Seabee M38A1 Build

How to piss off the restorers in three easy steps...
1

Buy new comfortable seats.

2

Cut some notches in the wheelwells

3


Now I just need to figure out how to mount the things... I'd like to keep the tilt forward feature on the passenger side, just to make it easier for small passengers to get in the back seat...

 

Have fun with that.

 

I really like those seats. They look super comfy, but maybe just the camera angle, are they narrow where the tush goes?

 

Yes, they're pretty snug... I have a 33-34in waist and fit pretty good. They definitely hold you in...

 

Moving along... Today I made a rough pattern for the panels to fill in the notches in the wheelwells... This is version 2.5...
And from the outside. The first version was far simpler, but intruded into the wheelwell too much. I think I can replicate this in metal without too much trouble... I've just gotta pick up some sheet metal... I should probably get enough to finish the transmission cover while I'm at it too...
Thanks for checking it out, laters

 

CAD template, nice!!!

 

So I picked up a Harbor Freight air powered hole punch and flanger... It will handle up to 16 gauge sheet metal. I've never used one before so I was curious since I have the wheelwell notches to fill in and the transmission hump to cover... I messed around with a test piece and I'm impressed, it works pretty good for a 35 dollar tool. I have a decent sized compressor so that helps too... I've got a 4x8 sheet of 16 gauge laying under the Jeep now, just waiting for time.


So today I had a couple minutes and I mounted my extra Jerry can carrier. I can't use the original spare tire carrier so I donated it to my dad's Jeep. I have an idea for a spare tire carrier that I might build down the road...
In the meantime I relocated a small rib inside the tub that strengthens the back wall and helps support the weight of the tire carrier or Jerry can carrier. There's four of these ribs on the back of the tub, they just space them differently.

They all have the same holes, I just need to move it over an inch.

So I drilled on a couple spot welds and popped it off. A little hammer and dolly work and everything is good again. I just have to weld a couple holes up and get the correct hardware to bolt the Jerry can carrier on and it'll be all set. Thanks for checking it out. Laters.

 

So I finally got some time to start filling in my wheel well notches... First thing I had to do was set up my 4x8 manual plasma table...


There's no plasma cutter but the ol 4in grinder with a cut off wheel works in a pinch...


I made a bunch of tedious measurements and calculations and wrote them all down...



I was able to produce a price of metal vaguely resembling the CAD pattern...
That was probably the easiest one I need to make... and it took me alot longer than I expected. One of the flanges I bent had to be bent using the body hammer and a chunk of railroad iron because it wouldn't fit in the brake. Also, 16 gauge is thicker than I thought it was... This is all going to be stiff and strong.
Hopefully tomorrow I can make more progress... Laters

 

Part two...

Part three...

And the fourth part...

And the back side... Kinda ugly but functional. I added some extra tacks and welds in different places to hold it all together...

And I got a wild hair and decided to hose it down with primer and paint... A few ugly welds and some runs in the paint, but that's par for the course...

 

Very cool. How much leg room did you gain?

 

Plenty of room... The 17 gallon tank under the seat tanks up some foot room, but it's comfy... I'm 6' 2" around 215 lbs...

 

Passenger side is done... Of course the two side are slightly different... Oh well... I'm all about function...

 

Did a flex test this morning just to make sure I still had plenty of clearance... At full stuff there is a couple inches to spare...

 

Good news!!
We got my dad's Jeep running on Friday night...

The little thing purrs like a kitten...
I'm pretty excited for my dad because he's never had anything like this before. He's always wanted a something he calls a head turner, but could never afford one...

 

Thursday morning I started closing in the floor over the transfer case.

Using a CAD pattern I cut a piece of 16 gauge to cover the hole...

Here it is mostly done...
It all clears the fuel tank and the handbrake... Now I can build my mounts for the seats. The forward mount for the driver's seat will end up bolting down to the new metal... Should be strong enough... Thanks for checking it out. Laters

 

Doing things...
The holes in the poster board are where the fuel pick up and fuel level sender go in the tank... My idea is to mount the seats as low as possible. Keeping the seats low reduces the tippy feeling and makes it a little easier to get in and out of... So I'm building a fuel tank strap that I can mount the seats too...
Some captured nuts in the tub rail...


And it bolts down nicely. I used the same hardware as I'm planning to use on the transmission cover, so one tool can take it all apart. I'll be reinforcing the edge of the wide strappy part to make sure my weight isn't resting on the tank all the time... Laters

 

So that just happened...

We started looking at finally bolting the body down and replacing the master cylinder...
Turns out Bubba had done a dirty on the rear crossmember.
Bubba cut the ends of the rear crossmember. No way to bolt the body down. We thought about just bolting down what we could to get it going, but then we realized the best way to fix the problem was pulling the body off. So we moved stuff around and pulled it off...

So mine is sitting in the corner all lonely...

 

Action shot of my dad trying to get all ten holes to line up... every once in awhile I have to remind my dad that these were built with 1/4in tolerances...

 

We've got the back off my dad's Jeep all done. We replaced the rear crossmember and built a bumper to replicate the Marine Corps rear bumper on my Jeep.

While we had it all apart I raised the fuel tank as much as it would go and added some straps to help retain the tank and add support to the upper part of the hitch mount.
Now we can put the body back on a nice solid foundation...

 

In the never ending saga of things to keep me from working on my Jeep, I found a go kart for my daughter... It needs to be finished up by hooking up the throttle and brake but the motor runs. The motor alone was worth what I paid for it... The kid didn't realize it was a Honda motor...