Military Surplus Vehicles
Army surplus vehicle have been driven by civilians as well as the army for many years now. This is not suprising when you consider they are durable and cheap to repair and run.
There are army surplus jeeps that date back all the way to the Vietnam War but are still in service. With a few simple tools, you can perform routine service on them yourself, making them great vehicles for hobbyists.
I remember, as a child, that my father bought an old Vietnam Army Jeep. It wasn’t in great shape, and needed repair. It hadn’t seen any action, but had been used heavily.
This one had been used in a training facility, and had driven over rocks and craters until it was completely smashed up. There was a hole in the bottom, the transmission needed work, the brakes were shot, and one of the wheels was broken. Fortunately, an army surplus vehicle like this can be had for next to nothing, meaning that you can afford to spend the money it costs to fix it.
Nowadays, it can be hard to find parts for these old and aging army surplus vehicles. Back then, however, it was pretty simple. Army outdoor surplus gear - no matter if it was a Jeep or a sweater - was affordable, practical, and well built.
Most of the parts we required, we got from a mail-order catalogue. The wheel and remaining parts we sourced from our local army surplus store. It wasn’t long before we were able to start working on the Jeep.
The Jeep has been replaced nowadays by the much larger Hummer. The smaller sized jeep was easier to work on, hoist up, and most importantly it fitted comfortably in my dad’s garage.
It took around three months of work. We spent around 20 hours per week on it, but when we finished we had an almost restored army jeep. It still needed some body work doing to it, but when we test drove it it ran great. And it’s still going today.
