Jeep in a Crate for $50!!!!... Done!

Modeling Subjects Armor
1

After WWII, there were multiple scams claiming to sell a surplus US Army jeep still in the crate for $50. There were two basic scams. One was where you would go to a dock or warehouse where a couple jeeps in crates were opened for display and there were a bunch of empty crates closed up, presumably more jeeps. You would pay for the crated Jeep and then have to come back the next day to claim it, presumably due to longshoreman’s union rules. Of course, the next day, the scam artist who sold it to you is nowhere to be found. The second was an ad in boys mags and Popular Science, etc. that had you sent off your money to get instructions on how to buy them. Basically, they sent you a US Government publication guide on Surplus Sales and where they are located. Again, you have no jeep and they have your money. You can read more about the scams here.

Jeeps were sent overseas in crates though, so that part is correct. They were shipped as individual jeeps (SUPs - Single Unit Packs) and by twos in TUPs (Twin Unit Packs).

Here are some pictures of actual jeeps in SUPs from WWII.


And a reconstructed one, with too much stuff installed on it, but it gives you an idea.

I had heard of these scams and also seen pics of jeeps in crates and thought it would always be interesting to build one. A while ago, I found a laser-cut wooden crate for a jeep on eBay. It is made by GC Laser Products. It contains the laser-cut wooden pieces for the crate and small parts boxes, resin brake drums and wheel hubs, laser-cut paper for tie down straps, and a nice instruction sheet that tells you how to modify either the Tamiya Willys MB or Italeri jeep kits and how to assemble the crates.

Here is how it looks.

I used the Tamiya Willys MB, part of an Aber PE set for it, and the GC Laser kit.

So far I have the jeep and the crate done. Here they are so far.




Next up is to paint the jeep and make some decals for the crate. I will be trying out a do-it-yourself dry transfer kit from Papilio Art Supply on the wooden crate since water slide decals won’t work on it. We will see how that works out since I have never made my own dry transfers.

On the jeep, I am pretty sure they were shipped with only the serial numbers on the hood in blue drab, as on the Tamiya decal sheet. I don’t think any other markings were on them when shipped, such as the hood star. I believe all other markings were applied at the unit level. Does anyone have any other info on markings on them?

As always, all comments are welcomed.

2

I swear I never saw anything like this… it will be an interesting WIP for sure. Good luck! [Y]

3

This is a great idea [Y], I love these unusual things.

BTW, I have a panzer in a crate, only C$49.99. Care to do business[whstl]? [:D]

4

When I was 10 (1970) my father took me to a government auction on the south side of Milwaukee around Mitchell Field. Our neighbor bought 10 of these crates of parts for $100.00 and my Dad bought a 1943 GMC ambulance with the flathead Cadillac V4 and seven speed transmission for $25.

Our neighbor was able to build 3 usable vehicles from the 10 crates and I believe he sold each one of them for $100 each. IIRC each crate had already been robbed of certain parts before the auction. His back yard looked like a true junkyard and eventually the city inspectors came down on him and he had to clean up the mess. Don’t know whatever happened to all of those spare parts. My Dad drove the old ambulance for five years until he just couldn’t get parts to keep it running.

You’ve got a real unique build there, sure brought back some memories. Never heard about the scams though. Around Milwaukee it seemed the government couldn’t hardly give those things away.

Pat.

5

Very clever and nicely done. Who’da thunk it?

6

Now that’s what I call a cool/innovative idea and approach to modeling. Looking forward to the finished result. [Y]

7

Thanks guys. I thought it was a pretty neat idea too. I hope to get some paint on it and the dry transfers made today. I’ll keep you posted.

8

And now for something totally different!!! [:|]

Totally cool. It will make a nice talking point to your collection…plus it is all set to travel if needed [;)]

Rounds Complete!!

9

Someone should make a “Most Creative Model of the Year” certificate. Very cool.

10

You choose some of the most interesting subjects for your builds. This is the first time I’ve seen anything like this. [H]

11

I’ve never seen anything like that before. Looks great so far.[Y]

12

Definitely an A+ for originality! Very nice!

13

Neat idea. How do you plan on displaying it?

14

Thanks for the support guys. I too have never seen one displayed this way. I like interesting and different models, so this is right up my alley. I think I will display it with two of the four walls up and the top off. Like it is being unpacked, maybe with a couple mechanics around it.

Mike: Where would I need to transport it to? [;)]

15

very neat model project idea [I]

16

I heard this one before - but the idea to build it in scale is definitely COOL! Very high degree of creativity, you sure you’ve been in the military before? [:P] I’ll be watching, good luck with your project

Paweł

17

Brilliant idea, works on so many levels the originality of the presentation gives an original display including a historically accurate model displayed in a manner where the container is the base. Just brilliant. Even with the scam story as a back story it allows the model to be displayed in any time frame.

It’s ideas like this that attract judges attention at competition.

Terry.

18

Thanks guys. I got the stencils on and the jeep painted today. The dry transfers are pretty good. They are not like the commercial dry transfers, more like wet transfers. They have a carrier file, but it is very thin. It took a while to get the words reversed so it can be printed and applied correctly. Once I figured it out, they were pretty easy to apply.

I hope to have some more pics up tomorrow.

19

HeavyArty,

Great idea, subject and truly unique! Thanks for the interesting write up and I will be watching this with interest.

20

Well, I worked on it more today and it is done.

As I stated above, I painted it and added the stencils to the jeep and crate last night. The Papilio dry transfer set worked out pretty well once I got the hang of it. Here is how they came out.

On the jeep, I added Tamiya’s blue drab USA and Serial Number and data plate decals from the kit. I also used Archer US Gauges and Interior Stencils for the gauges. They fit perfectly and came out pretty nicely. They are hard to see in the pics, but they are there.

I added all the parts inside the jeep as per the pictures above. I strapped the wheels and parts box under the front wheel well down with straps made from masking tape painted gunmetal to represent steel banding straps. I also used these for the straps holding the jeep to the lower part of the crate. The GC-Laser set comes with laser-cut paper for these, but I found them unusable since they broke easily and are cardboard colored as opposed to steel colored.

Here she is.





More pics here.

I really enjoyed this little project. It was good to do something different and not my usual type of model.

As always, all comments are welcomed.