Speed

My gripe is people who leave their brains on the coffee table when they go out to the car. As with those of you who drive truck for a living,riding a motorcycle will either make you a survivor or a statistic. I can't tell you how many times a driver approaching an intersection from one side will roll to a safe stop as I'm approaching,look me right in the eye,and pull right out in front of me. Of course I ASSUME everybody's going to do that,so I'm ready for it,but that doesn't make it any less WRONG. BTW-my Harley is my newest EVER vehicle (1998 FLSTC),my "driver" is an '84 BroncWorth,and my favorite truck is my '54 GMC 2 ton flatbed with a 302 and a 5 & 3 Double Overdrive,with a 2 speed. Out of the 83 vehicles I've owned and driven,4 have been automatics,and 3 ended up with transmission problems. (My '66 Catalina still works fine,but IT was built back when they made cars to LAST.) I was surprised to learn that something like 40% of the youngsters don't even CARE about driving,and of those that DO,less than 5% can drive stick! Well-that's what they're selling as PROGRESS. Speed

OWWWW!! Think I broke my eyes!

And disconnect the Power Steering and A/C.

Looks like a pretty decent truck. Good find! How common was the "big" 8 lug pattern? I can't remember ever seeing an 8 lug except for the "small" 8 pattern on the 3/4 and 1 ton pick ups. Speed

Just a WAG . If I had the tire diameter and trans. and axle ratios I could give you a solid number. Speed

"......this truck runs 65mph at 1400, how much at 2100 rpm?" 'bout 130? Speed

Seemed to me that my EH shifted much easier loaded than empty. Running empty it always felt like by the time I got it into the next gear it had lost enough speed that I almost needed to downshift again. In the 's defense,it did have some brake issues,the right rear brake dragged and took occasional fits of stopping the truck,requiring jumping out and bleeding the pressure off the wheel cylinder to get it moving again. The dragging brake probably didn't help much. I intended to do the brakes on it but never could scratch up the needed $$,between jobs I needed it for. Speed

Sorry to hear of the sad circumstances of your getting this truck,I have to agree though,getting an "In Memory Of" on the truck would be a good thing to do. I'd put one on each side of the cowl. We see that done often in the Biker community to honor fallen brothers. Superdog's right though-Harry would want you to drive the truck and enjoy it as he would have. Speed

I remember hearing it when I was about 6 years old,so it was pre 1960. Speed

Cut the guy some slack-it isn't as easy to pick up as you think,as you said,especially if you have to unlearn the synchro habits. I'm still "unlearning" my bad habits,and I'm getting better at the twin-stick-shuffle,but it'll take miles and hours to ever get GOOD at it. I notice I start off an absolute novice at it each day,but get sorted a little quicker each day. Still haven't worked up the skill for a successful two-handed shift;I think if I get decent tires and alignment on the ol' 54 GMC it'll make it much easier-the truck won't make a right turn every time I loosen my grip on the steering wheel. I can't use the "arm through the wheel" trick because either the shifters are too far away,or my arms are too short. Driving a two stick truck is STILL the most fun you can have with your clothes on,IMHO. Keep on driving it and you'll master it. Speed

Ran across this truck on Hemmings tonight. The link is a lot shorter when the post shows than it was when I put it on. WTF? Speed http://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/carsforsale/autocar/unspecified/1597929.html?refer=news

A paving outfit I worked for had a 988 that was bought from a mine near here. The Boss said he got a great deal on it. I found out later the sellers laughed all the way to the bank because it was a lemon,and spent more time in the shop than on the job. I liked it a lot though,(I was an oiler there but got to drive everything out there,to get to the fuel tank every night.) Once he learned that the rams used special "Cat" O-rings and plain (cheap) ones wouldn't work,it was pretty reliable. James

The buyer was supposed to get himself logged in here,but apparently he doesn't have time for it. If I go over to check it out,I'll let him know he's in danger of insulting you fine people if he doesn't log on and be sociable. I can give you the name though,Jay Erickson. He's a good guy. James

No problem,Andy. Also,will you be able to update the ownership when I take delivery of Packer's (Garth's) '48 EG? This deal is about 97% sure,but it's taking a while to get all the duckies in a row to actually make it happen. Hoping for sometime before the next snow season. "Speed" James

I have something going for Packer's '48 EG this Summer. I have an idea to fit it with an articulated 5th wheel,as well as a set of tow booms that can be tilted upright to enable towing a trailer. Might not work out,but that's the idea I'll be working with. I still have a REO 354 and 5 speed from that bus that will fit if it's needed. While on this subject,is there a way to convert a Mono-Shift to electric shift like a 2 speed axle? I've heard of air,vacuum and cable shifted ones,but electric? Mine went to a shop about 50 miles East of Elko,in Wells,to be restored for a Propane Co. there. Their first truck was an E,and they're planning to rebuild mine configured just like their first one. (They're planning to keep the tachometer in this one,though.) I guess I should take a ride over there and see how it's going;the buyer said he'd have some parts off it to give back when they get 'em removed. (Hoist mast,butt plate,front bumper,maybe the air horn,etc.) Sorry I haven't been around as much-I've been throwing a lot of my time into my '54 GMC 2 ton flatbed lately;got it outfitted with a tachometer,electric wipers,fog lights,mud flaps,a new deck for the flat bed,headache rack,a stack,of sorts,a 1000# hoist and some cab marker lights. Drained the 40 gal. aux. gas tank,washed the crud out of it and re-did the pick-up tube design to include a filter screen. Works fine now;plan to replace the senders with OEM units for '55-'59 with the pick-up tube in the senders (will have to extend the aux. one about 10 inches for the deeper tank,the cab tank one is a bolt-in.) and a new gauge. Still trying to work up a set of 8.25-20 Radials for it,but may run some used bias ply tires if I find a set for cheap. That's all it really needs to be ready for the highway. I've already discovered its top speed in double Overdrive happens at around 2100 rpm-about 58-60 mph. That's all it can pull,it just doesn't have the power to gain speed past that on flat ground. A friend has offered to hook me up with a good 12V Cummins and a 5 speed when I have the money to get after that. He does these conversions,so he says it'll be a pretty easy conversion. (OR-I could turbo the Jimmie...just kidding. I don't think the head gasket would stay sealed at anything over 3 or 4 pounds of boost-it appears to only have 4 dedicated head studs per cylinder.) Well,I've bored you enough with my non- Looking forward to getting another Mack and getting it in working trim. Speed

That's a bad-ass looking machine! What does it have for drivetrain? Looks like it was a "hot rod truck",built to spank the KW's and Petes of the time. Speed

How many Presidents (or anyone else) have had this many jokes about them? This alleged president has set records on so many things,starting with Speed the number of derogatory nicknames given to him,

I made one of those for my '57 GMC dump truck,but then I fixed the carb and never needed the ether. They're easy to make,but also easy to get dependent on,when a little TLC can sometimes make the truck start easier without ether.(We used to make a mix of half ether and half Diesel fuel in an oil squirt can to prime the generators. They sometimes had a rough time starting at -65 and 10,200 feet altitude.Don't know how you'd arrange that as an "in cab" start-assist.) Speed

Really good looking truck too. He ought to do a video of him running it through the gears. Speed

Can ANYONE come up with a valid reason the political psycho women,Boxer,Pelosi,Clinton and Feinstein.SHOULDN'T be considered criminally insane and locked up? Speed

:lol: -or were you serious? Speed

There's still no "Statute of Limitations" on murder. A while back there was a guy who committed a pretty big crime-ended up relatively well off and wasn't caught. He counted the days until the Statute of Limitations was over,and as soon as the time had passed,he called the cops and confessed,told 'em where he was and dared 'em to do something about it. About 20 minutes later the cops arrived. He invited 'em in and told 'em,"You can't TOUCH me now-the Statue ran out last night!" The lead detective on that case for all those years walked over and threw the cuffs on him. He yelled,"HEY-YOU CAN'T DO THAT!!" The detective said,"Sure we can-the Statute goes from the day the crime is REPORTED,not the day it was committed,so you wouldn't have been off the hook until the day after tomorrow." Speed

That's why "deer hunting" in Nevada works so well;there's SO many mine shafts out there-a guy could fall down one and they might NEVER find him...Just sayin'... Speed

Around here,the big thing would be to "take him deer hunting". I think you know what that means. An old friend of mine had a son-in-law who was a "problem child" and caused him a lot of trouble and expense. Ol' Vic tried for several years to get the kid to go hunting with him,but the kid knew he'd never come home,so he always disappeared for a couple of weeks when the subject came up. Vic's probably STILL haunting the kid from Heaven. RIP,Vic. Speed

They probably don't need the counter weights since they're pushing instead of lifting. Why am I not getting the emoticons to load? I have the boxes on the right side checked. I've had the same problem on the GMC's forum. It SUX to be computer-challenged!! Speed