My 1967 M151-A1 restoration

[Maine Mutt]

Just picked up my M151A1 in western Maine last week. The jeep HAD about 5-10 years of mildew and moldy buildup around the interior and exterior. The mutt RUNS AND DRIVES and shifts through the gears. It has been "converted" to an alternator. I still have the original generator and would like to swap for any parts I need. Hit me up if we can make a swap for it. The exhaust is fairly loud so I'll be looking into a way for this to whisper like I've heard others sound. The tires look to be near original with dry rot throughout. This mutt is a definite re-weld with the typical signs of patching near the quarters. I took out the front seats so I could power wash and strip out the vehicle thoroughly inside and out. The mutt unfortunately doesn't have a rear seat so that leaves room for creative (utility) options. The canvas/vinyl covering is in O.K. condition. The top needs replacing while the sides and doors are good for a few more years. The tie down straps seem to all be dry rotted and frayed but I'm guessing a canvas expert could throw on some new ones for cheap. The front window needs replacing obviously. I am thinking of "installing" a 1/2inch steel plate to weigh down and structurally reinforce the rear bed area where some Bondo and rusting from the re-weld resides. After a good sanding and priming I was considering using the roll on truck bed liner on the floors throughout and rear bed and fender area. I am in the market for a few notable parts, antenna corner mount and all applicable parts(whip with cheap working radio is a dream of mine in this jeep). Some fairly inexpensive NDT tires for existing 7x16 rims. Needs a bit of rewiring to the signals but the blackout, headlight(s) and brake lights all work great. I def want to reinstall the spec turn signal controls but as of now there is a toggle switch in its place. As this is a restoration project I don't think I'll ever be quite done. I'll throw in some pictures of the mutt after a good washing and scraping of loose paint chips and mildew. Any inspiration in the right direction is welcome but don't beat me up. This is my first restoration and I chose an awesome vehicle to work with. I don't think I'll go for a 100% original look when issued but I'll end up in that 90% complete area with a little time. Thanks for checking it out and I'll be sure to post pics throughout the next few months!

[m3a1]

Very nice!

I'm thinking 1/2" steel plate is a bit much, though!

[Maine Mutt]

Any recommendations on a size? I just threw that out there. I definitely want to incorporate some weight to the rear to bog down the suspension for safety rollover reasons.

[m3a1]

I believe the originals are 18 gauge if memory serves.

Adding weight to address the rollover issue isn't going to help. The 'why' over rollovers is really the suspension. What I'm about to say is an extremely generalized description of the 'why'.

These trucks are suspended a great deal like 4-wheelers (ATVs). If you have any experience with those I needn't say anything further. Both are first and foremost, off-road vehicles.

Basically, when the front suspension unloads the front tire/wheel is no longer nearly vertical - and unloaded, the front tire/wheel takes on a very positive camber as the suspension extends downward. If the front suspension suddenly reloads with the tire/wheel in that position, the truck may roll. (In fact, you may have noticed your rear tires/wheels have something of a positive camber with the truck unloaded.)

I have a DVD that shows a 151 driven over a low ramp at a speed that is ridiculously slow...like 25 mph. The RF suspension unloads and the tire/wheel goes into a very positive camber. When it comes down, over she goes.

So adding weight isn't going to help in the way that driving, knowing (and respecting) the limitations of your truck, is.

Looks like you have a very good starting point. Check out my Alley Cat in Restorations. The Alley Cat is an aftermarket body made of 11 gauge steel. That's 1/8" thick! And no matter what I do to it…no matter how well I do it…it'll never be a true M151.

Cheers!

[HILLBILLY-06]

Don't put too much into permanently bearing it down the rear of it yet, cause you'll be half way bottomed out just riding it around. Just drive slower, and not hot rod it around like they do in some of the Hollywood movies. A great example of how not to drive old Army jeeps around is a movie named "American Ninja" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088708/) for obvious reasons, jeeps, nor M151's should just never be driven beyond what good common sense tells you, especially not like dirt track race cars... LOL
I have the bow legged suspension on mine too, but I have not squatted it down yet, nor done anything else to alter the suspension. I am going to leave mine as it is, and just drive it slow. "Those guy's that got videos" going 60mph with the window folded down, well those guys are not you or me, and I got no reason to try to drive mine that fast either. If I want to see how fast one can go, I'll grab another beer and sit down to watch the guy's on you-tube drive that way.... LOL

[Maine Mutt]

Thanks for the input. So far I've just been in the planing stages. I completely understand the rollover issue and the dos and don'ts of independent suspension. I grew up on atv's and I have a firm grasp on handling with this vehicle.

[Maine Mutt]

Some of the pics don't appear to be the original format that I took them in. Most of those are missing about 25% of the image

[HILLBILLY-06]

Some of the pics don't appear to be the original format that I took them in. Most of those are missing about 25% of the image

Yeah its a space saver, but if you click the image it will bring it up whole once again...

[rickf]

Leave the rear floor alone. If you put anything over it then it will rot out. Plus you will have a drastic reduction of power and it will not help with rollovers, it may even make things worse because the center of gravity with that plate is still high. I was racing VW's long before ATV's were even a thought in the makers eyes, the designer wasn't even born yet. The early VW's had swing arm suspension. I can tell you that the comment you made about having a handle on the suspension and know how to drive these vehicles will get you upside down in a big hurry! That statement along with the steel plate thing shows you have a lot to learn about M-151's. And suspension in general. Most ATV's use live axle in the rear so there is no camber change and the ones that use independent suspension use double wishbone style that keeps the camber straight. I strongly suggest you get the -10 manual from the site here and read it. That will explain all of the details involved in driving the M-151 safely.

[HILLBILLY-06]

Also scroll down to miscellaneous manuals to FM-21-305 which is another very good operator manual which includes a lot of very good info about safe driving and handling as well as other responsibilities.

These manuals are fairly large in size and may take a minute or two for it to download, but I (we) highly recommend reading them.

[Maine Mutt]

Geez rick, You must assume I only know how to drive go-karts (I was a class A driving instructor for 5 years ). A small amount of something to protect the bed before the ENTIRE thing rots out is my goal, whether it be minor plating to roll on bed liner. If you seriously believe even a 1/8in plate would cause this to flip over then I might as well sell this thing now since ANY LOAD carried will apparently be too much for the m151 to handle putt putt roads, I only plan to putt putt around town or hit some bird hunting roads in the fall.

[rickf]

What I am saying is from the pictures the bed seem to be in fine shape, why not just sand and paint it. If you are only "putt putting" Then you should have no concerns whatsoever of rolling over. I do not seriously believe an 1/8 plate is going to make it roll over, You said 1/2 inch, big difference. Even then, I do believe in physics, geometry and roll centers. It is not the suspension that causes the roll, it is the driver. You have to know the limitations of this particular vehicle and it is different than any other vehicle you can compare it to. It is not unsafe at all. Remember the Corvair? I powerslid Corvair turbos all the time and never came close to rolling one. It is in how you drive and how you understand the physics of the vehicle. any vehicle talks to you and you just have to listen. That may sound weird but any racers in the group will know what I mean.
I am not trying to be ornery or combative, it is just that I have heard it all before. Every new owner swears they have to do all kinds of things to make the vehicle stay on it's wheels when all that is needed is common sense driving.

[Maine Mutt]

I just wanted a solid/rugged bed area to withstand long trail rides 50+ miles into the north Maine woods for bird hunting trips. The bed sounds real "tinny" and seems to dent and scratch easily so my idea was to Bedliner throughout the floors and then to bolt in a solid templated floor. I don't want to up armor the floors, just make a solid platform to have secure points for stuff and take a beating without hurting the original metals this was made from. I do appreciate all input though and thanks for the tm ref, I plan to badger a ton of people on this site for knowledge while I throw this old rig back into beast mode.

[Maine Mutt]

Bought a nos vinyl top tonight on ebay for $90 including shipping. Anyone have any care instructions for these besides keeping them out of the sun year around?

[HILLBILLY-06]

Well, I might get blasted by the other guy's for this, but I use a tire-shine gel on my vinyl top and rear window. I just rub it on with a small soft rag and buff it out with a soft dry towel, it keeps it pliable and soft and has worked well for me. It don't really make it very shiny but I have liked how it works on vinyl tops. (Now the tires will shine) especially if you don't buff it off. They will look slick as snot for a while.