ETF Mining Trucks – A pipe dream?

Innovation is a fact of life. Established ideas of the past may not be the best ideas for the present or the future. That seems to be the driving force between the ETF Haul Trucks. Take a look at the video below.

All in all, this concept appears to have some interesting features that mine owners should love like increased payloads, a tight turning radius, and rotating dump beds. But despite the technological advantages and sky high claims on reliability there has yet to be one EFT Truck produced. According to various sources on the internet EFT is only interested in producing trucks when they ordered, not a single prototype can be found. Another point of concern is some form of lease program for the trucks and maintenance provided on by EFT. So far, it appears that those conditions are enough to keep mine operators in the seats of their traditional diesel/electric haul trucks.

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Still Working – Galion Grader

I’m a fan of the color green, even the shade of emergency/lime green on this Galion Grader. This grader was hanging out the local CSX rail yard. I really don’t have a clue on the age of this machine but it seems to be well maintained. If I had to guess I would say it was nearly 30 years old and quite possibly a hold over from the Conrail days.

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Detroit powered.

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Veterans Days 2012

Norfolk Southern is celebrating their 30th anniversary this year. Part of the festivities involve creating a fleet of trains that wear the colors and paint schemes of the predecessors that eventually lead to the modern company we know today. The heritage fleet consists of 20 units, one of which is the SD60E you see below recolored to pay homage to our veterans  The painting of the train required 66 gallons of paint and 112 man hours but ultimately brought the moving tribute to life. Much like Crete Carriers and their Patriot Fleet, Norfolk Southern is committed to hiring former members of the U.S. armed services. Nearly 4,200 veterans resided on their payrolls with over 200 hired this year alone.

Have a veteran in your life? Take a moment to thank them.

Image and Source: Altoona Mirror

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Something for the Ford fans

I stumbled across this Ford truck collection outside of Fultonville, NY a few months back. The truck below was clearly the jewel of the collection with pin striping, fancy lights and what appears to be a rather large engine based on the hood scoop near the windshield.

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Found on road dead? Not this one!

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At the Dealer – International LoneStar

Believe it or not this is the first International LoneStar that has ever graced the pages of Daily Diesel Dose. The styling on this truck speaks for itself and usually has elicits one of two reactions. I hate it! I love it! I’ve found that LoneStar look grows on you after awhile and I happen to think this truck looks great in a day cab setup. The twin stacks help complete the look.

International LoneStar – Click to Enlarge

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Still Working – Autocar Construcktor

Fall appears to be the time of year I cross paths with this particular Autocar Construcktor. Regular visitors may recall this truck from a December posting last year when it was caught working on a sidewalk replacement job. Once again the weather has turned cold and this Autocar has returned to the job site. I practically jumped out of moving vehicle when I saw this truck on my ride into work this morning.

Autocar Construcktor

Autocar Construcktor – Click to Enlarge

White Trucks was really onto something with the Construcktor name. A real “I see what you did there” kind of name. I really enjoy the flat black paint job on the hood, simple yet effective for both style and safety.

Autocar Construcktor

Autocar Construcktor – Click to Enlarge

Do you know of an old truck that is still earning it’s keep?  Email Me!

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The Reaper is Wating

In a TV season marred with repetitive politic ads I found this following commercial to be a breath of fresh air. It stars a Diamond-T as a car reaping diesel power maniac. A Diamond-T on TV in the year 2012? Gadzooks! Great job Prestone, keep the ads like this coming.

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Identity Crisis

Looks like I’ve stumbled across another old Hough Payloader. This loader appears to be in a decent shape so I don’t think it has been stored outside as long as the old NYS (Statue of Liberty!) license plate would suggest.

Hough Payloader

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No pivot point for this Hough, all steering takes place with the rear wheels.

Hough Payloader

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I’m not sure what the old Caterpillar logo is doing by the engine. Maybe this unit was repowered? Something to keep in mind. The term payloader may now be ubiquitous with the term front loader but back when this machine was produced it was a product name, associated only with Hough and IHC’s Pay line of products.

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Waste Pro USA’s Garbage Truck Muesum

I posted some sad news the other about the struggling National Military History Center and their auction to raise cash but where one story comes to an end another one begins. This coming January the Waste Pro USA Garbage Truck Museum is scheduled to open and will show case the trucks and equipment that have made garbage collection possible over the past 80+ years. Waste Recycling News has a great article on the future exhibits and the back story of the trucks on display. Click here for the full article and more great pictures like the one you see below.

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Military Grade Hardware

Daily Diesel Dose has covered a few auctions in the past that dealt with mostly used construction equipment and seriously tired trucks. I’ve found that auctions are a good source of cheap entertainment, especially if they allow you to play with test the equipment prior. I have a feeling however that there will be no testing or starting of equipment at this auction. On December 8th the National Military History Center will hold an auction of select vehicles from its extensive collection of vintage military hardware. Tank movers, staff cars, half tracks, canons, howitzers, the list goes on and on. Nearly every major world power of the past century is represented.  On auction day almost half of the museum’s collection will be sold to help combat mounting debt. Click here to check out the Auctions America page devoted to the sale.

1943 Brockway B666 6×6 Bridge Erector Truck

Image Source: Auctions America

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