General Eisenhower Jeep France

General Eisenhower Jeep France, a photo by lee.ekstrom on Flickr.

Four Stars for General Eisenhower. Enjoying a light moment in his private Jeep Willys MB in France. I retouched the dust from the General's face and cleaned up the image. Deserved a little love.

Jeep Willys MB Water Fording Kit

Jeep Willys MB Water Fording Kit, a photo by lee.ekstrom on Flickr.

Sometimes I visit eBay to see what Jeep items folks out there are putting up for sale. This gem came up from someone in the Toledo area. It's the original artwork used for the Willys MB Water Fording Kit. Thankfully the shots were of decent quality as I was able to clean up the image and fill in the frayed edges and soiling.

An unmodified Willys MB was able to water ford about 21 inches of water before the transfer case vents and fuel pump have issues. Troops in the field were modifying their Jeep 4x4s to survive deep water in their beach landings. This included sealing the distributor and ignition system, and adding an intake snorkel and extending the exhaust system among other things. Willys-Overland engineers were tasked with coming up with a kit to distribute to the troops.

This is just one example of the many ways the Willys MB Jeep 4x4 was modified for use in the field during World War II.

Ariens 832 Snow Blower with Clarence Impeller Kit

Took a video of my "new" Ariens 832 snow blower. The blower has an eight horsepower (HM80) Tecumseh engine with a 32-inch bucket. Bought it from a retired gentleman, a precision grinder by trade, who posted it on Craigslist a few months back. He said he purchased it new in 1975, used it a few years and then winterized & stored it in his walkout basement after his neighbor gifted him a 1979 Ariens 1032 when moving south.

The 832 starts up on the first or second pull if I do my part. Replaced the muffler with a New Old Stock part found online (originally for a minibike - I took off the deflector). Also rubbed cross-country ski wax on the inside of the chute. Snow just glides off.

I also installed a Clarence Impeller Kit as it was just dribbling out slush when first purchased.  Now it throws about 40% farther and I haven't had to clear it yet. I'm guessing it's throwing about 25 feet, haven't measured it. Guessing it will throw farther with some heavier snow. Fresh fuel has Sea Foam added for good measure.

The original owner followed the instructions meticulously and took off the fuel tank every spring for storage. He also put on a new scraper bar and skid shoes. The Ariens is a model 924016  / Serial No. 00404 with matching numbers. The teardrop bucket is model 924012 / Serial No. 010030. This thing is built like a tank and works like a Swiss watch. Hoping to get many good years of service out of her.