Lot of mods.
https://spokane.craigslist.org/cto/d/spokane-1953-cj3b-jeep/7005113798.html
“Don’t want to sell but family has outgrown. Jeep sitting on 4” shackles and axles under springs with a 44 rear end with fresh bearings, seals, and axles. 30 front out of a newer Jeep and 36” steel belted bad boy swampers with lots of tread top and sides.
The body is a newer late 90’s aftermarket steel body. This is tub, fenders, hood and grill that are rust and bondo free. The power plant is a matched, balanced and decked Chevy 350 with Kieth black pistons, comp cam, higher ratio roller rockers, quadrajet carb with approximately 5,000 miles on it. This power plant is mated up to the original 3 speed transmission and transfer case that sucks fuel from a custom aluminum 10 gallon tank.
The top is off a newer Jeep and wrapped around the roll bar so you can drop the windshield anytime without messing with the top. Front bumper and tow bar are also a custom and powder coated. This is a overpowered machine and not for the folks with afterbirth still behind the ears. No joyrides until cash is in hand. This is not a highway machine unless you are stupid or have 10 pound balls but could be a daily driver with a good coat. I don’t have doors for it but it does have a good heater.”
So everybody noticed that there are 5 overly modified, jacked-up, engine swapped, Bubba messes posted today and nobody commented or cares. The comments are on the historically correct willys jeeps. These Buba messes need their own or this is their own.
I like looking at all of them, even the ones that are only Jeep-ish. Grateful for all I’ve learned here. I like to think that the ones that have been Bubba-fied may increase the value of my mostly stock Jeeps.
George,
Thanks for your comment. I have to say I have a different viewpoint on this …. I can appreciate a nicely restored jeep. But, I can also appreciate a nicely modified jeep.
I post a wide range of jeeps, because they reflect the wide range of purposes jeeps served. The jeep’s entire history is one of being modified to do utilitarian jobs, altered to for a particular sport (Texas hunting jeeps for example), or modified for dealing with unique geography, such as the swamp modifications in the Southeast. During the 1950s and 1960s, racing was popular throughout North America, which led to all kinds of racing circuits and, of course, vehicle customizations. In the PNW, there folks still race, the jeeps more modified than ever: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qN76gnTNIfo
In the west, due to the more dangerous, steeper terrain, more power and better equipment was pretty much a necessity. I grew up in the midst of the Cascade Mountains. Our jeeps were always modified, some beautifully, others not so much. Furthermore, some non-stock safety features are required by jeeps clubs before you can join a jeep club on a trail. They (belts and roll cages in particular) have saved countless lives, my father’s included. He rolled his jeep down a hill after his driveline failed. I too have rolled, though I was racing my jeep at the time.
In fact, some PNW trails are impassible without modifications like positraction/lockers front and back. Rim Rock’s pucker trail is a good example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZCr9j-mmBs
Someone else appreciated modified jeeps as well, Don Prine (http://www.fourwheeler.com/project-vehicles/154-1208-don-prine-web-exclusive-historical-jeep-photos/). He drove one of the prototype jeeps up the capital steps back in the day. Over the years, he built a collection of beautiful stock jeeps, including three prototypes. But, he also ran Prine Jeep out of Tillicum, Washington, for decades, because he understood that jeeps of the Northwest needed modifications to be practical vehicles in that environment.
Now, regarding this particular CJ-3B. To me, it appears to have the mods for comfort, safety, and design that help make trail running in the PNW much more enjoyable (which includes getting to the trails). It also has the SOA to provide more clearance for rocks etc. Based on the pics, I’d argue the modifications to this jeep look pretty clean. Now, are these the exact mods I would do? Perhaps not. Is it the right price? Perhaps not.
But, for someone’s butt, this jeep might be perfect.