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03/14/09 |
          
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Welcome to my M37 Site!I have been collecting World War II items for many years, particularly US Army Air Forces ETO Items, with a special interest in B-17 Groups. I also do reenacting as a Major in the 100thBG, 351st Squadron. I have been wanting to purchase a big piece of iron to restore, and since a B-17 is a little outside of my price range, I settled for a 1953 M37. When it's done, It will be painted representative of a USAAF supply vehicle, circa 1944. I know the purists out there might be shocked that it wont be pure off the line 1953 Dodge, but its mine, and that's the look I want.... Contact information email: creinemann@crwdesigns.comThere was a time when your average citizen didn’t need or even want a 4x4 truck. SUV’s were a small item described in Popular Science as a future type of all around vehicle. America was coming out of World War 2, and thousands of GI’s were buying up surplus Jeep’s left and right, and Willy’s was selling a new civilianized Jeep. But there wasn’t a big call for all those surplus trucks; sure, the road departments, fire and forestry departments were getting there fair share of CCKW’s, WC’s, and many others. In 1948 the Army was in need of a new vehicle, something to fill the gap between the Jeep and the bigger deuces. The first prototypes were delivered in 1950, and finally spec’ed out the final design 1951. This design, known as the M37 became a solid performer for the military. While most of the M37 production missed serving in the Korean War, a lot of them served all over the world, including Vietnam. Then around 1978 the Army began selling off its surplus trucks to local governments for a dollar. These M37’s were used by men on a new type of mission, fire departments, forestry departments, city parks departments. After many years of service, even these trucks had life in them. Enter the civilian owner, not the type to want a vehicle to sip their double mocha cappuccino while hauling the kids to soccer practice, these owners wanted a truck to do what a truck should, climb mountains, ford streams, and do it all in a different sense of style. Many of these trucks, like mine, were purchased by owners who wanted to restore them to their original military ancestry. In the process of restoration, I
sometimes feel a bit like Indiana Jones crossed with Sherlock
In restoring the truck, I have found some surprises such as; finding an airman’s name scratched into the paint behind the front bumper, dated 1954, or finding the brass bullet casings behind and under the floorboards. You wonder and begin to research where this vehicle had been, who drove it, and what did it see. In the disassembly of the truck, I found discarded in the driver side door pillar an empty cigarette pack of Murad Turkish cigarettes, stuffed inside that was a match book from Adana Air Base 1955 now known as Incirlik Air Base in Turkey. Maybe my truck was on patrol when Gary Powers U-2 took off in 1960 and succumbed to a volley of Soviet surface-to-air missiles over Sverdlovsk. Maybe my truck was a world traveler…. Who knows?
"Do not touch
anything unnecessarily. Beware of pretty girls in dance halls and parks
who may be spies, as well as bicycles, revolvers, uniforms, arms, dead
horses, and men lying on roads -- they are not there accidentally."
Dodge M37 Specifications ¾ ton Cargo Truck (Cross Country Rating, 1 ton Highway Rating) Engine Model...T245 Dodge Type..."L" Head, 6 Cylinder Horsepower...BHP-78at 3200 RPM Displacement...230.2 cu. in. Bore...3 1/4" Stroke...4 5/8" Oil Capacity...6 qt. Radiator Capacity...25 qt. Clutch Borg & Beck...Model 11828 10" Single Plate Dry Disc Fuel System Carter Carburetor...Model ETW-1 Down Draft 25 Gallon Tank (vented through engine air intake for fording purposes) Electrical Ignition, Starting, Lights, 24 volts Transmission New Process...Model 88950 (or NP420) 4 Speed, Synchro-Shift in 3rd and 4th gear Transfer Case New Process...88845 (or NP200) Ratio...High 1:1, low 1.96:1 Twin lever operation, one for 4x4 or 4x2 selection, one for hi or low range Drive Shaft MFG...Universal Products Axles Dodge Full Floating (Hypoid) Ratio...5.83:1 Front Universal Drive...New Process (tracta joint) Brakes Wagner...Hydraulic drum Parking- External Contracting Band...48 Sq. In Steering Gemmer Model B-60...Worm and Sector Type Wheelbase Cargo Model M37...112" Command Model M42...112" Ambulance Model M43...126" Tele. Maint. Model V41...126" Weight M37 w/o Winch...5687 lbs., M37 w/w5987 lbs. Tire Size 9.00 x 16 - 8 ply Non-Directional Military Highway Speed 55 MPH, Range 150 miles (6mpg) Winch Braden LU-4, PTO operated, 7500lb capacity (250’ 7/16" wire rope – 10’ chain w/hook) Torque Specifications (p124 of TM 9-1840A, Ordnance Maintenance Engine (Dodge Model T-245) Clutch (Borg and Beck Model 11828) main bearing cap screws, 80-85 lb-ft, connecting rod hex nuts, 45-50 lb-ft, cylinder head bolts, 65-70 lb-ft, cranking jaw, 110 lb-ft minimum, intake and exhaust manifold stud nuts 15-20 lb-ft
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This site was last updated 11/06/06
Holmes.
Even though my truck has US Army markings under the layers of paint, it
must have spent
some time on an Air Base.
