GunTruckBuilder
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Hi gang,
This website is an awesome resource! Just found it this week and let me tell ya I wish I found it 3 years ago!
Almost 3 years to the day (got it on 06SEP04) ago I got me a 1969 M54. At the time I thought it would be fun to tackle something a little bigger than your basic 5.0 Fox body Mustang. Being cocky I figured I'd slam out a killer restified 5 ton in 6 months. 8 months if I cruised through at a leisurely pace with plenty of smoke breaks. Well here it is, 04SEP07 and that damn truck is still in pieces all over my shop, my house, and my garage.
Here's what happened. I blew it apart and saw some rust. To be expected right? So I took it all the way down to bare frame. Then one night I was watching the History Channel and I saw a special on Vietnam gun trucks. Hey that's my truck!, says I. So it began. The endless collecting of pictures, books, and all things Vietnam gun truck. I've decided to make the armored box style. That's actually going pretty good. Got it sitting on the ground mostly fabbed up. Have a door for the back. Used some 1/4" plate for armor, 2X2 hollow square stock for a framework, it came out pretty nice. I even made it double wall 1/4" plate because I read some gun trucks were built like that. I have 2 non-operating .50 cal machine gun replicas for it. Just trying to find all the suitable mounting pieces to put em in the bed. I also have 4 M60 replicas but so far have only been able to track down 2 mounts for them. The next thing I'm trying to run down is an 81mm mortar replica, I have a picture of a gun truck with one mounted up and it looks sick! Finally, assuming I can track down the requisite pieces, a ring mount and .50 cal will go over the passenger seat. Jusst for grins I may rig up something for the driver too, just not sure what. What I like about gun trucks is they were "homemade" by troops in the field using whatever they could find. That gives me some leeway to have fun with it and be historically accurate. I have a million little things to do to the bed but the major work left is prep and paint. Oh yeah, and figuring out how to get it off the shop floor (forgot to plan that out before I welded all that steel plate to it) and on the truck.
The truck. Well it's a decent truck overall. Rebuilt all the axles with new everything including Detroit lockers and locking hubs. I had custom 20 inch double beadlock wheels made for it and it's running 398/85/R20 Michelin tires. Singles of course. I got the truck cheap because didn't have a motor or a trans. Right now it has an International DT466E that has been breathed on. Larger series turbo and a special computer program. I don't preten to know all the details, I'm a gas guy. Good friend of mine works as a tech at an International dealership. He did the motor. The motor is brand new and has been programmed for 320 horsepower. Cost $9,000 but it sounds strong! Backed it up with a brand spanking new 7 speed. I had more fit issues than I thought I would. Engine compartment looks bigger than it is. Everything is sandblasted, primed, and painted.
The cab is in bare metal as is most of the sheet metal. Been dinging on it with a hammer and dolly trying to get it straight. Still haven't found a location for the engines computer that I'm real happy with. Without the brain that DT466E might as well be a boat anchor.
Lots of electrical issues. Trucks wiring harness was nowhere near complete when i bought it. With all the electronics from the new engine it looks like custom made will be the way to go. Yay, go me. Still undecided on 12volt, 24 volt, or a dual system.
One of the most fun things I've done so far is fabbing up a brushguard for the front out of scrap blackwall steam pipe. Lord only knows how much it weighs but I'd drive through a bank with it if I had to.
Truck is a long time coming but it's getting there. Lately I've been working more on my all steel 32 Ford (screaming 289) and my 1963 F-100 (thumping 390FE) short wide than the big truck. It'll get there though. I want to build a truck that will honor Americas Veterans and be a blast to drive anywhere. The paint scheme will pay homage to several of the more well known gun trucks of Vietnam.
Once she's done I'll post up some pictures here. Got that artists superstition about showing off your work before it's done. Drives my family nuts because I won't let em come in the shop unless everything is covered with drop cloths. I'm eccentric, poor people are crazy! Oh wait, I'm restoring an army truck (checks wallet) I'm crazy!
God Bless You!
This website is an awesome resource! Just found it this week and let me tell ya I wish I found it 3 years ago!
Almost 3 years to the day (got it on 06SEP04) ago I got me a 1969 M54. At the time I thought it would be fun to tackle something a little bigger than your basic 5.0 Fox body Mustang. Being cocky I figured I'd slam out a killer restified 5 ton in 6 months. 8 months if I cruised through at a leisurely pace with plenty of smoke breaks. Well here it is, 04SEP07 and that damn truck is still in pieces all over my shop, my house, and my garage.
Here's what happened. I blew it apart and saw some rust. To be expected right? So I took it all the way down to bare frame. Then one night I was watching the History Channel and I saw a special on Vietnam gun trucks. Hey that's my truck!, says I. So it began. The endless collecting of pictures, books, and all things Vietnam gun truck. I've decided to make the armored box style. That's actually going pretty good. Got it sitting on the ground mostly fabbed up. Have a door for the back. Used some 1/4" plate for armor, 2X2 hollow square stock for a framework, it came out pretty nice. I even made it double wall 1/4" plate because I read some gun trucks were built like that. I have 2 non-operating .50 cal machine gun replicas for it. Just trying to find all the suitable mounting pieces to put em in the bed. I also have 4 M60 replicas but so far have only been able to track down 2 mounts for them. The next thing I'm trying to run down is an 81mm mortar replica, I have a picture of a gun truck with one mounted up and it looks sick! Finally, assuming I can track down the requisite pieces, a ring mount and .50 cal will go over the passenger seat. Jusst for grins I may rig up something for the driver too, just not sure what. What I like about gun trucks is they were "homemade" by troops in the field using whatever they could find. That gives me some leeway to have fun with it and be historically accurate. I have a million little things to do to the bed but the major work left is prep and paint. Oh yeah, and figuring out how to get it off the shop floor (forgot to plan that out before I welded all that steel plate to it) and on the truck.
The truck. Well it's a decent truck overall. Rebuilt all the axles with new everything including Detroit lockers and locking hubs. I had custom 20 inch double beadlock wheels made for it and it's running 398/85/R20 Michelin tires. Singles of course. I got the truck cheap because didn't have a motor or a trans. Right now it has an International DT466E that has been breathed on. Larger series turbo and a special computer program. I don't preten to know all the details, I'm a gas guy. Good friend of mine works as a tech at an International dealership. He did the motor. The motor is brand new and has been programmed for 320 horsepower. Cost $9,000 but it sounds strong! Backed it up with a brand spanking new 7 speed. I had more fit issues than I thought I would. Engine compartment looks bigger than it is. Everything is sandblasted, primed, and painted.
The cab is in bare metal as is most of the sheet metal. Been dinging on it with a hammer and dolly trying to get it straight. Still haven't found a location for the engines computer that I'm real happy with. Without the brain that DT466E might as well be a boat anchor.
Lots of electrical issues. Trucks wiring harness was nowhere near complete when i bought it. With all the electronics from the new engine it looks like custom made will be the way to go. Yay, go me. Still undecided on 12volt, 24 volt, or a dual system.
One of the most fun things I've done so far is fabbing up a brushguard for the front out of scrap blackwall steam pipe. Lord only knows how much it weighs but I'd drive through a bank with it if I had to.
Truck is a long time coming but it's getting there. Lately I've been working more on my all steel 32 Ford (screaming 289) and my 1963 F-100 (thumping 390FE) short wide than the big truck. It'll get there though. I want to build a truck that will honor Americas Veterans and be a blast to drive anywhere. The paint scheme will pay homage to several of the more well known gun trucks of Vietnam.
Once she's done I'll post up some pictures here. Got that artists superstition about showing off your work before it's done. Drives my family nuts because I won't let em come in the shop unless everything is covered with drop cloths. I'm eccentric, poor people are crazy! Oh wait, I'm restoring an army truck (checks wallet) I'm crazy!
God Bless You!
