Hi Ryan
Good idea for a restoration topic. You are correct about there being special tools listed in manuals. If you look at the regular vehicle manuals of the day you will see that they are the, in many cases, same as what is shown in CMP manuals. As been pointed out many of these tools turn up on e-bay some at high prices some less than what you would pay for a Chinese knock off from the local discount auto parts store.
Many of these can work around with common tools but the second or third time you go to work on the same component then the time to find or make the special tools becomes worth while. Here is a link to some of the special tools I've found useful. Some of these have to do with the fact that I can no longer just pick up a CMP brake drum.
http://canadianmilitarypattern.com/Tools.html
Top on my list is Axle Nut Sockets, I've seen to many axle nuts that you can tell were removed or installed with a chisel. Really good sockets the forged type are best but the stamped steel work fine also. Picture below is of the one I carry in my HUP it has been modified to handle both front and rear axles, yes they used two different sizes.
The other thing to consider in this topic is how do you rig to pick up some of the major components.
Cheers Phil