dodge wc-23 am I crazy?

[cowboy181d]

Hello all this is my first post on this forum. I just bought a wc-23 (or what is left of) He has had a rough life since being discharged from the service. He has been bobbed behind the drivers seat by a farmer many moons ago. I am looking for input and pictures of the rear half of the tub. I have the skills and ability to build the missing tin. And I under stand early command cars are getting hard to find, But is this truck worth the undertaking Or should I just build it into a open cab truck? I can go either way as I am building it as a company shop truck (I own a custom coating and welding shop)

Let me give a run down as I see it. Frame cracked both sides about 18" behind transfer case, rear frame rails bent, missing front drive line. torched out mid crossmember axles are in need of much love. Some kind of farmer engineered hard top using sheet metal and some of the top bows. good parts- engine turns over but has stuck valves trans and transfer case shift seems to steer both ways. All ID tags present and accounted for, from cowl forward all the tin is complete but beat, dash is in great shape.

Please give me your honest advice about what the truck could be worth rebuilt ( I know resto work as I spent many hours of my life restoring muscle cars and vintage trucks for a living) Or is it far enough gone that Building it into an open cab truck on a newer chassis with much much less damage would not be totally destroying a piece of military history ( I saved this from the crusher as it is and I have always been in love with WC's) I am all for rebuilding the truck into original trim but I need to know how far gone is too far gone for a military truck of this vintage is it going to damage its value if half the tub is new? Am I better off to just put a open cab bed on it and reshape whats left of the cab, too far gone to matter? Any help would be great as I have to look at this from a money/time deal since I will be running it completely through my shop for original verses open cab truck clone.

Thanks
Damen Hill

 

[ODFever]

First off, welcome to Steel Soldiers! It looks like you already have a case of OD Fever. I'm sorry to say that there is no cure!

If I were in your shoes, I would not pour the time and energy into rebuilding it.
You could:
- Part that truck out to save another. Sell off everything usable. Scrap the rest.
- Find a similar truck and use this truck as a donor vehicle.
- Sell the whole thing and find another project.

 

[bikeman]

hearing the frame woes, I might suggest a transplant. If you are familiar/experience with metal fab, then most of it won't be an issue. If you already have an idea for the back/box/cargo, then I'd say go for a "idealized" resto, keep the old dodge front but upgraded (as needed) elsewhere.

 

[Wolfen]

I agree.

First off, welcome to Steel Soldiers! It looks like you already have a case of OD Fever. I'm sorry to say that there is no cure!

If I were in your shoes, I would not pour the time and energy into rebuilding it.
You could:
- Part that truck out to save another. Sell off everything usable. Scrap the rest.
- Find a similar truck and use this truck as a donor vehicle.
- Sell the whole thing and find another project.

 

[FrankUSMC]

First off, welcome to Steel Soldiers! It looks like you already have a case of OD Fever. I'm sorry to say that there is no cure!

If I were in your shoes, I would not pour the time and energy into rebuilding it.
You could:
- Part that truck out to save another. Sell off everything usable. Scrap the rest.
- Find a similar truck and use this truck as a donor vehicle.
- Sell the whole thing and find another project.

Well said, this is a parts truck, you can find a better one very easy, there are plenty of half ton Dodges out there.
Also, this was VERY common after WWII for the half ton command cars to be made into pick up trucks.

Find a better truck, you will be happier in the long run.
One of the few, Frank USMC RET

 

[NDT]

Building the body with all the rolled seams and compound curves would be a huge undertaking. I think you have the right idea by making your own rear body to suit your business using this chassis. If you parted it out, it would very difficult to sell the bits and pieces.

 

[FrankUSMC]

One more item to add, join or hook up with a MVPA group in your state. I have had as many as 35 military vehicles at one time. I had a way of finding them. Most of us are into military vehicles for saving our history. I have found and passed on to other collectors some great deals over the years. I just had to many, and wanted to see the vehicles saved. One military vehicle club I belonged to one time, had a part of the club meeting where if you saw a military vehicle you would tell every one so some one could get it. The best deal I ever passed on? I found a WWII Cushman flight line scooter, the owner said I could have it! I called a very good friend and passed it on to him. He is doing a frame off restoration on it now (he says it is the most expensive "free" gift he has ever gotten).
One of the few, Frank USMC RET

 

[turnkey]

It appears you have found the rare light weight version...No floor boards...use by the guys that jump out of planes for a living.....Maybe scrape is the way to go ...After you strip it....

 

[cowboy181d]

I may have located a open cab bed, fenders and running boards. I am going to look at the pieces tomorrow night. I will be pulling the cowl forward off the frame and setting it on a custom tube chassis with Dana 60's. So if anyone needs axles I will be parting with the stock chassis like I said the frame rails are junk but the axles look to be serviceable. and building a new floor pan and the rail around the floor pan. It will take me a while whilst juggling customer projects and family time. I will be around here most definitely to bug ya guys for info and pictures. And to post pictures of this ol' beasts progress from pulled from scrape heap into a reborn rig to pay homage to the original design of these trucks. I am glad I decided to go with this truck to build as I wanted a beat out rig pulled from the heap to build into a new improved version to show off what I can do at my shop. I just needed to make sure I was not going to be destroying a piece of military history.
Thanks for your input and I will keep posted my progress.