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Buddy Cowger: CJ-3B Uranium Hunter

• CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images, Old News Articles • TAGS: , This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

According to this story, Buddy Cowger lost the use of his legs due to cyanide poisoning. That didn’t stop him from driving the backroads of Utah in search of Uranium. He was a friend of Charlie Steen, a famous Uranium hunter out of Moab.

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1955 Testimonial to the Jeep From a Tobacco Farmer

• CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images • TAGS: This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

This testimonial was published in the July 1955 issue of Willys News.

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Hand Built Mini-Jeeps out of Bolivia

• CATEGORIES: DJ-3A, Features, Models This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

Richard Michalsky builds “mini-jeeps” out of his shop in Bolivia. These jeeps are all metal. The first vehicle, an MB look-a-like was completed in 3 years. It is 25% Smaller than the original vehicle and is 2WD, but has made of the same details. It is powered with a 3 Cyl engine from a Kia 1000cc. It weighs around 1250lbs.

This second jeep is a civilian model. It’s styled different, but appears to be built in a way similar to the  MB-like jeep. It too is only 2WD. They look like a kick to drive around.

 
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1943 Photo of British Solider Using Umbrella as Shade on eBay

• CATEGORIES: Features, Old Images This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

I spent far too much time in the sun today. I could have used an umbrella like this!

“1943- British Signaller W. Bale working on his jeep using an umbrella for shade on Sicilian beach.”

View all the information on eBay

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Don Visits the New Mexico Museum of Military History in Albuquerque

• CATEGORIES: Bantam-FordGP-WillysMA-EarlyJPs, Features, Museums This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

Don shared these photos of jeeps from his visit to the the New Mexico Museum of Military History Albuquerque, New Mexico (That is the Facebook page … it’s website doesn’t appear to be working). This place is only about a mile away from the jeep dealership that has the CJ-2A in it. Note the Ford GP! Don sent a selfie this time 🙂

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Merlin Visits the Top Kicks Museum

• CATEGORIES: Features, Museums This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

Anyone familiar with West Virginia’s Top Kicks Military Museum? If not, it’s worth a look. Merlin stopped by the other day and filed a detailed report on his blog. The museum has an extensive Jeep collection that even includes a copy of the CJ4 Jeep and a 6 wheeler.

https://hansonmechanical.wordpress.com/2015/07/18/a-million-jeeps/

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Joseph’s High School Project and His LED Taillight Kit

• CATEGORIES: Features This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

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Pete from the Old Willys Forum shared this news with me. Click on the links to learn more.

Joseph is working on his high school senior project this summer.  He is planning to build a CNC Mill machine that will mill wood, plastic, and aluminum.  He just launched a Kickstarter Campaign to sell his Willys Station Wagon LED tail lights as a kit, to fund the purchase of the CNC parts.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1192462920/willys-station-wagon-led-tail-light-kit

Once he has the CNC machine together, he will use it to produce the circuit boards for the LED tail lights, and other small parts that he can sell to help fund his ’51 Willys Wagon build. 

http://www.oldwillysforum.com/forum/showthread.php?2989-Joseph-s-51-Wagon-Build

He is hoping to sell 25-30 sets of the lights to fund the CNC project.  It is an ambitious senior project for a 16 year old kid, but he has already raised 2/3 of the 30 day campaign goal in the first 10 days…  There has been lots of interest in these lights on www.oldwillysforum.com and hopefully from others who might not visit the forum to find the info on them.

Even folks don’t need a set of the lights, they can support Joseph’s Kickstarter campaign by pledging $25 or more and get a cool shirt he designed for the project.  If they are feeling philanthropic, they can donate any amout to the campaign… 

Here is what comes in the “kit”, for each tail light, which bolts in to the stock Willys tail light bezel.

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Glenn’s Accident in Miss Willy

• CATEGORIES: Features This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

A couple days ago Glenn Byron was driving to a local Parking Lot Hot Dog Stand Display in his DJ-3A “Miss Willy” when a 90 year old driver pulled a left turn right in front of his bright yellow Jeep. The driver claimed the sun was in his eyes and he didn’t see glenn. Glenn hit the brakes, leaving about 5 foot skid marks from all four wheels before impact.

A nearly new Subaru was the victim, hit on passenger side, side air bags deployed, and probably totaled. The impact caused Miss Willy to flip onto her drivers side and slide a very short distance.
Miss Willy has bent frame, broken windshield, whole nose screwed up, and who knows how much more.

Fortunately, Glenn seems to be okay, though he did get hit on the head pretty good, causing him to be a little foggy. He’s not sure, but he believes he was ejected. No one seems to know of for sure.

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Here’s the Subaru:2015-07-glenn-crash2

Miss Willys before the accident:

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1948 Photos of Frances Freeman at the Rare Bird Farm

• CATEGORIES: Features, Library Collections This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

These two photos were taken at Kendall’s Rare Bird Farm in 1948 showing Frances Freeman. It has since closed, though I have no additional information. Note the odd rear rim.

 
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Melbourne’s Thomas Blamey Monument

• CATEGORIES: Features, Monuments/Statues, Old News Articles • TAGS: This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

Field Marshall Sir Thomas Albert Blamey was memorialized in a monument in the Royal Botanical Gardens in Melbourne, Australia. It shows him standing while gripping part of a jeep windshield. The way a July 1955 Willys News described it, I thought there’d be a whole jeep!

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https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Thomas_Blamey_statue_Melbourne.jpg Blamey is mounted on a jeep instead of the traditional horse. This conveys Blamey’s role in the technological transformation of the Army that occurred during his years of service

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