M35A2 and M109 trucks

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FKpt.Fritz
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M35A2 and M109 trucks

Post by FKpt.Fritz »

Anyone own any of these two vehicles? i am thinking of buying one next time there available at the local army base. how hard are they to keep running? how much maintenance do they need? what are the problems? are they government surplus vehicles always worn out or are some of them in good shape and ready to drive? any help is appreciated...
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Re: M35A2 and M109 trucks

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nobody? :?
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Re: M35A2 and M109 trucks

Post by salt6 »

Check out http://www.steelsoldiers.com/

They just sold all or most of the M35s here that belonged to the OK NAT Guard. They are phasing them out of the army system so don't wait too long. Some of them can be started and driven at the lot but other will need to be towed.

salt
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Re: M35A2 and M109 trucks

Post by FKpt.Fritz »

thats wonderful news... something else i got to buy right away and cant wait....
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Re: M35A2 and M109 trucks

Post by FKpt.Fritz »

I cant buy one of these until may.. do you think they will still be available in 2 months?
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Re: M35A2 and M109 trucks

Post by salt6 »

Sure but you may have to travel to get a good one.

Here a link to GL
http://www.govliquidation.com/auction/ ... md=keyword
Through many dangers, toils and snares
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George Orwell
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Re: M35A2 and M109 trucks

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anyone live in northeast Alabama?
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Re: M35A2 and M109 trucks

Post by DARIVS ARCHITECTVS »

David,

I have always want to own a military vehicle, ANY vehicle, so could you tell us all what is involved with owning a M35? I mean, beyond gas mileage, the routine maintenance, type or fuel, how hard it is to start in frigid MN weather, things to watch for when buying one, etc. Sort of like a Car & Driver review. I've been flirting with the idea of buying one in the $3500 range (even though I have NO place to put it!).
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Re: M35A2 and M109 trucks

Post by FKpt.Fritz »

I just found mine. i got to drive to ga to get it.. not that far though. paying $2500 for it. hopefuly the deal will go through. paints kinda faded on it.. oh well i can always learn to paint trucks. the government is dumping all the M35s on the market nows the time to get them i think. hopefully mine will run.
David

Re: M35A2 and M109 trucks

Post by David »

My experiences on M35s are this:

Running and driving is far better than mint body and so forth. M35 drive line parts are typically big (motors, axles, transmissions, etc.). It's easier to swap a fender or broken windshield than a transmission, engine head or something else. Mileage is also a typical issue for some. I dont worry about it. One of my trucks has 60k on it, the other only has 3k. They both work like a champ. Definitely get a truck you can preview if you;re bidding from a govt site. Pics aren't necessarily the greatest and the descriptions can be vague.

Parts availability is pretty much unlimited. You can buy from govt auctions or from any of the numerous surplus dealers. A lot of the parts also convert over to the civilian market.

M35s are still small enough where one can work on it in their driveway with regular tools (outside of motor swaps etc.). And one discovers that in the MV world, you;re truck/project is never finished. Always some other accessory, paint job, etc to be put on.

Cold weather starting Im not to familiar with, being in Texas and all. The cold weather we get in the 30s or so my trucks still start fine. A little more finicky, but not to much. They do offer either kits for them to help with extreme cold weather starting.

Being here in Texas, you try to watch out for the Katrina (or other hurricane) trucks typically because they're trashed. But I think those have all been sold. Winch trucks will typically sell for more than non-winch and be more desirable. Personally, I think it' one more heavy object to worry about and I dont plan on getting a deuce to the point where I need to use a winch. If I did get to that point, I messed up somewhere.

Now one just has to decide on all the options (hardtop, soft top, drop side, winch, no winch, LDS-465 non turbo, LDT-465-C "whistler" turbo, or LDT-465-D "non whistler" turbo). People like whistler turbo trucks over the others just because the turbo is freaking loud. There's really no difference between the C & D motors except noise. Hard tops are actually pretty quiet, soft tops and a C turbo motor can be hard on the ears. I have each. If one wants to do a lot of hauling of junk, a drop side (M35A2C) may be beneficial. As, just as the name means, the sides of the beds can be folded down or removed.

Overall, they make for a great starter into the MV world. They're cheap, the parts are relatively cheap, they're fairly plain and simple to work on plus they're just down right cool.

If anyone has any specifics or anything else the want to know, just ask.
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Re: M35A2 and M109 trucks

Post by FKpt.Fritz »

ya do you get any road use out of yours? how big are they compared to a large pick up for instance. i will be driving mine on streets alot and am wondering if the non-power steering will be a probem.
David

Re: M35A2 and M109 trucks

Post by David »

I usually drive mine once a week.

They're registered as former military vehicles and therefore have a 5 year registration at like $30. So they're street legal.

The lack of power steering isn't to bad. Adding lock out hubs to the front helps a great deal. It's only a real pain in the ass when stopped and trying to turn. But that's like most non power steering vehicles. You can also put a lock out hub in the front rear axle to help prevent the axles fighting each other in the rear when driving down the road. But like I said, overall the lack of power steering is tolerable and unless you're gonna be going threw round abouts at 2mph it might suck terribly.

You can buy power steering kits for these trucks and they are bolt on kits. They typically run for about $1200+, but the govt just sold a ton, so prices should drop. The Vietnam Vets assoc. here picked up about 30 power steering units and sold me 2 at a steal. Just need for them to arrive.

As for a comparison to a large pick up truck. I drive a 04 Dodge 2500 QC 4x4 diesel truck. When next to a deuce, it could be compared to my truck next to a ranger or S10.

Here's a picture I took a few years back next to my daily 3/4 ton.

Image
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