The Alaska Or Rust 2017 event was a great success, due in part to your support. Initially, Our goal had been to gather thirty jeeps together, but by the time we departed the list of people who wanted to go initially (more than 100) fell to eleven jeeps and twenty-four people. That turned out to be a blessing, because the size made the event more easily managed. Those that took the brave step to join us—knowing that we’d never put on anything like this—were a great bunch from all over the US and Brazil, with a wide range of experience and ages spanning twenty-two to eighty-four years old. Everyone bonded well and, even one month after the trip, we are in constant communication on Facebook. Our hope is to do another trip together, someday.

Highlights from the trip began the morning we grouped in Dawson Creek at our motel. There, a group of Canadian Mounties stopped to visit, take photos, and sign our jeeps. They even cut some patches off their vests to trade for Alaska Or Rust shirts.

Another favorite highlight was our stop in Fort Nelson, Canada, where Todd Penney hosted a dinner for us at his auto shop, Dalex Auto, and invited folks from around the town to attend. We even landed on the front of the city’s newspaper!

The next day we drove to Watson Lake. There, the chamber of commerce was thrilled to see all the jeeps, so everyone lined up in front of the sign forest (with tens of thousands of signs) and took pictures. A truly unique spot!

In Whitehorse, the main capital of Yukon, we had rooms in a downtown hotel, where people could wander by, check out the jeeps, and sign them. Meanwhile, we celebrated Hugo Vidal’s 84th birthday with a free dinner hosted by the Discovery Yukon, the tourism arm of Whitehorse. A few days later, Hugo was featured in the Whitehorse Star newspaper.

When we left Whitehorse the next day, the group stopped for lunch at a small gas station along the Alaska Highway. As we walked inside, we were surprised to hear Hugo’s voice. An interview he’d given the night before was broadcasting all over the Yukon! You can listen to it here:

https://soundcloud.com/cbcyukon/vidal-retraces-1955-alaska-highway-journey

Eventually, we reached Alaska, then Fairbanks. We celebrated with two public meet-n-greets, one at the Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum of Fairbanks and the other at the local Jeep Dealership. At both stops we met followers of the trip and jeep enthusiasts.

In terms of visibility, Alaska Or Rust served up an average of 1000 pages a day over six months, meaning readers saw your logos over 180,000 times. Meanwhile, eWillys received an average view-rate of 10,000 pages a day, meaning logos were seen 1.8 million times between April and September. Of course, we can’t possibly count all the people who stopped to admire and sign jeeps along the way, but we certainly attracted attention wherever we went.

Our one disappointment was that service was so bad throughout Canada and into Alaska that we could not do the Facebook Live videos like we’d hoped. We even had a radio personality along who could have done the spots well, but the technology failed us. In fact, updating the websites were a challenge at times, but fortunately, we were able to hunt down enough bandwidth to do that.

So, from all of us who experienced Alaska Or Rust, we offer a hearty thanks for your support!

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As editor of eWillys, one question readers often ask is how to differentiate between a Very Early CJ-2A (VEC) and a regular CJ-2A. The visual and timeline explanations herein should help reader better understand how the VEC evolved into the more recognizeable CJ-2A.

Claus’ 1945 VEC CJ-2A — exported to South Africa

Over the five year life of the CJ-2A (1945-1949) the CJ-2A underwent changes from time to time. Some were very noticable, such as the disappearance of the driver’s side tool indents, while others were less noticible, such as the mid-1947 parking light change.

The biggest changes were made during the first year of production (roughtly 08/45 – 08/46), hence these early CJs developed a reputation for being different from later CJ-2As. At some point, these early CJs were designated VEC CJ-2As, though who crowned as such is not known. Because Willys-Overland never officially identified the VEC as a specific model, the term does not have a precise definition nor an exact serial number. For example, I’ve seen an ending serial number of #34530 labeled the last VEC, yet the column shift wasn’t abandoned on the 2A until #38221, so maybe that’s a more natural end point? However, I’m not here to debate the proper ending point for VEC production. Instead, I just want to highlight what people new to VECs should consider when trying to identify them.

One great source of information regarding the CJ-2A alteration history is at the CJ-2A History Page. I’ve found that page very helpful in my research. While I highlight six items below, there are many other subtle changes that occur over the life of the CJ-2A. For example, this CJ-2A.com link highlights how the windshield adjusters changed. And this link from the CJ-2A Page provides a long list of minor changes and their associated part numbers.

SIX MAJOR VEC-ITEMS YOU WILL WANT TO WATCH FOR WHEN LOOKING AT CJ-2As:

1. Floating Hubs Dropped: In early 1946 at serial number #13454 Willys-Overland switched from full floating rear ends to the standard rear end. Of course, sometimes people have replaced later CJ-2A rear end with WWII military rear ends OR added aftermarket full floating axle packages to standard CJ-2A rear ends. Thus, this identifier is never a conclusive indication of a VEC.

strong>2. Exhaust changed: The first VEC was reportedly built with the muffler under the driver’s seat. The muffler was switched to the passenger side from #10002 – #18638. After that, the exhaust was routed to the rear of the jeep, with the muffler located under the rear cargo area.

3. Square bow holder bolts on the windshield: Bolts were inserted through the windshield to afix small hangers to the windshield. These hangers were used to carry the straight portions of the soft top bows (the curved portions were intended to be stored on the side of the jeep). The bow holder bolts changed from square to round about 22XXX.

4. Tool indents dropped: At about serial number #29500 the tool indents were eliminated from the CJ-2A design. The tool indents can be confusing for some new jeep folks, as they are often used to identify WWII jeeps. However, most anytime you see tool indents AND a gas inlet, it’s a sign of a VEC CJ-2A. If there are bow holders (not always there), the body is just that much easier to spot.

5. Column shift dropped: At #38221 the column shift was changed to a floor shift, though apparently a column shift option was available(?).

6. Steering wheel switched from spoke to resin (the photo above illustrates this change): Willys-Overland changed the steering wheel from the metal spoked version commonly found on WWII jeeps for a solid resin steering wheel. However, this wasn’t the same wheel, as WWII wheels were green, while the CJ-2As were black.

There is some debate about when the switch occurred (see this CJ-2A Page forum discussion), but it seems to have been after #18092 and before roughly #26xxx. While an official document puts the changeover at #38070, the anecdotal evidence suggests it happened earlier. No matter when it happened, if you see a spoked wheel on a CJ-2A, look closer for other VEC elements.

(Bonus) 7. Data plate changes: Anytime you see three data plates on the dash instead of one take a closer look at the jeep. The three dash system was a hold over from the WWII jeeps. Over the early life of CJ-2As there were several variations of the three plate design. Then sometime around #46xxx the three plate system gave way to the one plate motif, though that design also changed a few times. The CJ-2A.com site has a nice overview of the different plate types:

http://www.cj-2a.com/oldsite/marks/dataplates/survey

Of course, one of the greatest challenges in looking at old jeeps is the problem of part interchangeability. The replacment of later parts on early jeeps, along with additional modifications, can make identifying VECs a challenging task. Hopefully, this essay helps make the task a little easier.