JBER Public Affairs
9/18/2014 - JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- What happens when you cross a 1967 Kaiser M46A2 deuce-and-a-half truck with a skilled Army wheeled-vehicle mechanic? You get the ultimate "zombie proof," all-terrain, fully self-contained recreational vehicle.
A little more than two years ago, Sgt. Ryan Ronning of the 109th Transportation Company embarked on a project that would meld his military occupational specialty, love of the outdoors and interest in "doomsday prepping" into an RV that would conquer the rugged Alaska terrain and stand the test of time.
Ronning, a native of Lapine, Oregon, said he and his wife liked the idea of RVing and thought it would be a great idea and test of his skills to build their own. With orders from Fort Sill, Oklahoma to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, the timing was right.
He sought out and found the perfect starter vehicle on eBay, traded one of their current vehicles for it, and got right to work.
The truck had been a mobile command post for the Department of the Interior; he started by tearing out the desks and tables that were mounted in the back.
With an initial $17,000 investment in the truck, three solid months of nights and weekends tearing down, designing and re-building his deuce from the inside out, and approximately $20,000 in other materials, the build was complete.
"I had a lot of help from my best friend, Christopher Smith, who also had a heavy-duty forklift available to assist," he said. "He gave up a lot of his spare time and weekends to help."
"We went overboard on interior insulation and built the living quarters structurally as solid as a house," Ronning said. "As we were building, we planned for practicality and comfort. It came together better than I thought."
Although carpentry and electrical work were outside of his MOS, Ronning used multiple resources such as books, magazines, websites and blogs to aid in the construction of his home on wheels.
He also hired a contractor to guide him with the design and to ensure all electrical and plumbing work was certified to building codes.
With a 1,600-watt electric heater, roof-mounted air conditioner, full-sized refrigerator and freezer, twelve-gallon water heater, microwave, convection toaster oven, cook top and sink in the kitchen, along with a fully stocked pantry, LED lighting, plenty of storage, as well as a full bathroom, one would think you were standing inside an efficiency apartment versus an off-road vehicle.
He also installed a hidden gun safe in the floor, just in case. "The living area is roughly eighteen feet long with all of the comforts of a small home," said Ronning.
All the utilities in the camper run on electricity and with a bank of four absorbent glass-mat type batteries, a 4,500-watt gasoline generator and wiring in the roof ready for solar panels, a person could live "off the grid" indefinitely.
Ronning's wife, who works as an executive chef in the Lower 48, spent some time at JBER in the RV, but didn't make it a full time commitment. "Two people - if they really love each other - are very comfortable. There is only a single bed," Ronning said.
He lived in it for the first year until he deployed to Afghanistan. Now he stays in the barracks.
When it comes to the rebuilding, modifying and maintaining the truck's engine and mechanical systems, Ronning is right at home; his wheeled vehicle mechanic training kicks in.
Recently he installed a new six-cylinder Hercules multi-fuel engine. "It will run on diesel, kerosene, used motor oil, transmission fluid and gasoline when mixed with any of the other fuel sources," Ronning said.
"Although the engine runs best on diesel, I am currently running it on used motor oil, and am getting ten miles per gallon while still achieving full power."
To round out the exterior mods, including the re-building of a ten-thousand pound winch, the installation of a custom LED light bar on the roof of the cab and LED headlights, Ronning built a custom, removable storage rack mounted to the back of the rig.
The rack contains four large tough-boxes and eight five-gallon fuel cans and includes a folding ladder to access storage areas and the roof.
"Since the M36 was originally equipped with a full-time four-wheel drive system and no power steering, I removed the factory wheel hubs and installed manual locking hubs so they can be disengaged to allow for more maneuverability," he said.
"The deuce is just fun to drive, I get a lot of looks out on the road and receive a lot of interest from veterans when I show up at the VFW and have even had a few people ask if they can take photos in front of it," Ronning said. "Everybody loves it."
To make driving his deuce more comfortable and enjoyable, he completely stripped and re-built the interior of the truck's cab, painting it with truck bed lining on the floor and metal surfaces, and installed sound-proof insulation in the roof.
He also installed a custom overhead console containing a stereo system, four speakers and additional monitoring gauges and completed the mod with set of fully adjustable bucket seats obtained free from a late-model Chevy Silverado pickup.
The biggest challenge of this undertaking was getting the 44,600 pound vehicle from Oklahoma to Alaska, he said.
Not wanting to drive his newly renovated deuce the entire 3,800-plus miles, he put it on a trailer. Then he realized he had to remove the wheels in order to make it low enough to fit under highway over-passes. Making the trip during December was no help.
On one long, lonely stretch of road in Canada, all of the filling stations were closed for the season. "I went through 35 gallons of fuel in my truck, all eight five-gallon cans-of diesel stored on the deuce as well as all the fuel in the deuce itself before I finally found an open station."
The last hundred miles of the trip proved to be the most challenging.
"Just south of Sutton, there is a particularly steep and sketchy section of roadway with steep declines and hair-pin turns. The road was icy. Near the bottom of the steepest hill with the tightest turn, my brakes went out. At one point I even contemplated running into a road grader that was near the bottom just to get stopped.
"However, I decided to ride it out, and by some white-knuckle miracle, I made it through. I parked at a turnout area at the bottom and stayed there for two hours, just shaking."
Would Ronning recommend anyone else to take on a build as ambitious as his?
"A few months ago I would have said yes, it has been an awesome experience. However, with new EPA rules and regulations restricting the sale of surplus military vehicles, prices are going to go up at least 50 percent. But, given the opportunity, I'd do it all over again."
With slightly more than a year and a half remaining of his tour at JBER, Ronning is already thinking about how he is going to get his rig back to the Lower 48.
"I might just put it on the ferry and pick it up in Washington," he said. "From there, I'll drive it to Oregon and store it back home."
In the meantime, he said he plans to enjoy his Alaska experiences in his "zombie proofed" deuce-and-a-half and can sleep restfully in the knowledge that if he did indeed have to bug-out, he has the perfect vehicle and dwelling that will get him out - and sustain him indefinitely.
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