JOE KIRBY'S
 00 EA 02

JOE KIRBY SHOWING OFF HIS OEM TAIL LIGHT ASSEMBLIES

00 EA 02 is a truly one of a kind Mark 1/2 Ferret Scout Car. Joe has been working on it since 2000. When he bought it the hull had been largely stripped. The vision hatches had been removed and discarded. Most of the attach points for various parts on the glacis plate had been torched off. It was one nasty looking little Ferret. Joe then proceeded to remove every, and I mean EVERY nut and bolt from the hull and began the task of cleaning and restoring. In the meantime he scoured the Ferret world for parts, many of them OEM. He bought pounds and pounds of grade 8 nuts and bolts, and aircraft grade fittings of various types. His intention was not to replicate a "new" Ferret, but to rebuild it the way he wanted it, using the best of materials and modern methods.

For the Ferret purists among you I am sure some will cringe and say, "That's NOT the way the Ferret was built". Well, you are completely correct. There never was nor shall there ever be another Ferret that mirrors 00 EA 02. It is a truly one of a kind Ferret, reflecting the highest quality of work and materials available today. Virtually every painted part has been powder coated, not just sprayed. In many cases OEM or new parts were sourced to replace shoddy ones. Useable components were thoroughly inspected and if they passed Joe's critical eye, were completely stripped of old paint, re-primed and powder coated. I have seen the quite large drawer almost full of the bolts, nuts and other fasteners that were removed from 00 EA 02 and replaced by new, shiny grade 8 hardware or aircraft grade parts.

Over the years Joe has sent me pictures of 00 EA 02 as the work progressed. He is accumulating a very complete collection of photographs which will detail his work. He's promised that this collection along with his commentary will be available to the rest of us when he's satisfied that he's done all that can be done to 00 EA 02. Let's take a look at what the vehicle looked like when Joe bought it in 2000 . . .

 

IN THE BEGINNING, THERE WAS GREAT DISORDER . . .

AND UPON THIS DISORDER WAS PITTED ONE JOSEPH KIRBY

THROUGH LONG HOURS OF STUDY AND MANY, MANY MEASUREMENTS
THE MISSING PARTS WERE FOUND OR MANUFACTURED AND INSTALLED

AND THE PROCESS CONTINUED . .

I WILL BE POSTING SOME MORE PHOTOS OF 00 EA 02 SO CHECK BACK !

Joe's description on how he installed Optima "Red Top" batteries and his battery box modifications
CLICK HERE