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My Jeep page by Bruce Smith
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Lil' Wil being picked up by my cousin Kenny in NH
The neighborhood kids all came out to wave goobye to Lil' Wil.
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Lil' Wil an 1957 Jeep FC-150
Lil' Wil is a 1957 Willys jeep FC-150. After several years of searching for one I found him in NH(well Amy actually found him). After rebuilding several CJ's I found myself ready for a new twist. Very few of these Fisher Price looking Jeeps were built. And even fewer survive today. The Forward Control was way ahead of it's time and destined to a short production run. Willys built the early ones on a CJ-5 frame. So as you can imagine he's a little cab over truck, about 12 feet long that can turn around in a 18 foot circle! Mechanical parts are easy to find since he is essentailly a CJ-5 in differn't clothing. Sheet metal and body parts on the other hand are a little more dificult to get. My cousin Ken picked him up for me in NH and took him to his fathers house. There he drove him around the property and decided he had to have one for himself. Thanks for picking him up Ken but too Bad! Lil' Wil is mine! get your own! :) From there an auto transport company picked him up today (5-22-01) and is bringing lil' Wil to his new home here in FL. His trusty plow was retired to the north in hopes of finding another FC-150. I plan on a close to original restoration with modifications keeping drivability in mind. I think a aftermarket A/C unit will be added to help out on those hot summer days. Untill I actually meet him and access his bed I will decide if I am going to build him a flatbed or restore his pick up box. Once he's gets here I'll update the site.
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Update on Lil' Wil
Well, Lil' Wil made it to his new home! Rick and I went to pick him up at the auto transport yard. After mulling it over I decided to be a little adventurous and drive him to the work shop. After grinding a few gears I figured out the shift pattern and started out. Only Wil would only go about 25 MPH in third gear. After shifting him out of 4WD Low in to 2WD High he sped along nicely. His brakes work but pull hard to the right. I got a little to brave and started to speed up. at about 40 MPH Lil Wil woke me up with a rude and nasty case of the speed wobbles after hitting a bump. So I slowed it down a bit and made it the shop without trouble. A crowd quickly formed around him with questions of "what is it?" Rick and I unloaded the remains of his bed and the pile of spare parts he came with. Upon inspection we found the source of the wobbles. At least one leaf spring is broken and a king pin bearing is shot. So for now Wil is restricted to rides around the work shop. Amy got into the fun and took Wil out for a spin returning with a big grin. I have already made some decisions on his restoration plans. Lil Wil' definetely has great potential.....
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lil' Wil after getting his windows and interior washed.
Amy helped give Wil a bath. His windows cleaned up very well. In the background you can see Ricks Bronco. The source for engine parts that will soon cover Wil's bed for a little while.
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5/27/01: Today I decided to remove Wil's snow plow frame. I believe Wil has had his plow since day he came off the showroom floor. So I figured removing bolts that have been on for 44 years would be a dificult chore. But a little liquid wrench and a impact wrench removed the few dozen bolts with ease. I managed to strip the head off one bolt that was dificult to get to. The cutting tourch quickly dispatched that one. Wow was that a HEAVY duty plow mount! I would guess that removing the plow mount lightened Wil's front end by at least 150+ pounds. Once the mount was out of the way I was able to more closely inspect Wil's frame. Other than surface rust wil's frame is in very sound condition. After a quick ride around the block I put Wil away.
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8/20/01: OK OK it's been a while since I've added an update. Well, its summer in FL so that means it's HOT outside! For the last few months Wil's flatbed has become a nice workbench for Ricks Bronco engine overhaul. Like I always said any horizontal surface in a shop becomes a magnet for "stuff". The Bronco project is now done so Wil's bed has been cleaned off. But its still very very hot in the workshop so I don't get too motivated about going down to work on him. Since space in the shop is limited I have been working on Wils sibling the 67' CJ-5 to make some room. I'm learning that bondo work is harder than it looks. Especially on a totally flat surface such as the side of a CJ! Billy from Perfection Connection (the parking lot whore) next door to my workshop has been very helpful with his bondo coaching sessions. A gallon of spruce tip green (the origianal color) basecoat awaits to be sprayed on. I took Lil' Wil for a spin down the street to the airport. On the way he got another case of the speed wobbels. This time I was prepared for it. Although Tucker my lab mix who was riding shotgun was not. Once safely at the airpark Lil' wil was in his own driving around the grass tie downs. When I stoped to talk with a few friends there was alot of questions. "what is it?" and "thats cool I never saw anything like that before" With a big GRIN I drove back to the workshop keeping it under 40 to avoid the wobbels. Wil's back in his nest awaiting his turn for restoration.
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3/20/02 Alright it's been like forever since I've posted anything. The 64 CJ-5 tub has been painted. Came out pretty darn good for my first time spraying base coat clearcoat paint. The hood, Grill, and fenders have been stripped to bare metal and primed with self etching primer. Man is that stuff nasty! Make sure you have a GREAT resporator if you ever spray that stuff. I had a few minor dings that needed a little "mud". Next is the high build primer and the basecoat and clear.
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My other Jeeps
Lil' Wil will be joining his following Jeep siblings that I now own. They are: #1 A 1978 Cj-7 Golden Eagle that has a lift kit,Ramsey winch,35" pro comp tires, and a beefy 258 engine. #2 a 1985 CJ-7 that I rebuilt from the ground up with a fiberglass body. #3 A 1964 CJ-5 that I have replaced most of the floorboards in and coated them with Herculiner bedliner. (This is great stuff) #4 A 1946 Cj-2A that is totally disassembled awaiting to be restored.
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E-mail me:
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Other Links
Ok I'm learning how to publish web sites using Front page. You can check out my RV-7A web site here: FL-RV-7A When I get better I'm going to give the jeep site the same treatment.
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Cool Jeep Sites:
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Projects to Come: Ok everyone says I'm nuts. But I have always wanted to build the Mac Daddy of all projects. For those of you who don't know me it's an airplane. This is going to be a massive undertaking that should take a few years. Maybe even longer depending on finances. I have decided on the RV-7 a all metal 200+ MPH airplane. Check it out at Vans' Aircraft. 3/20/02 Well, I'm not hapy unless I have like a zillion projects. The tail kit for the RV-7 arrived! This is going to be a blast! It's like the ultimate model plane. Don't worry FC fans once the CJ-5 is done Little Wil is next inline!
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