Military Vehicles, January 1997,: GPW rubber parts. Was:1943 GPW

GPW rubber parts. Was:1943 GPW

Bill Kish (kish@browncow.com)
Mon, 27 Jan 1997 09:57:46 -0500

Michael Meister writes:
> I have a couple of questions regarding authenticity:
>
> 1) When did they go to leather boots over the transmission and transfer
> case shafts?
>
> 2) When did they start using lengths of steel tubing in the radiator
> hoses instead of all rubber?
>
> I know these changes were a result of the rubber shortage beginning in
> 1942, so is it safe to say that in April 1943 both of these changes had
> been made, or is that an incorrect assumption?
>

You're right. A 4/43 GPW would be well into the rubber shortage time
frame. I don't have any exact dates for the above changes and it may
be impossible to ever determine them, but by Fall '42 Ford seems to
have started replacing rubber with less critical materials where
possible. This included:

Shift lever boots, radiator hoses, hood blocks, grommets, carb intake
seal, tie rod end seals, tool & glove box seals. (Any others?)

It would be interesting to hear from owners of original GPWs in the
crossover period to try to determine the approximate dates of the
changeovers at the various Ford assembly plants.

-BK

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