Bobbed Deuce

[ovrszd]

Wouldn't 5th be a road gear that you used after you really got rolling? 4th is where you spent most of your road time and when you went into 5th it was a conscience choice at higher speeds? If so, the shift up would feel natural and like it was by design rather than accident. An "overdrive" kind of shift. I could be wrong because I never had one, but I recall similar setups that I think were made that way on purpose.

The split between 4th and 5th on a Deuce is very wide. While the shift back and forth between 4th and 5th might meet your description. The shift from 3rd to 4th or 4th to 3rd is extremely unnatural.

 

[ovrszd]

I bought a deuce several years ago when they were still available from government auctions - maybe they still are, I haven't looked lately.

I got mine from a guy that was buying three at a time from the Redstone Arsenal sales (I think). He would buy them, fix whatever minor problems they had, and flip them for a little profit.

When I went to look at mine, he had it and one that he had bobbed. I drove both, but since I wanted to be able to haul more material in my bed, I decided to go with the 6 wheel version.

I added a dump bed to it and have used it many, many time hauling stuff around the farm.

It is relatively crude and slow, but I haven't gotten it stuck yet.

I think they hold the re-sale pretty good. I've been offered far more than I've paid for mine, I just have no interest in selling it yet.

Good luck and take care.

Neighbor farmer near me has one with an auger box on it to haul grain out of the field. He's since died. It's sitting in his machine shed. Probably hasn't moved in 15 years. Worked great during wet harvest times. No stuck there.

 

[GLyford]

The split between 4th and 5th on a Deuce is very wide. While the shift back and forth between 4th and 5th might meet your description. The shift from 3rd to 4th or 4th to 3rd is extremely unnatural.

There's videos on youtube of someone driving a 5x4 with one of these...talk about unnatural.

 

[ovrszd]

There's videos on youtube of someone driving a 5x4 with one of these...talk about unnatural.

I've owned 2. They work very well with a closer gear ratio between 9th and 10th than possible the other way. Just takes a bit of getting used to.

 

[MossRoad]

The split between 4th and 5th on a Deuce is very wide. While the shift back and forth between 4th and 5th might meet your description. The shift from 3rd to 4th or 4th to 3rd is extremely unnatural.

I agree. Its just wrong! :laughing:

 

[aeblank]

Sound's like you need to find a old Dodge Power Wagon to put that gear in.:thumbsup:

I have one of those!

"Someday" it'll get "restored".......

 

[dickfoster]

That a great and classic piece of gear. You should restore it. I would. Doesn't look to have much rust but looks can be deceiving. Especially in your neck of the woods if it's spent any amount of time on public roads. I don't think I've seen as many rust buckets as there are in MI. Only place I know where people have seasonal cars.

 

[dickfoster]

Here's my favorite deuce and half.

I got to fire one once and it was a real blast. Nothing like the firepower a 20mm Vulcan puts down but it was still a real kick.

 

[schmism]

just buy a "new" unimog. same machine but with front/rear pto and configurable 3pt hitch front/rear so you can actuall do "tractor" work with it

This one is on local CL right now.

 

[aeblank]

That a great and classic piece of gear. You should restore it. I would. Doesn't look to have much rust but looks can be deceiving. Especially in your neck of the woods if it's spent any amount of time on public roads. I don't think I've seen as many rust buckets as there are in MI. Only place I know where people have seasonal cars.

I do plan to restore it.
Mostly stock, with some improvements.

It isn't too bad rust wise, but it was driven by brail. It spent most of it's life as a plow and woods truck in the south-western part of the U.P. Not sure about road time, but in the 40s and 50s I'm sure they didn't use the amount of salt we do now.

 

[MossRoad]

just buy a "new" unimog. same machine but with front/rear pto and configurable 3pt hitch front/rear so you can actuall do "tractor" work with it

This one is on local CL right now.

Not even close to the same machine.

 

[4570Man]

Here's my favorite deuce and half. <img src="http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=497357"/> I got to fire one once and it was a real blast. Nothing like the firepower a 20mm Vulcan puts down but it was still a real kick.

Aren't the tandems 5 tons?

 

[ovrszd]

Aren't the tandems 5 tons?

The 5 Tons are tandems. But so are the 2 1/2Ts.

 

[dickfoster]

just buy a "new" unimog. same machine but with front/rear pto and configurable 3pt hitch front/rear so you can actuall do "tractor" work with it

This one is on local CL right now.

A Unimog is whole nother kettle of fish.

 

[dickfoster]

Aren't the tandems 5 tons?

I think some were but some were deuce and a halfs. My outfit had a bunch of em and we all called them deuce and a halfs including the motor pool folks. Pretty sold trucks as I recall and they'd run on just about any flammable liquid you could put in the tank diesel, jet fuel, gas. Not hard to drive either. Unlike the M108s I had which liked to roll with those swing axles under them and all that weight up top. I had two of em and didn't like driving them on or off road. I don't know how those stinkin things ever made in into service because they were so dangerous to drive. Can you say unsafe at any speed?

 

[ovrszd]

LOT of difference between a 2 1/2T and a 5T. Parked side by side it's very noticeable.

 

[dickfoster]

LOT of difference between a 2 1/2T and a 5T. Parked side by side it's very noticeable.

Some folks called them a 6X6 as well. I never asked, I just drove the thing when and where I was told to.

 

[bigdeano]

Unlike the M108s I had which liked to roll with those swing axles under them and all that weight up top. I had two of em and didn't like driving them on or off road. View attachment 497377 I don't know how those stinkin things ever made in into service because they were so dangerous to drive. Can you say unsafe at any speed?

Isn't that a M151? I drove those. I thought they were great fun, like little sports cars. It was fun squealing the tires shifting down. I never tried hard cornering though.

 

[ovrszd]

Isn't that a M151? I drove those. I thought they were great fun, like little sports cars. It was fun squealing the tires shifting down. I never tried hard cornering though.

Yep, made by Ford.

 

[dickfoster]

Isn't that a M151? I drove those. I thought they were great fun, like little sports cars. It was fun squealing the tires shifting down. I never tried hard cornering though.

Yeah but when you add all the comm gear it became the MRC (Mark) 108. At least it did in the Air Force. You try that kinda stunt in one of these things and I gaurun tee you'd be on your head before you knew it. Add all this crapola and see just how tipsy it can get. This was forward air control version that used the M151 as it's base.

From the Wiki article on the M151.

Unlike other military transports, such as the WWII and Korean War Jeeps and Dodge and Chevrolet transport trucks, the M151 was never widely released into the civilian market. This was partly because it did not meet Federal highway safety standards for civilian vehicles, and also because of a series of early rollover accidents. While these were often blamed on the independent suspension (which played no small part), they were also due to driver errors, with operators unprepared for the increased performance compared to the Jeeps which it replaced. The swing axle rear suspension design was prone to radical camber changes when subjected to abrupt shifts in lateral loads, resulting in catastrophic oversteer, which often led in turn to a vehicle rollover. Sudden and excessive steering input, as commonly found in a high-speed emergency avoidance maneuvers, was a recipe for disaster, as was heavy braking mid-turn. The vehicle's tendency to lose control was reduced when there was weight in the rear, so drivers would often place an ammunition box filled with sand under the rear seat when no other load was being carried. The box could simply be emptied or abandoned when the extra weight was not needed. Recoilless rifle carrier models were especially prone to rollover accidents due to their stiffer rear springs and were typically subjected to severe speed restrictions any time the gun was not aboard.

The handling issues were eventually resolved by a redesign of the rear suspension, introduced in the M151A2 model. However, due to liability concerns, the U.S. Department of Defense deemed all M151 series vehicles "unsafe for public highway use", limiting their public use. Continuing problems with vehicle roll-overs into the 1980s led the US military to retrofit many M151 series vehicles with the "Roll over protection structure" (ROPS), a roll cage intended to protect both front and rear seat passengers.