Greetings all

[TH49Willys]

Im in the midst of acquiring a 49 CJ3A. I'm new to the Jeep World but know how valuable these web forums and contributions to them can be.
Hoping to get it started this week. "no Spark" . Have coil, points , condenser and plugs on the way...will need to go through the fuel system obviously. Its been sitting in a storage container for about 15 years. Body and frame are actually solid apart from the layers of paint and surface rust. Love the front "lift kit". The plan is to go through the major components first. Engine ,drive line, brakes and steering....then some new upholstery and just drive it, leaving the paint and body as is. It will be outside under a cover most of the time. It has a PTO also!

I love the simplicity of working on these vehicles.

One thing i cant solve is the presence of a hand lever for the starter. This jeep has a T handle jut to the right of the center of the dash. You push it in and it engages the starter as the foot pedal would also. In my searches i havent seen one with this "option" yet. Last picture on the right hand side.

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[TH49Willys]

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[AJ-MJ]

What a great looking jeep! I wish you good luck with your new toy. There is a great deal of knowledge and a willingness help on this forum. So keep everyone post on your progress.

[bmorgil]

Welcome TH49Willys! Great project there. I am partial to the last of the 3A's. The P.T.O. is a great option to have. You will search a long way for the "starter rod option". It is a modification that surprisingly I have seen this a few times now. It is one of those how do you say "hacks" that was applied long ago for a fussy starter or linkage. The foot pedal linkage is often lost, worn out, bent rusted through or otherwise rendered ineffective. Someone passed on the idea apparently to drill the dash and stick in a rod of your choosing. I had that same addition on mine, surprisingly with the hole drilled very nearly the same spot as yours. After seeing a few various attempts at this "under fire repair" at the Jeep fest through the years, it seems like there must have been a "TicToc" in the 50's!

[56willys]

Welcome, it looks like you scored a very nice Willys, it looks to be in great shape and is still complete and original. It even appears to have the 6 volt left intact. That will be a super fun project and with a pto a very useful tool around the property! You will find great information here, we have some very knowledgeable members. Keep those questions and pictures coming!

That starter repair is quite interesting, but if it works it works.

[gmwillys]

Welcome TH49Willys!

You definitely scored a really nice 3A! The grille mesh is a sought-after accessory for a farm Jeep, that you don't see an original in good shape very often. The starter handle is a common "retrofit", and the uniformity of the location on the dash does seem to be Popular Mechanics type of deal. Just a theory.

Before you dig too deep into the ignition system, I would see if the points need to be filed just to verify spark. It will be a good thing to replace all the ignition items, but if you can verify that things are working, then you can use the original items as spares, i.e. coil and condenser. I keep them under the passenger seat with a simple tool kit just in case something fails on the trail.