Will, Sam, Gerald and I.

On Tuesday’s triple-digit afternoon, Gerald and his two kids dropped by for a short visit. Gerald and his son Will, from Pennsylvania, are visiting daughter Samantha, who now lives in Washington State, for the week.  They’ve been exploring some of the state and on Tuesday their travels brought them to our humble home (technically, we never really made it past the shop).

The last time I’d seen the kids was eleven years ago at the 2013 Bantam Festival, and they were pretty young, so I didn’t recognize them at all. But, Gerald still looked the same … I’m not sure he’s even aged!?! Anyway, in 2013, Gerald gave us the grand tour in his CJ-3B of the Cooper Lake campground, a place they had camped for years.

Gerald was an early reader of eWillys (circa 2009 maybe?). As he put it on Tuesday, his online world consisted of The CJ-3B page and eWillys. Outside, of that, he really didn’t want much to do with the internet. His parents were involved in a local jeep club and also raced, so Gerald and I had shared, via email, many stories of growing up in the old jeep world, desert dogs, camping, etc.

While we talked on Tuesday, Will was checking out the racer, so it wasn’t long before I was running him around the property in it. Here’s a quick clip.

Then he climbed in, all smiles, for a chance to drive it. He didn’t go all that fast, but seemed to be enjoying himself.

The visit was all too short as they needed to make their way back to the Kelso area by nightfall, so we said our goodbyes. Perhaps we’ll see them if we make our way to the Willys Reunion next year.

The site/internet was really slow last night, so I only have a handful of updates for today.

It’s been a few days since I’ve been in the shop working on the FC. Things first came to a stand still when Ann’s cousin and his family to drop by for a visit. We all had a good time. The kids wanted a ride in the race jeep, so I zipped around the property with them, which, by the large smiles on their faces, they seemed to enjoy.

On Wed night we discovered one of our calves (spending the summer at a neighbor’s pasture) had gotten pink eye in the same eye that had it last year. So, we spent Thursday morning prepping our chute and corral, then cowboy’d over all three calves to our pasture. The hurt one got an antiobiotic shot in the chute. We ran the other two through the chute for practice (to their credit, they went through pretty easily).

Ann’s cousins left Thursday following our cattle rustling. After a shower (it’s still hot here, so I’ve been sweating tonsl) and a nap, I spent some more time looking through toy haulers, class A and class C motorhomes. We still haven’t decided how much of a rig we want to get (how much will we really use it, how much do we want to spend on upkeep, what’s the most practical, etc). I also wasn’t quite sure how much our tilt trailer and race jeep weigh together. So, yesterday I decided to get them weighed.

It turns out the race jeep weighs 3140lbs
The tilt trailer weighs 3180lbs (10k GVWR)
The truck weighs 7760lbs

We originally bought the dual axle, heavy duty tilt trailer for the tractor and the zero turn mower. That it could tow the race jeep (or be winched onto the trailer) was a bonus. However, if we had the race jeep on an aluminum dual axle trailer (it looks like they run about 1500lbs or less), our total weight would be 4600lbs, allowing most motorhomes to be able to tow the jeep and trailer without modifications (5000lbs max towing capacity seems fairly common).

Ann’s mother’s 27′ class C Forest River motorhome (Ford 4350 chassis) worked fine for our travels, though it was uncomfortable for me to drive at times due to the short seats. We also never towed anything with it. And, the low quality build elments were beginning to show some wear by the time we sold it. So, I’m not in a rush to get a cheap Class C.

Here’s what we do know … We know that when we go east with the FC Tour Jeep, it will be pulled by our truck, either on the tilt or on the three wheeled trailer that came with it. My guess is that the Tour jeep will prob come in around 4500lbs, so with either trailer, I’d plan on the pair weighing 8000lbs.

Beyond that, we can either get a used Class A (preferably with new tires and upgraded suspension parts at the very least). With it, we’d probably return to making some longer spring and fall trips (we plan to sell the breeding cows and switch to just raising a few summer cows … this will give us more freedom);

OR a Class C (if we can’t find the right Class A), which would likely be a cheaper option and likely having us use it locally for a race event;

OR a Toy Hauler, but one that has a 3500 ramp and cargo capacity, which we could tow with the truck.

We hope to make a decision soon, as I’d like to take the race jeep to summer convention this year.

Decisions, decisions.

UPDATE: Thanks to Mark for sharing images of his yellow Approved Willys Service sign. That makes three known yellow signs.

As Barney notes in the comments, “Mark said he believed the signs were made using old, solid patio table tops, thus explaining the center hole filled with a bolt. Now we know of 3 and also a more plausible explanation than mine above. It is a cool sign for the price and well built.

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UPDATE: Originally published May 20, 2024:  Barney Goodwin from Barney’s Jeep Parts just purchased this yellow Approved Willys Service sign, which is similar in colors, content and styling to a sign posted on eWillys back in 2020 (see bottom of post). Does anyone have any history behind these unusual service signs. Barney noted that on the back of his it references Chicago if that’s any help.

Barney added, “This sign is made of heavy gauge steel . It is not flimsy like an import. The edges are rolled and there is a weathered support plank on the back as shown. The rolled edge is painted black. There is stenciling on the back with perhaps a product number For Willys Overland by a Chicago contractor.”

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UPDATE **SOLD** Was originally posted August 26, 2020.

Roger Martin spotted this unusual Willys Service Sign at a Portland, Indiana, Tractor show today. If you are interested in the sign, we can get you the seller’s p#.