Enjoying That Fresh Air (filter)

This is just a "quickie" I did today.  I bounced out of bed and got quasi-dirty this morning prior to go to work.   I was looking for that simple job and the oil bath air filter fit the bill.

This thing appears to not have had as hard of a life as some of the other parts on this jeep.  Disassembling it was a  breeze...downright enjoyable.

Bottom (left), inside filter (center) and upper canister (right).

 The smaller bottom bowl holds the oil.  The filter sucks air in through the vents and "filters" it through the oil and then through the filter before sending it to the carburetor.  The insides were quite clean.  I wish the oil that came out of the engine had looked as nice as what was in the bowl.

I used a liberal amount of carb cleaner to flush out the wire mesh that sits inside of the actual filter and then used pressurized air to blow it thoroughly out hoping that any small particles of debris would be flushed away.

I then used the wire wheel on the bench grinder and a plain old wooden handled wire brush to scrub the paint away.  Fortunately, this piece of the jeep did not have a coat of primer beneath the black paint.  I am not sure why, but that was the way of the world with the air filters during WWII.

Wire wheeled and wire brushed until I found bare metal.

This is where I deviated away from historical accuracy.  I coated it with primer. 
At least it is gray so if the exterior paint were to chip away, it might appear as metal beneath it.

First coat of Satin Black finish. 

It is killing me to mount it in the engine compartment.  Typical me, I jumped the gun and filled the bottom bowl with oil.  However, I do not want to install it until I get my temperature gauge sorted.  The air filter might make it a little harder to work in the small space to route and install the temperature gauge line.  Of course I say that tonight.  I'm sure tomorrow I will toss this logic in the garbage and mount the air filter in the jeep...to justify clearing off my work bench so I can make a new mess!