I almost forgot to share these snow removal photos with you the other day. I guess it’s all starting to blur together. Just like a few days ago these shots come to you from a variety of days and locations across the city.
By now the combination of hard working DPW crews and warmer weather have removed most of the long standing snow piles. The winter of 2015. Almost gone and certainly not forgotten.
Autocar Mondays is back (did it ever leave?) with a visitor straight from the quarry. This ACL model originates from one of the local Hanson run operations of the area. I’m guessing this isn’t a truck that sees the open road much as no license plate, registration, or tax stickers are obvious. Zero signs of rust are another dead give away of a life spent in the salt free confines of the pit. A lockout tag can be seen hanging from the door right below the “No Lot Lizards” sticker. Safety first! Mother nature had just started giving this truck a bath when I stopped for a photo at the local spring shop. I like the look of this truck especially the seemingly large rubber tires out back mounted to a presumably heavy duty suspension.
Would you like to help keep Autocar Mondays alive? Send in your photos to eric@dailydieseldose.com
It hasn’t snowed in days. It’s quite possible that a full week has gone by without any trace of the white stuff falling from the skies. Despite the warming temps and generous amounts of sun large piles of snow and snirt still remain. City DPW crews have been busy removing these piles that have clogged the streets since early January. Over 10,000 tons of snow have been removed this winter and transported to empty lots for a slow melt that will probably last well into May. I know we’ve seen most of this action before but I just can’t seem to get enough. Hopefully you feel the same way.
Each day at lunch I ventured out of the office and wandered around hoping to be in the right place at the right time. I would strain to hear the sound of back alarms over the usual city noise. With a St. Partricks day parade on the horizon workers were all over cutting back the banks.
I have to give a round of applause to the determination of sometime downtown drivers who simply wouldn’t take street closure as an option. Protip. If the street you wish to traverse is blocked by a large yellow dump truck with flashing lights in such a way that you have to jump the curb and travel on the sidewalk you should probably reconsider your route.
If you like the 4 in 1 combo bucket check out the video below. Scraping, pushing, plucking and loading snow are all possible with this modern device!
A Mack DM unloads concrete blocks on a frigid February day. Hopefully this kind of weather is behind us!
We’ve seen many new Western Stars hit the road over the years at Daily Diesel Dose. Here is another one. This 4900 with a setback axle belongs to Curtis Trucking and looks to be another sweet lowboy hauler similar to the one for Associated Industrial Riggers and ERSI.
While not brand new this International 9400i caught my eye the other day while it motored through downtown. The lighting and pose really reminds me of a shot you would find in an old sales brochure, especially with the diamond road logo on the cab air deflector. I didn’t realize until after I took the photo that this truck belongs to some branch of state government. I’ll have to keep an eye peeled for return visits.
Monster Trucks. A motor sport uniquely American. Honestly, could this spectacle take place anywhere else? This past weekend the Carrier Dome played host to Monster Jam and all the madness that comes with it.
Call me old fashioned but I enjoy the period of monster truck history where the trucks looked like trucks. Don’t get me wrong, Monster Mutt with its lapping tongue is adorable and Crushstation with banded claws is humorous but it’s all just fluff. That’s why my favorite truck of the evening was Titan and his retro Chevy look. This truck looked better than it drove as it was the first of what would be many crashes. In fact, the entire evening saw about half of the show field flip in the same corner which really put a damper on freestyle. That being said it wouldn’t be a monster truck show without the crashes. If you think people watch Nascar just for the accidents what do you think people attend Monster Jam?
This year instead of taking still photos I focused more on catching the soaring jumps and bone jarring landings on video. Despite sitting behind some tall people I was able to put together a decent clip show of the best action. Even though the track setup caused a few too many early crashes it did contain one jump, that if hit correctly, allowed the trucks to do a complete back flip. You’ll know it when you see it.
One of the better accidents during freesytle occurred when Madusa took a jump, lost a rear wheel, nearly flip and then momentarily burst into flames. All this took place right in front of my seat. Of course by this time I had turned off my camera. LOL! You see, at the start of her run Madusa broke one of her rear planetaries causing the passenger side wheel to stick. This greatly hampered her speed and jumping ability so I wrote her run off as all but finished. Nope. Lesson learned. It’s not over until the methanol burns. At least I caught a moment of the aftermath.
Being a fan of heavy equipment I always feel like I get twice the show as I am perfectly content watching the setup and cleanup of the track. I think a traveling series of the latest and greatest heavy equipment should hit venues across the country. Take a look at this Massey Ferguson Equipment Expo from the mid 1970’s for inspiration. Much like last year Caterpillar equipment was in full force to build ramps and haul out disabled monsters. Below, a gallery of prime selections.
Just like the trucks, I put together a variety of clips dealing with the support equipment in action.
Come for the monsters! Stay for the heavy equipment!
I stumbled across another classic Trojan Loader the other day. I’m unsure of the exact model but I’m guessing it might be a 304? This machine is in remarkably good condition for a unit of the late 50’s vintage. It’s been repainted at some point removing all logos and model identification but that just shows that someone cares. Loading power probably came from a Detroit but I’ve read of some loaders using International gas engines. Who can tell? Much like the Michigan 180 wheel dozer from last month this Trojan does not articulate in the middle but instead relies on rear wheel steering. Note the interesting style of lifting arms on this loader with the hydraulic pistons located near the rear of the machine. Click here to see an similar machine but from another angle. What a cool old beast!
Past Trojan Loader Coverage
Lost and Found – John Deere Dealer Castaway.
The city of Largo, Florida recently held an open house of sorts where many public works vehicles were on display for children and adults to climb over. Ed stopped by and took a shot of this Autocar ACX-Xpeditor with Heil refuse body.
These events are not only popular with children but parents as well. The City of Syracuse, NY has hosted similar events in the past that I have attended. Below are a few shots form the 2013 and 2008 shows. Can you determine the year from the photos alone? Thanks for sharing Ed!
You can never have enough heavy equipment around and you can never have enough friends that can move your heavy equipment. Clarence brought home this 70k Akerman H14 excavator a few weeks ago on the back of a Mercedes powered Western Star 4900.
The stick on this one is 14 foot and covered every inch of the 55 ton Fontaine trailer used that day. Everything went well and soon the H14 was home safe and sound.
Past Akerman Coverage
Thanks Clarence!
If while looking at this truck you get the sense that it resembles a fire truck you’re not imagining things. Seth set me this photo of a 1990 International 2674 that started life as a tanker for the Croton-on-Hudson Fire Department.
Originally setup with an EEI tanker body the rig saw refurbishment in 2004 and retirement a short eight years later. Eventually it was transferred into the service of the Croton-on-Hubson Village DPW and is now is outfitted with a Beau-Roc dump body.
Which incarnation do you prefer? A dump truck with lights and siren seems pretty cool if you ask me. Make sure you stop by x635Photos.com for more great trucks and photos!
