possible M715 project (truck with pics)

[greengiant]

I didn't find a place on here to introduce myself so I guess this is it. My name is Gregg, I love jeeps and have a two, one is a lifted trail truck on 35s and the other is for parts. I did a partial restoration on a 1975 CJ5 that had been sitting in a barn for twenty years and only had 30k on it. I take pictures for Hemmings Motor News abandoned auto calender and in my travels I found two M715s in the same place. Both were used as highway dept trucks then retired. I've always wanted a M715 and i think is green one with the help from the yellow one would make a very solid truck. I don't have much money but I wouldn't need to spend much on appearance because the way the green one looks now is just awesome, it looks rugged and almost like a rat rod.
I'm curious to see if you guys think this is a do-able project. These are the only pictures i have right now and I will be going back to get some more in the next couple weeks. I know the floor boards could be an issue since the truck was left open but the rest of the truck looks pretty solid.





and the yellow one


i guess the back tires were spinning?

[randyscycle]

Welcome! Realistically, they would probably both be savable, but if money is an issue, then neither may be worth it.

The reason I say that is that at the very least looking at those pictures, those trucks have both been out of comission for a long time. Just off the top of my head, that means a complete brake system overhaul, and fuel system overhaul to just get running. Then you need to find out why they were parked in the first place. (i.e; bad clutch, electrical problem, etc, etc.) Running when parked doesn't generally satisfy me when I hear it. The plow truck has probably seen a hard life in that duty up in that neck of the woods, and also looks like it may have suffered some salt exposure too.

Now, you then will most likely deal on top of that with trucks that if handed off to a municipality after their service to Uncle Sam, which have hackneyed 12 volt conversions and other assorted "fixes" over the past 40 years. There is also the issue of compliance with safety inspections if that is a requirement in your area.

So to your original question: Yes they'd be projects and I've saved much worse, but not without a lot of time and a fair amount of money.

[randygar]

My first thought was to quote the other Randy's signature, but he beat me to it... "If it casts a shadow, it's restorable."

Both look fixable - I wouldn't want to strip either of those for parts unless it was proven to be a basket case - they're in too good of shape. The yellow one looks like it ran more recently than the green one, too.

If you can get both cheap, pick one to fix, then sell the other for some money to fix that one.

--Randy

[Ronner]

I think you definately should restore the green one. The pine needles are scary because they like to hold moisture under them and rot the pizz out of metal, but it looks pretty good otherwise. The stock 7.5:1 compression motor is pretty forgiving and refreshing the brake/fuel system can be done without breaking the bank. Mild or wild it is only limited to your desire and pocketbook.

As for the yellow one - that looks really bad. So bad that you really should send it to me here in MI lol

I'd say both are restoreable if you can pick them up cheaply enough. Go for it!

And welcome to the madness.

[greengiant]

i'm considering this project because I do believe I could pick both up real cheap and I have enough money to make one road worthy but it definately wouldn't fit the show n shine category

[Ronner]

Even properly restored like Beast did these trucks aren't really a show N shine kind of thing. They are more of an everybody stop and gawk kind of thing.

If you can get them both for cheap, go for it. Pick the better truck to start the resto on, not just the one you like the color of right now. Chances are that somewhere down the road you will return it to OD green anyway.

To be honest, if you get a smoking deal on the pair and they were about the same rust/body wise I'd do the green one (less non-original stuff to cut off) and get it running. I'd then return any parts you robbed from the other and put them back (well, switch them out I mean) and then sell the off truck for another enthusiast to work on. There aren't too many of these out there. I know I've been looking for a spare truck on the cheap for a while.

Things you are going to want to do (unless you are doing a Restoration) are to look up the part number for the brake cylinders at the wheels (all 4), replace the brake line (easy), replace the master cylinder with a dual circuit (part #'s here too), and also pull the square plug from the bottom of the fuel tank and rinse the heck out of it! Personally I'd drop the tank (also easy) to do a really good clean out job and replace the fuel line too.
I bet you could do all that for about $100 - $200 tops. Extra will be getting the drums turned and rebuilding the carburetor. You can try just cleaning it but if they have sat that long I bet the gaskets are toast - same story for the fuel pump too. Not too much $$ and if you are lucky you might be able to go without those two for a while.
And since this is the Interweb I'll go ahead and state the obvious and say that all the motor/gear oil should be replaced and everything greased up too.

Good luck, and feel free to ask questions. Might want to use the search button for the more obvious ones that we have beat to death here, but even if you don't we usually don't shoot people

[greengiant]

thanks for your opinions guys, I think I would take the tank out clean and coat the inside, do the fuel lines, fuel pump and clean the carb out first. all of this looks very very similar to the CJ5 I worked on and I could probably do all that in a weekend, easily. given that cleaning the crap and pine needles off and out of it would take all week.

[brute4c]

Write down the hood numbers...and any other military numbers or lettering...if you get them...there is no where else on the planet to get that info!

[Barrman]

The green one also has the 100 amp alternator. At least it has the cooler for it in front of the radiator. Kind of rare, but no real use unless you plan to add a bunch of military radios. Not much demand for the parts either unless you are stuck in the middle of nowhere Colorado at a national gathering of M715's like the other Tim was 2 years ago when his broke.

My only suggestion is that you make any mods so they can be removed. My truck has gone from "I just want it to move under its own power so I can use it around the property for fence building and such" Then it was running and the thought was "this thing will go anywhere. I need more power and some shiny paint on it." I went to an National FE and "I need to have more power and make it all green." Now it is all green, has a 396 V8/NV4500 under the hood and the thought is "Hmm, I need to go diesel so I can afford to drive this thing."

For some reason, I also have 5 stock 230 engines/transmissions in my shop and no truck to put them in. Someday.....

Just pointing out that these trucks are pretty neat and can fit a lot of uses. Don't go one direction burning all your bridges until you actually get to use the thing.

[kyken]

They both look great to me. The fun has just started! Enjoy and listen to the guys here as they are GREAT! Welcome...Ken