A big thanks to Barney Goodwin for sending me this original Meyer Snow Plow poster. I doubt there are many of these around anymore.
Features Research Archives
1966 Jeep News Volume 12 Number 4
Well folks, this is the last issue of the big batch of Willys News and Jeep News periodicals that I purchased back in December. From my perspective, it was great to have dependable, easy to produce, interesting content available to post for such a long period. I also am glad to be documenting this type of stuff, as it hasn’t been well-documented (to my knowledge) on the internet to-date. I don’t really have much else in the queue document-wise, but obviously there *should* be ongoing updates about the FC rebuild.
Coinciding with this last issue, the weather here has warmed with highs in the low 60s, which gives me much better weather to work on the FC; it also forces me to juggle that effort with the need to work on the pasture, ready the irrigation systems, and prep the lawn and garden for the growing seasons. Given Ann is still slowly getting better, but still has setbacks physically, this will mostly fall on me. So, updates may slow like they did this time last year.
The eight-page 1966 Jeep News Volume 12 Number 4 announces on page one that KJC would be sponsoring two major golf games. This continues the KJC’s movements into shifting the jeep vehicles away from their utilitarian and agrarian roots, towards family, luxury and fun. That doesn’t mean there was no utilitarian promotion, as page two reported that KJC officials contacted one thousand mosquito abatement administrators to promote the jeeps. Curiously, next to that utilitarian article are three photos of jeeps on the beach with young adults and surfboards.
Page three goes international, with announcements from Brazil, Venezuela, Nicaragua, and India. Page four and five provide stories of travel. Page four published a travel piece to Alaska in a Wagoneer by Bill Thomas, who was a travel editor for The Cincinnati Enquirer. Page five showcases a report by Charles R. Meyer, a freelance writer from New York, who took his family on a trip to Nova Scotia in a camper-equipped Gladiator.
Pages six and seven contain a variety of photos and captions, including the announcement of the Rat Patrol series. Page eight highlighted a different show, noting the success of Daktari.
Roberto Flores’ Latest Work: FC-170
Roberto recently completed this commissioned FC-170 illustration. Here’s his website.
You can view some of his illustrative processes in this accompanying video:
September 1965 Jeep Service and Parts News
This four-page September 1965 Jeep Service and Parts News includes, on the last page, a list of all models and their Vehicle prefix, which is handy given the scarcity of records for this time period. There’s also a short blurb on page three about how the cross pieces under the hood of a Wagoneer could short out the alternator!
Mid to Late 1940s Willys-Overland Dealer Pencil
This early jeep pencil has the J logo, which wasn’t corporately used past early 1946, so I’d say this is *likely* from 1945 or 1946.
View all the information on eBay
“WILLYS-CARS, TRUCKS & JEEP/MASSEY-HARRIS *Henry L. Oldham Imp. Co*Blackwell, OK”
This is a rare pencil from early the post WWII era. The printing is slightly faded but well readable being the type of pencil it is.”
Scott’s “TTT” Tiny Trash Truck
Cowboy shared this photo from Scott Ingram, who built a Tiny Trash Truck out of an old DJ-5 (Scott operates a garbage collection firm in Paris, Illinois). I don’t see an obvious seat, so this may only be for show. That’s something I’ve never seen done with a DJ-5.
September 1966 Eastern European Caravan
UPDATE: More information on the goal of Kaiser-Jeep’s 1966 Eastern European Caravan. This article was published on page 7 of the May 14, 1966, issue of International Commerce, a US Department of Commerce Weekly magazine. In it, the Commerce Department’s ostensible goal was as an “imaginative technique to promote U.S. Exports”, as part to the U.S. Government’s continuing effort to promote East-West Trade. It’s possible the trip was underwritten in some form (cash or government favors or both) to encourage Kaiser-Jeep to participate.
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This September 1966 Four Wheeler Magazine article describes the scene when the Kaiser-Jeep sponsored Eastern European Caravan crossed into (then) Czechoslovakia, as a line of restored and refurbed jeeps awaited them. Remember, that no new parts had even available to these die-hard jeep fans since 1946, making their rebuilds even more remarkable. The Prague Jeep Club alone had more than 300 jeeps and 400 members.