New to me Deuce with matching trailer - wrenching post

[banditt1979]

Hello all, today I received, CT Blacks Trucking out of Minnesota, my first deuce which came with a matching trailer. Highly recommend CT Blacks, Cory was great to work with and guided me right off the trailer. I used a hand winch to get the M105A2 off first with Cory balancing the trailer to keep the landing gear from dropping off the back. Then slowly, in low reverse, I backed it off the trailer. Did I mention no brakes?? I had been able to get a slight pedal after filling the master cylinder with fresh DOT 5 before it shipped but nothing upon delivery. After we got the truck down I paid Cory and went to work trying to bleed the brakes. I used the typical pressure sprayer setup to bleed them, and was able to get a half pedal after pumping up, but leave it for 5-10 seconds and you have to pump them up again. Also at each wheel, it appears that the wheel cylinders were all replaced at some point, but whoever did the job used what appears to be dot 3 (amber appearance). I planned on replacing all rubber items anyway, so I limped it the mile and a half home and parked it out front. Instead of trying to fight my narrow street, I had it delivered to a large parking lot close to home with lots of room. This weekend looks like nice weather, at least Saturday, so I hope to pull it down behind my house to start working. Here are a few pics




Once I start taking things apart I'll get more pictures. Underside is pretty clean, very little rust, most of the tires are in good shape. Right front is worn bad on the outer edge so I'll have to check into that. But it has all the troop seats, two covers or tarps, 2 spare transmissions, 3 wheels with tires, 1 bare rim, and the heater assembly. Ran fine coming home, needs a fuel pump which I have a Carter to install. More to come.

 

[kendelrio]

Outstanding truck! Congrats and keep us posted!!!

 

[glcaines]

Just because the brake fluid looks amber, don't assume it is DOT 3. DOT5 is purple when new, but turns amber with age. Take a sample of the fluid and put it in water. DOT 3 is miscible in water, but DOT 5 isn't.

 

[banditt1979]

Thanks! I did not know that. The brakes almost feel like they are out of adjustment but I was assured they worked before it was parked. Either way, I will replace all the rubber and keep the old rubber for "just in case" scenarios. I'll also pull the wheels and hubs, repack bearings, replace the seals and adjust the brake shoes if necessary.

I ordered the rubber brake lines from a company called Seco. They have NOS and new parts. I placed an order for their new hoses. What I received was 2 hoses had a date stamped 1986 with a parts tag attached to them indicating 1986, 1 hose had no tag but date stamp of 2012, and the other 2 hoses had Japan written on them with no date stamp. Ive reached out to them to get an explanation. I don't think its a good idea to install hoses that are 36 years old, even if they are NOS, not to mention the japanese 2012 hose. I won't comment further on the other 2 hoses. Thoughts?

 

[HDN]

Congratulations! That looks like a fun project!

 

[M35fan]

Very nice! Congratulations.

 

[Mullaney]

Hello all, today I received, CT Blacks Trucking out of Minnesota, my first deuce which came with a matching trailer. Highly recommend CT Blacks, Cory was great to work with and guided me right off the trailer. I used a hand winch to get the M105A2 off first with Cory balancing the trailer to keep the landing gear from dropping off the back. Then slowly, in low reverse, I backed it off the trailer. Did I mention no brakes?? I had been able to get a slight pedal after filling the master cylinder with fresh DOT 5 before it shipped but nothing upon delivery. After we got the truck down I paid Cory and went to work trying to bleed the brakes. I used the typical pressure sprayer setup to bleed them, and was able to get a half pedal after pumping up, but leave it for 5-10 seconds and you have to pump them up again. Also at each wheel, it appears that the wheel cylinders were all replaced at some point, but whoever did the job used what appears to be dot 3 (amber appearance). I planned on replacing all rubber items anyway, so I limped it the mile and a half home and parked it out front. Instead of trying to fight my narrow street, I had it delivered to a large parking lot close to home with lots of room. This weekend looks like nice weather, at least Saturday, so I hope to pull it down behind my house to start working. Here are a few pics
View attachment 860567
View attachment 860568
View attachment 860569
View attachment 860570
Once I start taking things apart I'll get more pictures. Underside is pretty clean, very little rust, most of the tires are in good shape. Right front is worn bad on the outer edge so I'll have to check into that. But it has all the troop seats, two covers or tarps, 2 spare transmissions, 3 wheels with tires, 1 bare rim, and the heater assembly. Ran fine coming home, needs a fuel pump which I have a Carter to install. More to come.

.
Nice looking vehicle!

Running with the ability to drive it down the street is a major plus too. Yeah, brakes are at least somewhat important too - but at least you know what needs to be done first. Congratulations again and Happy Wrenchin!

 

[M37M35]

I ordered the rubber brake lines from a company called Seco. They have NOS and new parts. I placed an order for their new hoses. What I received was 2 hoses had a date stamped 1986 with a parts tag attached to them indicating 1986, 1 hose had no tag but date stamp of 2012, and the other 2 hoses had Japan written on them with no date stamp. Ive reached out to them to get an explanation. I don't think its a good idea to install hoses that are 36 years old, even if they are NOS, not to mention the japanese 2012 hose. I won't comment further on the other 2 hoses. Thoughts?

Call around to some local hydraulic shops that make hoses. Some are able to make custom braided stainless DOT brake hoses, which is definitely the way to go over rubber hoses.

 

[fasttruck]

Get a lubrication order and read it. The key to survival with a vehicle with manual steering is lubrication. There are over 30 grease points on a M35, 4 on the handbrake alone. When coupling the trailer make sure to hook the hoses up correctly, they are not interchangeable and open the valves on the end of the chassis before proceeding. When uncoupling the trailer it is important these valves be closed when operating without a trailer.

 

[banditt1979]

One thing I will need to do is invest in some specialty tools. I have a mountain of standard automotive tools due to collecting and restoring many cars over the years. Any suggestions on what to add to work on the deuce?

 

[HDN]

One thing I will need to do is invest in some specialty tools. I have a mountain of standard automotive tools due to collecting and restoring many cars over the years. Any suggestions on what to add to work on the deuce?

• 3/4" drive socket set
• Some kind of torque multiplier - at least 3/4" drive
• Either a big torque wrench that can torque both left and right, or a small one to use with the torque multiplier
• A powerful 1/2" or 3/4" impact wrench
• Maybe something to move wheels around with, especially if you plan on removing a set of duals without splitting them - a dedicated wheel dolly or a wide enough pallet jack would work
• At least a pair of 6-ton jack stands (they're tall enough to keep the front axle up)
• At least a pair of 3 or 4-ton jack stands (they're tall enough to support a rear axle)
• At least a 4-ton bottle jack with appropriate wood blocks
• Appropriate wheel chocks
• Big pry bars - at least 4 ft long

 

[Mullaney]

One thing I will need to do is invest in some specialty tools. I have a mountain of standard automotive tools due to collecting and restoring many cars over the years. Any suggestions on what to add to work on the deuce?

.
Everybody has something I feel sure, but one of the best and most useful tools would be a Milwaukee Fuel cordless half inch impact wrench. Good for removing axle bolts and lug nuts (remembering that left turn is important on the drivers side!). A nice 3ft pry bar to lift the tire onto the hub is really helpful. A 1 1/2 inch socket to fit the lug nuts. Possibly even more useful is a BUDD wheel socket that does the outside lugnuts and the inner wheel lugnut that uses a 13/16th square socket. The combo tool is nice to have!

Little simple things like a good air chuck and pressure gauge capable of a hundred pounds or a little more. A 20 ton bottle jack and Jack Stands. At least a pair and each one should have a big fat wide base and one stand should be rated for 5 tons. Lookout for Harbor Freight on those because they have had several recalls.



.

 

[cattlerepairman]

If you have worked on cars before, it is easy to underestimate exactly how heavy the Deuce is in comparison. Axle stands are great but even on asphalt I recommend to use 6x6 cribbing (6x6 lumber cut into 2 ft or suitable length pieces) to either underlay the axle stands or build a support to the axle/frame to make sure nothing bad happens when one axle stand suddenly punches through the asphalt on a warm day!

A member here posted pictures of what it looks like when a Deuce, on 6 axle stands, without wheels, slides off over night.....

 

[banditt1979]

If you have worked on cars before, it is easy to underestimate exactly how heavy the Deuce is in comparison. Axle stands are great but even on asphalt I recommend to use 6x6 cribbing (6x6 lumber cut into 2 ft or suitable length pieces) to either underlay the axle stands or build a support to the axle/frame to make sure nothing bad happens when one axle stand suddenly punches through the asphalt on a warm day!

A member here posted pictures of what it looks like when a Deuce, on 6 axle stands, without wheels, slides off over night.....

Jeez, I don't know if I want to see that! I'll definitely be stopping at the blue wood store to get an overpriced 6x6 or something large to use for a good support when restoring the brakes.

Today I pulled the fuel pump fuse cover to find a blown fuse. I stuck a regular 10amp fuse in there but haven't been able to verify yet if the pump works. My plan was to back it into my driveway and behind the house but after getting the trailer back there and in the spot I want it, it got dark. I have a fence gate that is 117" wide. The deuce is about 107" wide at the mirrors so it will fit. But with the brakes not working properly, the manual steering, and being dark, I'll just wait til the morning. Its not hurting anything even though a local barney fife was slow rolling by it today. I'll stay positive and think he was admiring the massive beauty....

 

[HDN]

Its not hurting anything even though a local barney fife was slow rolling by it today. I'll stay positive and think he was admiring the massive beauty....

Maybe he rode in them some time ago!

Once you get your truck on the road, you may find that you'll be getting more attention than while driving muscle cars

 

[kblazer87]

That is a good patform to start with banditt. Looks good.

 

[banditt1979]

Maybe he rode in them some time ago!

Once you get your truck on the road, you may find that you'll be getting more attention than while driving muscle cars

It is rare that I take the 1970 1/2 Firebird Formula out and not get some comments or thumbs up. Several years ago I drove it to the Trans Am Nationals in Dayton and had a large group of bikers (I won't ID them but a well know group) drive past me and they all gave me thumbs up and F yeah's. I do like to engage with like minded individuals about such things as cars and bikes. I hope to also engage with the military vehicle group as well. My father was one of nine children, 8 boys and 1 girl and all the boys served in one branch or another. My dad was 1948-1952, always said he signed up for 3 years but stayed for 4. I myself did not serve, came close but that was during the clinton years and ultimately decided not to go. Anyway, I'll be glad to have conversation with any and all MV owners!

 

[SCSG-G4]

• 3/4" drive socket set
• Some kind of torque multiplier - at least 3/4" drive
• Either a big torque wrench that can torque both left and right, or a small one to use with the torque multiplier
• A powerful 1/2" or 3/4" impact wrench
• Maybe something to move wheels around with, especially if you plan on removing a set of duals without splitting them - a dedicated wheel dolly or a wide enough pallet jack would work
• At least a pair of 6-ton jack stands (they're tall enough to keep the front axle up)
• At least a pair of 3 or 4-ton jack stands (they're tall enough to support a rear axle)
• At least a 4-ton bottle jack with appropriate wood blocks
• Appropriate wheel chocks
• Big pry bars - at least 4 ft long

I use 12 to 20 ton jacks. They don't seem to leak down as fast as the smaller ones, and they are usually taller to start with!

 

[HDN]

I use 12 to 20 ton jacks. They don't seem to leak down as fast as the smaller ones, and they are usually taller to start with!

I learned that's especially true with the jack stands. I was happy when I found out that my 3-ton jack stands could support a rear axle since they sit lower to the ground than the front axle! The 6-ton stands had a lot of extra reach with plenty of detents to spare for the front axle, even though you don't need that much capacity to support the front axle (6000 lbs total on the front axle on an empty truck, about 3000 lbs per wheel). I also learned that while you can use the tips of jack stands with curved saddles to support the axles, I'd recommend finding stands with flatter saddles for less pucker factor, or perhaps weld flat plates to the top of the curved saddles.

 

[banditt1979]

Yesterday I spent cleaning out the bed of the truck and trailer. Turns out both of the transmissions have been taken apart and are in pieces. No big deal looks like all the parts are there. Three spares and an extra rim, a set of troop seats that need new wood, and three truck tarps and one trailer tarp. I'll take em!
As I was cleaning the side door of my house I heard a "yo!" turned around and a guy had stopped in the middle of the road to tell me he liked my deuce. I thought that was great!