How To: Restoration of Ford M8 armoured car US Ordnance number 7373

[Mike K]

You need to contact Rick Shearman ? in Sth Aust , he may help you with contacts for parts . Ricks M8 is running .

He is a member of this club http://www.wvcg.org/

[Big D]

Hi Mike

Thanks for that. I will get in touch with Rick.

[maple_leaf_eh]

That is not as daunting as you might think. USGI parts all have stock numbers and parts catalogues. It is a reasonably popular vehicle so other collectors will have trod your same path in the past. There are dealers who have NOS and Take Off parts; you just need to figure out the cheaper and generic corresponding truck, generator or trailer part numbers, without spending bigger dollars on a named AFV part.

In the meantime, I would suggest a rigourous catalogueing of everything is in order. Clean and store what you have. Brush off the loose rust and dirt. Spray with some sort of preservative paint. ID with a hang tag tied with a string. With the right information, you personally won't have to monopolize your active memory with answers to, 'what in blue blazes is this damn thing?' The appearance of pretty parts will be a lot more motivating than seeing chipped, rusted and incomplete ones.

[Big D]

Hi Terry,

My thoughts exactly on the cataloguing of everything and that is what I’ve been busy on over the last few weeks. I will only be doing odd jobs on it until my scout car is done, so I figured it was important to know exactly what I had and what I needed, so I could keep an eye on anything that came up for sale.

You are quite right to on the parts for these. Aside from the fact they use basically the same engine, I’ve actually found it easier to source the other parts for the M8 than I did for the White scout car. Perhaps that’s because the M8 was in service for much longer.

[Big D]

Hi all,
In between waiting on news on the hull and getting my scout car parts sandblasted and painted, I did some work on the instrument panel.

I think with the likely manufacture date of this M8, it should have the early instrument panel which is what I have.

I had two pretty rough instrument panels and their switches and gauges to work with along with some new gauges that came with the package.

I am not set on the paint shade that I have used for the panel colour but it will do until I narrow that down later on. I worked off some NOS parts that I had which I gave to the paint supplier but I am not totally convinced after seeing it on the instrument panel.

A question on the circuit breakers. I know nothing about these. Are they lit when operating at all? What is the original colour? These ones had several coats of paint on them which I have cleaned up so am wondering whether I can touch them up with some original coloured paint to freshen them up.

I still need an ammeter and a headlight switch. Neither was recoverable from the instrument panels I had. Is the headlight switch the same as the jeep one? It looks very similar.

I’ll also need to find some sort of cover for the instrument lights.

[Lynn Eades]

Darryl, think Jeep, Dodge, GMC for panel lights and a light switch.
Are the circuit breakers a metal box with just two terminals?
they are usually bi metal (they vibrate open and closed depending on the "over"current draw) I have never seen one that lights up (which just means I haven't seen one like yours) This type are fairly common and are available in different load ratings 10 amp, 20 amp, 30 amp etc.

Or are those them at the top of your panel with reset buttons?

Great project you have there!

[maple_leaf_eh]

Originally Posted by Big D

....

I still need an ammeter and a headlight switch. Neither was recoverable from the instrument panels I had. Is the headlight switch the same as the jeep one? It looks very similar.

I’ll also need to find some sort of cover for the instrument lights.

With my vast and profound knowledge of MB 1/4 tons (acquired in one morning), I'd say yes that does look like a Jeep light switch. Check the rating before getting carried away.

This is where an illustrated parts manual and a few more from contemporary USGI vehicles would come in handy. Instead of relying on the ignorance of strangers (ie - me!), the references will show which parts are common across the spectrum. One of the wonders of the US logistics system is how it firmly harnessed as much of the US industrial base as it could, and using command economic measures achieved greatness. Most Americans can't agree on issues; so to work together so successfully is a real marvel.

[Big D]

Hi Lynn and Terry,

Thanks for the replies.

Terry - I have parts manuals for both the jeep and the M8 so I will get them out soon and do some comparisons. They appear the same but I'll check part numbers and ratings etc.

Lynn - yes, it should be a fun project. Lots to do which I am looking forward to. I've attached a couple of pictures of one of the circuit breakers. Yes - the are pictured at the top of the panel. The three of them are screwed together on a plate which is bolted to the instrument panel.

I don't know whether they light up - they just had that appearance to me but I could be way off with that. They appear to function when I check them with a multimeter but I guess until they are connected I can't be sure. I was really just looking to tidy them up with some fresh paint. Pictures on the net suggest they are a reddish colour with a white painted centre.