Mark and Carl both shared this article about jeeps in the classroom. Sure, the jeeps are a few tines short of a full grille, but I think we can cut the teachers some slack; they have enough headaches to overcome.
Mike pointed out that the 1999 movie Holy Joe, starring John Ritter and Meredith Baxter, included a Willys wagon. I believe the moral of the story is that if you do good in the world that someone will restore your wagon for you? At least, that’s what I got out of it!
Based on various angles, I believe this was a 1961ish 2WD Maverick, but I am open to other thoughts.You’ll note the ‘restoration’ of the wagon does not reflect an original paint scheme. The wagon makes several appearances. Here are the three longest ones.
The 11:09 minute mark before ‘restoration’:
The 51.25 minute mark before ‘restoration’:
The 1:31:37 minute mark (near end of movie) after ‘restoration’:
This is a cool photo of Chinese Nationalist pilots piled on a jeep in front of P51s. Following WWII, the Chinese Nationalist Government renewed it’s civil war against Mao Zedong’s communists. The Nationalists lost enough territory over the succeeding years that in 1949 they were forced to abandon the mainland for the island formerly known as the Formosa Republic (until 1895, when the Japanese took control, not seceding control until 1945). This 1950 photo displays the Nationalists continued effort to thwart control by the Chinese communists.
“1950 Press Photo Chinese pilots ride jeep by P-51 planes at a tarmac in Formosa. This is an original press photo. Formosa (Nationalist air pilots). Kaohsiung, Formosa. The scene might be on a typical United States Army Airfield instead of on the nationalist bastion. A jeep load of P-51 pilots is on the tarmac as the Chinese version of the bright blue yonder boys head for their P-51’s to take off on a mission over the Chinese mainland. Photo measures 9 x 7inches. Photo is dated 6-5-1950.”
Scott spotted these NOS Dualmatic hubs on eBay. I am not as familiar with the red stickers, but this looks to be a later version of these lever-activate hubs, solely based on the style of ribs.
View all the information on eBay
“NOS Dualmatic Locking Hubs Willys Jeep 10 Spline, Willys Mb, GPW, CJ2A Cj3a M38. New in the original box, I’m guessing from the 1950’s, or 1960’s. Some storage wear. All mounting bolts are there. Shipping $16”
This late 1956 ad introduced the FC-150 its Longview, Washington, audience.
December 06, 1956, in the Longview Daily Times.
Cool photo and a nice shot showing Scenic Tours on the back. I imagine this the Ouray area?
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“This is an original press photo. Colorado’s high mountain country is custom made for the rugged individualist who likes to get off the beaten path into areas where man is seldom seen. Many communities rent jeeps, and some schedule jeep cavalcades that take you into areas of breathtaking beauty that have been hidden from the eyes of man since the beginning of time.Photo measures 8 x 10.25inches. Photo is dated 12-30-1966.”
