Weapons Carrier
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This is another detailed restoration completed by the wonderful Estrella WarBirds volunteer restoration crew. The M-37 Weapons Carrier was made in numerous different configurations. A common site at airfields, these vehicles delivered the ordnance and equipment to be loaded onboard the aircraft just prior to their missions. Some were equipped with power equipment to help load the ordnance. In civilian life, this truck was known as a 3/4-ton Dodge PowerWagon.
The Dodge M37 (G-741) was a ¾ ton four-wheel drive truck. It superseded the Dodge WC-51 and WC-52 trucks in US service and was used extensively by the United States armed forces during the Korean war.
The six prototypes of the vehicle were produced in early to mid 1950 based on the WC series Dodge vehicles used in World War Two, with the first pre-production pilot vehicle rolling off the assembly line on 14 December 1950. Many of the components on the M37 are similar or identical to the World War II vehicle and many deficiencies of the previous series were corrected in the M37. Notably, a conventional pickup truck style bed replaced the platform on the World War II vehicle simplyfiing production. The powerplant was identical to the World War II era WC vehicles line as was most of the drivetrain. The straight six cylinder engine was derived from a 1930s era passenger vehicle engine that was widely produced. This was in line with a long standing military procurement strategy that attempted to used commercially produced vehicle variants in military servive. Many of the accessories on the M37 engine are identical to the engines from that era. There was significant drivetrain and powerplant commonality with the WDX series civilian Power Wagons. Outside of the fenders, there were sheet metal differences between all the vehicles.
Production of the M37 began in earnest in January of 1951, with approximately 11,000 vehicles produced by the end of the year. By mid-1954 63,000 of the vehicles had been produced. In 1958 a number of modifications to the design resulted in the new vehicles being designated as M37B1. From mid-1958 until the end of production 47,600 M37B1 vehicles were produced. Approximately 4,500 Canadian M37CDNs were also produced between 1951 and 1955. These vehicles continued in service worldwide in the Israeli and Greek militaries.
In total between 1951 and 1968, 115,000 M37s were produced. Spare parts for these vehicles are widely available and inexpensive to procure. Many deficiencies with aging design became apparent in the 1960s including a tendency of the connecting rods to fail at high RPMs due to the long cylinder stroke of the engine. As the average speed of the vehicles in the military increased these engine failures became commonplace due to the low gear ratio of the vehicle which was originally designed as a multipurpose vehicle capable of transporting heavy loads of ammunition. It was common in the 1970 and 80s to encounter many of these vehicles with failed engines in government auctions. Many of the vehicles were transferred to civilian agencies and some are still in use today in rural areas.
Engine upgrades were made commercially available by the Hercules company. The vehicles were out of significant military service by the late 1970s replaced by CUCV vehicles and other large scale vehicles.
| Engine Type: | "L" Head, 6 cylinder |
| Power: | 78 hp |
| Displacement: | 230.2 in |
| Bore : | 3 3/4", Stroke:4 5/8" |
| Clutch: | Borg & Beck 11828 |
| Fuel System: | Carter carburetor |
| Fuel Tank: | 24 gallons |
| Electrical: | 24 volts |
| Transmission: | 4 speed, Synchro Shift |
| Drive Shaft: | MFG Universal Products |
| Axles: | Dodge Full Floating (hypoid), ration 5.83:1 |
| Brakes: | Wagner hydraulic drum |
| Steering: | Gemmer Model B-60 |
| Wheelbase: | 112" |
| Wheight: | 5,987lb w/winch |
| Tire Size: | 9.00x16 -8 ply |
| Speed: | 55 mph |
| Range: | 150 mi (6mpg) |
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