First timer!

   My god that body is sweet ..... isn't it !

   And too, for a Jeep, the Maaco special is perfect. My quick guess is if you painted it your self, by the time you purchased all of the sealer and top coat and thinners and such, you'd have an easy $300-smackers in material.

   I am getting Inspired, and remember when I did the refinish on the body on my '46 blue Willys that I restored back in '84. .... and I had just purchased my Linde mig-master welder, and had a blast tuning-up the body, and making a roll cage and spare-tire carrier in back (fixed).

   Oh, I showed my wife the Color-Chips on Walsch's website, and she wants me to paint mine the dark Red instead of the Harvest red.

I like my Sunday morning pancakes, so the Dark Red it will be. hahaha

2018 might just be a bountiful year for energy and progress.

That fresh Dupont-Overhaul sure looks pretty ..... Nice Work !

and that engine looks nice and clean.

   Len

I decided to focus on getting the motor up and running.  Grabbed an old carb out of the pile-o-parts and slapped it on. I had an old radiator, hooked everything and gave it a try.  I also rigged up an makeshift tube (made from an small diameter dryer vent)  to get the exhaust out of the garage.

Good catch! No other reason than i didn't check when i put it on . I'll swap it around before too long.

No, just don't let the jeep police see it.

    Jim

   I just followed through this thread again, and you know, after all (ALL) the prep-work is behind you, and after that new paint finish is applied, it all becomes worth the effort.

   I was visiting with a guy down at the Rubicon Springs, 1986, and he had the sweetest flat-fender with the front fenders, hood and chassis extended 6-inches for the V-8 and wheel-base.
The jeep looked to be Evil Kanievel's as it was a red, white and blue theme. The whole thing looked very nice, and he said "yep, painted it last week with 3-boxes of Krylon rattle-can paint."
   ( i still to this day think he was B. S'ing because the finish was way too uniform ).   Dupont used to make a product called "Unfiorm-Finish" and it was used to blend a spot repair while using Laquer.
   Here in California, i don't think we can buy Laquer automotive paints.
Can you guys up there still purchase Laquer ( Dupont - Dulux ) today ?

   Russell, what an effort you have put forth on cleaning-up and patching that body.
   I suppose you replaced the Hood ? .... or patched the cut-up one ?

   Also, when you mentioned you drove 2+ hours to get a L134 engine, did you find it on Craigslist or a private vendor ? ... just curious how you found it, or was it by 'chance' ?

   I just passed on picking up two L134 engines for $200 / each, but i don't have any room in my shop and no real need, and it would have been a 4-hr drive.
They had popped-up on Craigslist and were at the coast. Not needing them, I waited 4-hours before calling the guy, and he said yes, he just promised them to another fella. I didn't have to clear any space in the garage. whew...

   My wife wants me to either keep the flat green ( probably rattle-can ) because who-ever painted it squirted right over the decals.   hahahaha .... OR
   she wants the dark red color if i change from dull-green.

   I meant to comment on your clean chassis and drivetrain.

   Imagine you left the jeep filthy like when you bought it. Now, picture yourself idling along on your favorite jeep trail 3-hours IN.
   You suddenly hear breaking metal, and discover your clutch disc just failed.

   Now, you must do an ON-TRAIL Repair. How many hours did it take you to chisel your way thru 70-year baked-on grime and grit just to get to the fasteners required to dissassemble everything. Yikes !!

   It sure is Nice to work on something that is clean and to where you can visibly see any leaks or other indications of possible failure.

   Ha ........... most Failures are Operator-Error. .... pickled-again.

   I am down here in Redding, Calif., and am about 5-6 hours from the Rubicon Trail=head at Loon Lake. Wife and i used to go into Spyder-Lake in the '80's and '90's and set-up camp, then walk over to the Little-Sluice-Box, to watch the Jeeper's Jamboree procession. It was loads of fun to visit with all the individuals and to see the vast array of Jeeps.
   My last year to run the trail was 2001, with 3-children, and Airdale and Jack Russell and my trusty wife. (soon to be 20-years already) Yikes !

   I had better get my priorities straight, and think CJ2A ..... right !

   Question:
Hat channels - any suggestion on where i might consider purchasing them ?
You probably looked around plenty.

My body is rusted in floor and hat-channels, and cracked-out in others (mostly), so i am hoping to do as you did, and in a few years, Pull the body and replace rust spots and hat-channels and give that Puppy a new Krylon Finish ( may try a 2-stage paint finish ). Oh, and cut-open the rear at the tailgate where it has been plated to hold everything together, which is working well for the time being.

   Back in my earlier years, the hot paint was "Candy-Apple" which was not a heavy metallic, and it was essentially "today's 2-stage" because we always sprayed a Clear-coat over the Candy-Apple to protect and give it luster.
   The clear-coat rotted very quickly in the 112-degree summers here, and was very disappointing. White non-metallic is a good paint color for the Redding, California location, and an Arid climate.

   The area i grew up jeeping with my dad is east of Red Bluff 20-miles, and south of Redding about 30-miles. This area is mostly lava-cap, and Rough-slow-going in most places. It has fun lava shelfs and rock gardens.
   The 3-speed trans was great for most areas. with the 5:38 gears.
   Aired-down balloon tires are a life-saver for both driver & passenger (s).
I am not so sure I wish to drive up in there with 6:00-16 teeth-rattlers.

   You are going to have a Blast with that nice shiny Willys.

   Great effort and it is encouraging to follow your build.

   Len

She's looking pretty "spiffy" there Russell !

   After all that body work, you must definitely be tune-up on your welding.
Currently I am struggling with trying to get my Solex clone carburetor to work properly, and just today I solved the mystery of why the fuel accelerator pump was not pumping.   No check-ball in the fuel-inlet-jet to the pump, and you could see the fuel being pushed back into the fuel bowl when operating the pump lever with the top off of the carb and the fuel bowl full. So, I dug through an old Carter YF rebuild kit and took the aluminum ball out of it and installed it into my accelerator pump inlet jet. ( and had to carefully make a swedged-in wire ball retainer ). That accelerator pump squirts better than those water-blasters the kids shoot in the yard !
   ( I recently drug home a Willys hurricane six with a nice T-90 and T-case attached for the T-90. And will have to get the correct length input shaft for it at some point. If you know of a good one at a reasonable price send me an email through here.

   You are getting real close to completion with the time consuming portion of the Resto.

   I just got re-inspired looking at you fresh tangerine orange.

   Len

The second set of latches was a common fix to keep the Hinge from breaking and the hood from rattling. I guess the dealership would often do it, but it was also done in the field to fix the problem.

My hood has four hold downs too.  They all look the same.