42 Pilot Model HUP Project

RHClarke · #1 11-12-12, 01:13

I am starting this new thread to record the activities relating to the ongoing restoration of the 1942 Chevrolet "Pilot" Model Heavy Utility - Personnel truck that I bought from Brian Gough not so long ago. The army referred to these pre-production trucks as pilot models. The use of the word "prototype" to describe the truck has been in common use of late, but either label works for me.

The aim of this thread is not only to store and display info about this unique truck, but also to provide me with the motivation to keep working on the restoration of the vehicle.

Comments/observations and constructive criticism will of course be welcomed. If you don't like what you see and you want to comment to that effect, feel free to send your comments along with the money to make things right.

With that out of the way, I would like to start with the recent history of this truck. The following link http://www.oldcmp.net/prototype.html connects you to Keith Webb's Old CMP website. There you will find the background on this remarkable truck.

RHClarke · #2 11-12-12, 01:25

As mentioned, the 42 HUP was recovered a few years back at the world-famous "Chicken Ranch" (2009). The link takes you to the YouTube video I uploaded recently. It gives you a good idea of what the truck looked like before I began the tear down.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cjduhFyTkA

In the video you can hear Brian chatting with Bob Carriere and Grant Bowker, who aided with the recovery.

chris vickery · #3 11-12-12, 01:36

Loking forward to see the overall progerss on this, I know you have been at it a while.
As a sidenote, I did watch the YouTube vid of the recovery. Bob, please stand well out of harms way next time you winch something or at least toss a chain over the winch line. Hard to do restorations when you are missing body parts....

RHClarke · #4 11-12-12, 22:37

We removed the Pilot Model's roof with the aim of determining what had to be done to repair it and to gain access to the support pillars. We noted that the front left and right edges of the roof differs from the production model in that they are more angular than the production roof forward edges. The sub-frame is very strudy made up of fairly robust steel channel.

The following photos show the extent of the damage to the roof:

1 - From the rear of the roof - the rounded edges are in fair shape but most of the edges where the roof meets the frame is rotted.
2 - Left front forward edge of the roof showing its unique shape - this I will preserve at all costs.
3 - The leading edge of the roof showing significant damage.
4 - Right front edge.
5 - Damage along the mid section.

RHClarke · #5 11-12-12, 23:02

Some of the major differences between the Pilot Model and the production model included two piece side and rear walls, and the the use of separate support pillars between the lower portion of the walls and the roof.

Photos:
1 - Right rear of the truck showing roof and wall less front and middle pillars.
2 - Pax side door (with doghouse next to it) - note the glass roll up window.
3 - Rear pillars.
4 - Front (smaller) and mid (larger) support pillars.
5 - Left rear view showing the well constructed sub-frame

RHClarke · #6 13-12-12, 21:12

The Pilot model HUP differed from the production models in terms of doors and windows. The two front doors were narrower at the top than the later model cab 13 doors and incorporated roll up windows and door handles (as opposed to the rocker arm door opening devices). There are two small side windows that fit forward of the forward door frames.

The side doors too, had roll up windows. The two rear doors and the two side windows had sliding glass plates. The following photos show the robust construction materials used in the Pilot model.

Photos

1 - Pilot model pax side door.
2 -" Delmar Cobban RR 5 Mt Brydges" (close to London Ontario).
3 - Inside panel.
4 - Close up of panel.
5 - Upper window frame

Andrew · #7 12-01-14, 00:40

omg that made me laugh, now i know what to say when someone points out something about my halftrack

Quote:

Originally Posted by RHClarke

Comments/observations and constructive criticism will of course be welcomed. If you don't like what you see and you want to comment to that effect, feel free to send your comments along with the money to make things right.

RHClarke · #8 16-03-14, 21:08

I finally felt good enough to visit the barn on Saturday. It was great to see Bob and Grant. Bob had not been feeling well lately, but he made the effort to join us at the barn for a chin wag and then to go to lunch. We sure hope he gets back in to "fighting form" as the glaciers are starting to recede, and spring is just around the corner (although it may be more than a little frozen).

The objects of my attention were the front fenders that fit on the body of the Pilot Model. The upper ends of the fenders were heavily rusted and had to be replaced. A quick zip with a thin bladed grinder wheel took care of the offending rust. Two replacement blanks were then cut out and fitted to the ends of the fenders.

I 'gorilla" welded the blanks from the inside of the fender, and then carefully tack welded the exterior where they joined the fender. After a morning of tacking and grinding, one fender was finished. After lunch, I tackled the other fender. Next step is to fit them to the truck body and test for fit. I am sure that there will be some adjustments made, and after that is done, I will drill the holes and pack them away until our date with the sandblaster this summer.

Pics:

1 - one of the culprits
2 - rust - the enemy!
3 - out with the old
4 - inside view
5 - awaiting fit testing and drilling

RHClarke · #9 11-05-14, 21:35

Saturday at the barn was spent removing the two axles from the Pilot Model frame. The weather was rainy in the morning, but sunny and hot in the afternoon. The perfect weather for taking apart a CMP, and for the emergence of the local air forces. Blackflies, gnats and mosquitoes made their debut at the barn on this fine day. Bob was away on family business, and Grant was at work, so the only company I had were the birds and the bugs.

The removal of the spring assemblies from the frame went quite well. The front axle had screw in spring mounting pins, while the rear axle had friction fit spring mounting pins. The pins for the springs were very worn, as would be expected from 70 years plus of use. I then removed the pin assemblies and then propped up the frame. This allowed me to roll the axle assemblies out from beneath the frame.

The springs were liberated from the axle tubes with the help of the air impact wrench and lots of penetrating oils. They were in fair shape with no cracks visible on the individual leafs. The axle tubes were in great shape as one would expect with such a robust design.

The rest of the day was spent preparing a site for another sea container, which should be in place this summer. It will be the Pilot Model's home for the foreseeable future.

Photos:

1 - Front axle off
2 - '45 frame - count the crossmembers to compare with the '42
3 - '42 frame for comparison
4 - '42 rear axle with post war parking brake assemblies

RHClarke · #10 09-08-14, 21:01

The front and rear spring assemblies were the focus of my most recent activities. All four springs were disassembled and while there was some wear evident, there were no cracks visible. Some of the individual spring leafs had lost a few degrees of arc, but I don't think that re-arching will be necessary.

Next the shocks were inspected. The two rear shocks had no resistance and the arm rotated from stop to stop with a clunk. The arms on the shocks were different from others I had in stock, so they were salvaged. This involved cutting between the shock arm and the shock body. The arms were then heated by torch and the center stud was punched out. We tried to remove the shock arms with our press, but got no movement whatsoever. The shock arms are pressed on to a finely splined shaft, which has a remarkable amount of surface area that builds up a lot of resistance over the years from use and rust. This left the drastic action of destroying two otherwise non-serviceable shock bodies. We will salvage everything that can be reused, but both bodies are now trash.

Two spare shock bodies had their arms removed and will now serve as replacements for the originals. The arms came off quite easily once a grinder with a thin blade cut down to the splined stud. A few taps with a punch and hammer later, the replacement shocks were put on a shelf to await re-assembly.

The down links were trashed but are being used as samples in our search for single headed links. The links in the back are 13.5 inches from the top of the housing to the end of the threads. The ones in the front are an inch shorter. It has been a fruitless search for replacements thus far, but the guys at Malmberg Trucks in Ottawa are on the case.

The next step was to do a bit of sandblasting to clean up the suspension parts. This went fairly well, but was both hot and exhausting work. The temperature approached 30oC and the dark hood for the sandblasting served to heat things up significantly. Probably a cool day for our Aussie friends, but blistering hot for those of us who live in the Great White North.

After sandblasting, the parts were treated with phosphate spray and left to dry. A few minutes later, they were ready for a quick scuffing and then paint. There will be another small sandblasting session in the near future, and a major industrial level session later this month if things work out. I plan to bring in a local company that has the capability to blast all day long. We have a few frames and loads of parts that we want to prepare for reassembly in the fall.

Photos:

1- Shock arm and stud - note the fine splines
2- Post sandblasting and phosphate treatment
3- New paint

RHClarke · #11 25-01-16, 00:31

The big push today was to refinish/refurbish the Pilot Model components. The overarching priority for me is to get the 45 HUP on the road and safetied before the new Ontario safety standards come into effect this summer. The issue being that the new safety is much more involved and detailed. http://www.autotrader.ca/newsfeature...2JQDJtXcY4V.97 It apparently relies on the mechanic inspecting components and measuring them to compare with the written standard for an individual vehicle. The problem is that there is no written standard for most CMPs. So to avoid future complications, I have been working on the newer HUP during most of the visits to the barn to prepare it for the safety inspection.

When it gets too cold outside - like today, my attention goes back the Pilot Model. The hub refurbishing process is the same as the other HUP hubs but this time I decided to totally take down the hubs to its components. The inner grease cups were removed this time to see how they were fitted. After the studs and spacers were punched out, the cup (a ring, actually that kept grease away from the brake shoes etc...) came off with not too much of a fight. The remnants of a gasket can be seen in the attached photo.

The day was spent cleaning off the gasket and the accumulated dirt, grease, oil and paint from the hubs. This was completed with a wire brush on the angle grinder, some picks, a screwdriver, a scraper and some very potent cleaning fluid. After cleaning, the hubs were treated to a phosphate shower and allowed to dry. Paint was added just before departure this afternoon.

I was going to sandblast the hubs, but this is not the season for that type of fun. The wire brush did a fairly good job, but it was tedious work. Good thing we love this hobby.

Photos:

1 - The spin ring/cup
2 - Ring and hub
3 - First coat of paint