M35A2 buying advice for a newbie?

I'm wanting to get a hold of a 67-71 M35 or even an M54 for my first monster of a truck, any advice the you grizzled vets have to offer would be great!! I'd like to have a standard and would prefer to avoid the Allison automatic.

if the budget is lean ,iwould stay away from the a3 because of the costs of parts. yellow engines are expensive to maintain , i am told the costs of a rear eheel brng is 600.00 ,dont know havent bought one , anyway welcome from florida and good luck

I recommend an A2. The M35A2 will give you the multifuel engine which is pretty simple in it's design, and can be worked on rather easily. The truck is also not chopped and slapped back together as the A3 is, to accomodate the larger CAT engine. The hood needs to be lengthened, and widened, which also requires the whole nose to be closed up to make room for the radiator, oil cooler, and tranny cooler that accompanies the automatic transmission.

I wanted a '71 soft top, no heater and found one close by which was cash & carry. No waiting around for auction paperwork and release from GL. (which can take months)
The truck on delivery, was as it left the military, and was complete in fit and function.
I updated what I felt needed to be replaced, and spent the money to restore it and make sure I would have a really fine looking truck. I wanted it to be prototypical and look as if it was currently in use.
I am glad I did. It runs great, and likes to be driven. I hope to have it for many years to come.

I had no illusions of speed. It will drive on the Expswy at 55mph, but it is slow around town, and loud.
I LOVE IT!

M35a3's have the allison auto's.The M35a2's are all stick shifts. With winch or without a stock truck or a bobber? Try to buy one that has everything you want on it because it can be cheaper that way in the end.

m35a2 That will be the cheapest .if you want to camp out in it you might look at a m109 that variant has a box on the back and guys make offroad campers out of them. Preview the auction vehicle if you are going the GL route and like it was said above get one that has everything you want on it. ie: winch, heater...etc. Some a2's go up into the 1980's. I have a 1982 model myself.

Welcome to SteelSoldiers.

Best advice is to get some coffee,tea,glass of milk, what ever you like and sit down and spend a day reading the "deuce" forum.

67-71 are all going to be M35a2 trucks. The a3 didnt come around till early 90's.
A2's are all manual trans. A3 have the autos.

M35's are 2.5 ton trucks hence the deuce-and-a-half nickname. The M54 is a 5ton and there quite a few differences between the two field of trucks.

KsM715 said:

Welcome to SteelSoldiers.

Best advice is to get some coffee,tea,glass of milk, what ever you like and sit down and spend a day reading the "deuce" forum.

67-71 are all going to be M35a2 trucks. The a3 didnt come around till early 90's.
A2's are all manual trans. A3 have the autos.

M35's are 2.5 ton trucks hence the deuce-and-a-half nickname. The M54 is a 5ton and there quite a few differences between the two field of trucks.

Click to expand...

Jeff is right, lots of research work is easily done on all the various aspects, right on this site by using the search function ! No need to go anywhere else !

Also, if a bobbed winch truck ends up being your choice, rumor has it there is a pretty nice one available a few hours away from me over in Kansas !
Already half painted, depending on your choice of tan or green !

I opted for the A3 due to the low production numbers, but that can be a double edged sword ! I still want a bobbed wincher A2 myself, but need to let the cashflow catch up to my wants ! My only real regret about my A3 is not being a multifuel, but other than a wheel seal leak, it has been an absolutely perfect truck !

AND . . . welcome from the Joplin area, was in Walnut Grove for Christmas Eve !

RealCavDog said:

Jeff is right, lots of research work is easily done on all the various aspects, right on this site by using the search function ! No need to go anywhere else !

Also, if a bobbed winch truck ends up being your choice, rumor has it there is a pretty nice one available a few hours away from me over in Kansas !
Already half painted, depending on your choice of tan or green !

Click to expand...

There is? Where?

the journey begins....

My first deuce was a '70, was a good truck, now I have a '87 and it is the same except for dual air packs brake system and dropside bed.
You gain a lot if you can find someone in your area that owns one and you can talk to them for hours and ask questions and see one of these up close and drive it. That is how I got started, met someone on here, bought my first one from him, and he is still helping me out with detailing my latest one. I would say, don't worry about getting it perfect the first time, you can sell the first one and get a better one as it comes along. If you do google searches for questions you have about the truck, it brings up threads to this site. Keep reading. Best of luck.

Thanks everyone, I have done a lot of research on them and I would like to have a heater in it most definately. Also, I would prefer a hard top as opposed to a soft top, had problems with jeeps with soft tops. Now, I am going to be going to basic in July, so would my family and girlfriend be able to have a somewhat user friendly truck? Where if need be they could use it to do something in.

Unless your family and girlfriend are familiar with bigger vehicles there isn't a user friendly MV for the inexperienced. These bigger trucks regardless of model require more to operate them safely then just jump in, start it, and go.

First off Welcome to SS!

Second, A2 all the way. Heat, HT,W/W, Drop-side, is the way to go if you can find one.

Its only user friendly if you know what your doing. Yes its easy to jump in and drive, but with manual steering, Large blind spots, slow speed, noise....I would be best if you taught them how to use it. Or maybe just park it to be safe.

My dad is familar with these old trucks as he used to be a mechanic in the National Guard in the 80s back in Oklahoma. My girlfriend has driven just about everything with wheels due to her dad. What are the best configurations or best things on the A2? Like is keeping the duals on the rear better than switching to HEMMTT tires and wheels?

If you are about to just go in the service, don't even buy a motorized VW beetle and let it sit around.

Save your money, wait until you get out or in a PCS with your own home or property, then buy.

You'll always be able to buy one of these things, and better to buy it when you use it on a regular basis, rather than dump your problems on someone else. Every day, its something different with a 40 year old vehicle. It costs coin. You never stop working on them, but it's a labor of love.

If you're not there to baby it, there's no love to be given, and it is just a burden to anyone else. So don't think for a minute you're doing the girlfriend or your Dad or family any favors. You're NOT!

My apologies for the "Real World" and straight forward answer. I know it can be hurtful to hear the real truth. Good luck in your service.

Also, I have a 2006 HUMMER H3. Its got the 3.7 liter I5, and a 5speed manual transmission. Anyone interested?

OH, OK, so you're just spamming the site for a sale. Gotcha.

Well fair enough. I'm not hurt by the "real world" answer. I do appreciate it, and I know that it hurts a vehicle more when they sit as opposed to driving or running.

No! Not at all, I just threw it out there. I really do want to find a truck. That's why I went through the trouble of making a profile. I habe to sell the hummer in order to get an MV..

Bid on a M35a2 from GL--Scrap value is around $1300 as of jan 2012--Bid up to $2500--You may get something great or loose $1200--Have some real fun--you could get lucky

Welcome, The most important thing you can get is information. Do your reasearch. In Springfield Mo. make sure you get a heater. Have fun and take your time and check your truck out from top to bottom esp the brakes. Make sure you have some extra cash on hand after you buy for brake work and oil and any other basic maint. Good luck and have fun.