Idaho Jim

My m29c may have the incorrect clutch and throw out bearing. Trying to sort this out. Are there 2 different throw out bearings? I know I have the correct bell housing. It even has the exhaust header pipe clamp on the side. Unfortunately, the throw out bearing I have is too big to fit on the cross shaft. The 2 little arms on the shaft are too narrow for the bearing. Maybe the clutch is too big, too. I suspect the bell housing I originally got with it was from a pickup truck, along with the incorrect tranny. I now have a T96 that bolts right up but the bearing is considerably larger than the two little arms on the shaft. Were there different sizes of clutches, bearings, and bell housings for these rigs? Thanks, Idaho Jim

Hoping to find someone with a M29 in the Coeur d' Alene or Spokane areas that will let me gaze upon one to see where to put a few key things. Idaho Jim

My M29c was heavily modified by someone and I'm trying to get it back to being at least visually correct. I have to install a new transmission mount and my question is this: Is the driveshaft coaxial with the engines crankshaft and of course, the transmission shaft? Or is the engine sitting dead flat and the driveshaft dips down as it goes to the differential? I have noticed that the carburetor is tilted from the plane of the engine, suggesting that the engine/tranny is tilted from horizontal, likely to make the driveshaft not have to bend. Idaho Jim

Looking for a NOS clutch throwout bearing for M29c. Idaho Jim Failing that, a part number so I can buy a new one.

Thanks! Jim

I am looking for the exhaust pipe diameter and wall thickness for the front header pipe and the longer, rear pipe that goes to the muffler. It's roughly 1-1/2" but may be 1-3/4". Also looking for a birds-eye view of the exhaust system. I think it crosses the gap between the sponsons, but not sure. Thanks. Idaho Jim

Raffi, I like the UHMW choice, as it is sturdy and doesn't rely on adhesives, but have a nagging concern about it being slippery. UHMW is about as slippery as it gets, but I also suspect that it will not be an issue in real life conditions. Now if you were to get up a full head of steam on a polished, flat concrete surface and hit the brakes, it would likely slide, but probably not under normal circumstances. What are your thoughts?

I concur with DRH on that. VERY nice work, Raffi.

Ah, good to know! I soaked the screwheads in paint stripper to help unstick them, cleaned, and soaked in wd40 overnight. No go. Used an impact screwdriver and twisted off 4 heads and tore up the slots on the remaining 2. Now that I see what's there, I can punch out the remains and construct new ones on the lathe. I will be pulling it apart, cleaning, oriming, and painting before the glass guy puts in fresh glass. Thanks very much for the pictures! Big help. Idaho Jim

I will use the specs above (THANKS GUYS!) to have a pair cut. Not just sure how the frame comes apart. Mine might have been welded. ?? Idaho Jim

I found an Auto-Lite MAY4141 starter in my M29c, but as with all of these old rigs, that may be just what some guy had handy that would kinda fit. I cannot find what the real starter was supposed to be. There are numerous similar looking starters available that say MGB4141, but I have no idea what the difference is. BTW, MAY does not refer to the month of manufacture any more than 41 means 1941. Anyone know what an acceptable starter is for these rigs? I'm sure none of the new generic geared starters will squeeze into the available space. Idaho Jim

Yes, I agree on the TM9-1772B, which I did procure. Very helpful. Since I will be flipping the carrier assembly around, the shims as they were probably don't apply. I will do my best to get the gear engagement as slick and smooth as I can. I did get the carrier out and will post a picture. It goes back in shortly. Jim

Here's what the diff looks like. Planning on laying it nose down between the forklift forks, and swapping the diff guts around, after removing the brake bands, of course. When all is said and done, the Weasel will have been returned to the proper direction of travel.

I pumped about a half gallon out of the diff. Here are a couple of pix showing the resulting mess. I pulled the front half of the diff out using a forklift.

How odd. Nicely done, though. All I can figure is that they wanted a 2 seater, side by side and didn't care or consider the fact that the weight distribution is now weighted heavily in the rear. That might affect the flotation (not sure) but according to the guy I got mine from, it's vulnerable to wheelying over backwards if you jump on the gas, especially going up a hill.

Ozm29c, I don't know how to locate Gary Szecy's article on the final drive. Could you point me to it, please? Thanks, Jim

Very clever! I like the access port. I have to undo some changes someone before me made. They opened up the differential and flipped the ring gear to the other side, so the vehicle would go backwards instead of forward. They tore up the whole crew cabin and made a new driver position. I am bringing it back to normal. Being lazy, I chose a different approach. I wanted to avoid pulling the differential, but also wanted to avoid the oil spill. I used a 1.5mm welding rod and dipped it in the vent hole at the top of the diff. There was about 50mm of oil in there. Then I scrounged up a 6.35mm copper fuel line and stuck it down in the hole. It goes to the bottom of the diff easily. Then I grabbed a cheap Harbor Freight liquid transfer pump and a 6.35mm clear hose, jut to get the pump tubing to match the copper fuel line. Add an old milk jug and start pumping. It took, maybe 5 minutes and the diff was empty. I will use a load balancer for pulling car engines to straddle the front half of the diff and lift it out. I will get pictures at that time. Jim .

Hi guys, That sounds like good advice from those who've been there and got the shirts. My Weasel data plate says Feb 1945. I have my Weasel in a heated shop, fortunately. When we moved here, I figured we needed it during the winter. Forget doing anything outside. Looks like 21F outside, and snowing. Hence; the Weasel need. I would be happy with either transmission. I will probably adhere to the 20' rule in this restoration. Fred's advice to block the hull drain holes sounds good, but has already been tended to by old man rust. I will approach the issue with puppy pads and Dollar Store aluminum turkey pans underneath the Weasel. Heating the oil sounds like a very good idea before draining it. I'll try putting a little 1500 watt heater in front of the punkin' for a while before tying to drain it. Thanks, guys! Jim

Hi Patrick, I was hoping there was some magical access port to get a wrench in there, but I see my hopes have been dashed. 😞 I just finished yarding the starter out of the engine, without removing or even tilting the engine up. I did a similar thing with a wrench. I made a college educated weld (i.e., really poor weld) of a half broken 9/16 wrench and a handy piece of steel to secure the nut on the starter flange. Why nobody designed threads in that hole, I will never know. It would have sure cleaned up some of the language needed to get the starter out.... It acted like it was shorted out. Turns out; it was. Generally fine, but 75 year old friction tape failed to insulate the brush wires and it was shorting to the frame. Should be an easy fix. Turns out my transmission is not the right one and will have to be replaced with the correct one. It's a truck transmission and has a pto port on the side. I also noticed that there is no bracing rod between the axle carriers and the body. Is there supposed to be one there? It shows it in the manual. I don't even see a place for it to hook on. I think my body number is around 6189. Maybe it's not supposed to have one. ?? On the differential, I'm tempted to feed a tiny plastic tube down into the diff and slurp the oil out before I open it up. There is a 1/8 NPT gadget on top. Don't know what it is, but it unscrews. Vent, maybe? Can you tell me for certain which way the engine cooling fan rotates, as viewed from out in front of the Weasel? MOST fans rotate clockwise, but a very few don't. I need to know so I can commit to or ignore flipping the ring gear. Does the fan pull air through the radiator and then over the engine, or is it the other way around? Dozers push it away from the engine, as does the DUKW and XM501 Hawk missile transporter. The fan blades are backwards on those. Rare as hen's teeth. Thanks mucho for all your help! I'll try to get some pix and videos, along the way. I may edit out some of the audio... 😮 Jim

Someone apparently reversed the differential so it would go backwards. Some people's kids....... I need to flip the ring gear back to the original configuration. I can't figure out how to get to all the bolts that hold the differential in. 4 are virtually impossible to get to. Can the diff be opened up in place? I know I'll have to pull the axle halves out to remove the ring gear if I work on it in place. That may be easier than wrestling it out and back in. I suspect the previous owner split the diff in place, as only the input side is painted blue. (Blue??)

Hi guys, Well, I think the ring gear must not have been reversed. That means that as currently configured, it would have one one slow forward speed and 3 high speeds in reverse. YIKES! I twisted the driveline the same way the engine does, assuming it is a standard clockwise engine, as viewed standing in front of the engine, and observed the drive sprockets. Figuring that in high gear, the tranny is straight through with the same rotation direction as the engine. I watched the sprockets both go in the direction that would propel the M29 as originally designed. That means I don't have to dive into the differential right now to reverse the ring gear if I just undo the ridiculous reversed crew cabin I found. So I need to redo the driver's area and the exhaust, for starters. Also, There were only 54 grousers on the vehicle. Someone suggested the tracks had stretched. I found the spacing to be 4-3/4", not 4-1/2" as I was told it should be. A quarter inch times 54 grousers comes out to 13-1/2 inches of stretch, within range of 2 grousers of stretch. Someone must have just taken 2 out on each side to get it to tension up. Guess it's time to start shopping for stuff..... Jim

Well, here it is. Someone gutted the whole crew area and turned it around. Must have flipped the ring gear in the differential, too. 2 seater, side by side up front. Has a big platform over the engine, side to side. Sticks have hydraulics, but no boost, and they are backwards. Push to stop a track. I have some changes to make....

Hi! Thanks for the quick reply, sir. The data plate says M29c. The tracks have already been modified by someone and I measured 4.75" grouser spacing. Maybe they stretched over the years. At any rate, I'd rather not guess or replicate an unknown installation. I can run with 4.5". I am using belting that is 0.400 inches thick, so that adds up. 12" sprocket (I measured 11.9 with calipers, but they might be worn down 0.050" on the radius) and 0.4" belt, 9 teeth, that comes out to right about 4.5". I will gather a few pix. Get ready to be surprised at what you see. I found it that way! :-O Jim

Redoing M29c 20" tracks. Cannot find blueprints for tracks. I can't find the grouser spacing or number required. Trying a new approach. Anyone know?