I bought this beauty this past weekend. It is going to be turned into a German WWII troop truck if I succeed. I was wondering if anyone knows where I can get a pair of the front fenders that look nice.
A '41 Ford German troop transport? Now that will be a pretty amazing transformation.
I guess you know that the USofA wasn't too keen on supplying the Axis with war materiel. I think Mercedes made trucks for the German war effort. Were Unimogs produced that early? Great project and good luck. The left front fender looks to be very salvagable. Steve
A '41 Ford German troop transport? Now that will be a pretty amazing transformation.
I guess you know that the USofA wasn't too keen on supplying the Axis with war materiel. I think Mercedes made trucks for the German war effort. Were Unimogs produced that early? Great project and good luck. The left front fender looks to be very salvagable. Steve
No - you're right the US wasn't in the habit of supporting the German war effort. But Ford was. They had a plant in Cologne. It ran just fine with US input until Dec 1941 and afterwords still produced Ford designs throughout the war. It was producing Fords the day after the war ended. Plus there were plenty of American built Fords confiscated during the German campaigns in Holland, Belgium and France. The Ford factory in Cologne was never bombed. Not once. Henry Ford didn't want his factory touched and the US knew that. Plus for pragmatic reasons it was good business to have a working vehicle factory after the war ended and there was little doubt that the Allies would carry the day latter on in the war. There is a good book on the subject called Ford at War by Reinhard Frank. Lots of nice photos.
About the fenders, yeah, they'll do just fine. Now I need to find some steel fenders for the back wheels.
Ersatzjack, You have obviously done your homework and have a passion for these trucks. I have an interest in military history due to a long line of family veterans starting with the Mexican American War. Post an update once in a while so we can see your progress. Steve
Here are a couple of shots of the progress. The interior you'll have to take my word for but the redone steering wheel is nice and I'll photo it later.
I've finally finished replacing all the glass except the rear window which stays. You'd think they would sell an instruction sheet with the glass. I did everything possible wrong during the installation and had to back up and do it twice. Fun! I should get the interior painted in a week or so and will have fun putting in the headliner and other stuff. The seats have been done and it will be getting a spotlight install and new floor mat. I am aiming for a brand new look in the interior. Just don't pick up the carpet because I didn't change the floor. It is still serviceable. My lumber should be here in a few weeks. Not using Fir any longer but switched to Ash as it is available. The colors will match when I'm done. I'm starting to acquire some spare parts. I have a totally serviceable passenger door, passenger fender (big tires) and wheel available if anyone is interested. I don't need eight wheels, just seven. shooting for a 2009 completion.
Your project is really taking shape. Those rear fenders look awesome. Was that a lucky find or did you fabricate them? That left fron fender looks flawless. I bet it did not look that good when you bought it. Keep forging ahead and post more pics. Steve
Thanks Steve. No it wasn't any lucky find. The rear fenders are fabricated. One of a kind. The front driver's side fender was rough and I couldn't source a newer nicer one but the body shop folks did a great job. The other side was a NOS fender that Dennis Carpenter had. Lots of surface rust but again, the body shop made it look new. I will keep the updates coming for sure. That adds to the fun for me.
an intresting bit of info I read, you might be able to tell me how true it is, but I read that the military trucks used the straight six engines instead of the V8. That is when the 226 became available.
I have heard about 3ton trucks in those years. what is the main diff. between them and the 2 tonners. The few pictures I have found looks like the same wheels and engines. What transmissions do they use. I did find one picture showing six lug wheels instead of five.
F6Guy - You got me? I think mostly they were classed as 1.5 Tonners. But I'm pretty sure mine is capable of more. It is a custom frame underneath. It was lengthened and has an extra plate welded along the frame on both sides and the springs look like two sets and not one on the rear axle although for all I know that is normal. I do know the ones made in Koln during the war were designated three tons.
OldV8truck - Nice MH from what I can see. Those are rare.
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