Lowboys

Posted on April 6, 2014 by Eric

According to Wikipedia a lowboy is a trailer with two drops in height. One comes after the gooseneck while the second comes before the wheels allowing for the trailer to be low to the ground. Well Duh! One reason I enjoy Wikipedia is the way even the must mundane or pop culture topics are handle in such an academic manor. Go check out the article relating to the origins of WWE wrestler Stone Cold Steve Austin and his rise to fame. The research is probably deeper than the entry about Winston Churchill.

In Australia the lowboy is known as a float. Any Aussies out there that can confirm this?

In Western Canada and South Africa the name of low-bed comes into play. I’m fairly certain I’ve heard that term tossed around in Upstate New York as well.

Any other names for this type of trailer out there? Drop a line in the comments below.

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Frankenstein Plow

Posted on April 5, 2014 by Eric

One year ago I was in Watertown, NY when I stopped by the local mall to check out their snow plowing equipment. I found a few machines worthy of photos but never got around to posting them on the website. I later discovered that I deleted these photos and God only knows how many others during a failed backup process. The whole debacle still causes me to become sick to my stomach each time I think about it. Almost a year to the day I was back in Watertown and decided to see if I can recapture those deleted photos. Believe it or not I found each piece of equipment located in the same spot from the previous year. This time I know the photos are backed up and posted to this website. We can all breath easy now.

On my original trip to W-Town I stopped by the local Tracey Road Equipment branch and was pleased to find a near identical model to the Trojan seen below. It should come as no surprise that it didn’t wait around a year for my return like the mall unit did. This loader laughs at your pickup with one plow blade.

Also onsite was this very clean Ford L-9000. Last year I thought I could make out the name of the town it was belonged to this but this year there was no clue to its past.

There was also a very clean Michigan loader with 3 in 1 bucket parked next to the Ford. Check the gallery below.

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Terror Tractor

Posted on April 4, 2014 by Eric

It comes from the land of ice and snow, from the midnight sun where the hot springs flow. The Volvo Terror Tractor, this was not a factory option. Most likely it will only be a matter of time before a local Scandinavian paper prints the headline “Man Killed While Drag Racing Tractor” but until then we can enjoy the insanity and creativity of this super powered machine. I tip my hat to the camera man who was more than willing to nearly be run over numerous times during filming.

For those that are more traditional when it comes to tractors here is a video of Big Bud starting up its turbo charged Detroit 16V92. Brings a whole new meaning to the recently coined slogan, Demand Detroit!

Thanks for the link Jason!

Posted in Heavy Equipment | 3 Comments

Mack MB Log Loader

Posted on April 2, 2014 by Eric

If you’re looking for a real sheet metal intensive restoration project look no further than this Mack MB. I really have to wonder what happened to the cab. It looks almost as if the roof was removed for some reason or maybe it just rusted away completely. Another mystery of the universe that will go unsolved. If you look real close I believe you can see the shadow of the Mack bulldog on the pillar of the cab behind the driver’s side door.

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Thanks for sharing Andy! Know of any old trucks or heavy equipment in hiding?  Email Me!

Posted in Lost and Found | Tagged | 2 Comments

Fishing’s Great In New York State

Posted on April 1, 2014 by Eric

Today is opening day of trout season in New York State. At some point in the past month or so this truck probably helped stock local streams and rivers with the fish anglers will by hoping to catch. Recent snow melt and heavy rains have made local waterways treacherous so if you’re going out there be safe.

This particular truck is Chevy C8500. It was at the local Cummins dealer so I’m going to assume that is engine under the hood. Does anyone out there have any information about the bump in the roof? I know this was an option to make the cab more spacious but I can’t seem to find any literature about it. I’m wondering if it had a clever name.

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Autocar Mondays – Two Years in Time

Posted on March 31, 2014 by Eric

For Autocar Mondays we return to a truck show of the past, the ATHS Hudson Mohawk chapter show from 2006 and 2008. To begin, the ’68 Autocar as it appeared in 2006.

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As you can see it’s already a fine looking truck with pin striping, meticulously painted wheels, and fenders clean enough to eat your lunch from. Two years later I snapped another photo of this truck.

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From my inspection it doesn’t appear much has changed except the weather and a full set of air horns on the cab. Don’t mess with perfection is the motto. Great looking truck. I don’t seem to recall seeing this the past few years at the ATHS Hudson Mohawk show. Hopefully all is well with the truck and owner.

Would you like to help keep Autocar Mondays alive? Send in your photos to eric@dailydieseldose.com

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Lost and Found – Reo and International

Posted on March 30, 2014 by Eric

Some of the trucks that enter the Lost and Found category of this website have the potential return to the road. Others do not. I’m going to leave it up to you to decided where these these trucks fall on that sliding scale. What do you think about this Reo? Save or crush?

You know what my answer would be! Jake sends us these photos and tells us the truck reside at the rear of a scrap yard noting that it would be a big deal just to pull these rigs to the crusher if that was to be their fate. How about this 50’s International? L or R series? I’m not sure but I believe the clue lies in the number of slats on the grill.

Check out the early Loadstar in the gallery below. It may not look like much but you’ve seen what some talent and the right tools can do when the come together, Project Heavy Metal.

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Big thanks to Jake for sharing these photos! Know of any old trucks or heavy equipment in hiding?  Email Me!

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Still Working – Mega Pack!

Posted on March 29, 2014 by Eric

Watch out! Old trucks coming out of the wood work! Let’s start with this old ‘Binder from the Riccelli Enterprises. Glad to see this old bull still running strong as more and more of the old stuff leaves the fleet to be replaced by newer model Freightliners and Peterbilts. I spotted this truck with two other Sessler Wrecking Kenworths at the Bristol-Myers Squibb plant in East Syracuse. I wasn’t able to grab a such of the Sessler trucks but they were sharp rigs with plenty of lights. You’ll have to use you imagination.

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I didn’t have to go far to grab a shot of this Mack as it was literally right around the corner from my home. It had just dropped of a dumpster for use in a tree removal project. I can still hear the chainsaw echo in my head. The trucking company running this old beast also runs that sweet metal hood DM from this past edition of Still Working.

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And finally we’ll wrap up the post with the venerable and rather generic Ford F800. They used to be everywhere now they are nowhere.

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Grove RT700E Crane

Posted on March 28, 2014 by Eric

I was wandering around downtown yesterday morning hoping to stumble upon something interesting when the freezing temperatures and gusting wind began to squash my enthusiasm. Resigned to find nothing I started back to the office when I noticed this combo approaching from the opposite direction.

Salvation in the from of a Grove RT700E from JPW Riggers. I was able to snap a few photos before my camera battery died. Fortunately my cell phone was able to grab some decent video of the unloading process.

If you would like to learn more about the Grove there is an very informative brochure at this link.

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For more JPW action click here.

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Reliable Carriers

Posted on March 27, 2014 by Eric

Last week I came across this fleet of Reliable Carriers rigs as they prepared to load up something from the convention center. I’m not sure what it could be as the last event that had any form of vehicle was the Syracuse AutoExpo held well over a month ago. Could it be that show cars sat in the center for all that time? We may never know as I didn’t hang around to find out.

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