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Memories for us old truckers

crane operator

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 27, 2009
Messages
8,274
Location
sw missouri
Nice KW, and I like that paver special trailer. The no flat deck would have its moments, but I bet the ground clearance over a double drop comes in handy.

And inquiring minds want to know- are we running bug catcher or no bug catcher? DMiller's got a big decision coming up for his KW and I want all the info at hand for which way he's going to run.

SouthHeroVT2_LI.jpg SouthHeroVT_LI.jpg
 

Old Doug

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 16, 2013
Messages
4,484
Location
Mo
My daily driver...1978 KW W900A. I jump in it and go anywhere, all the time. One day I'm moving a 525 Cat grapple skidder up into a logging job in northern Maine, couple days later I'm in NC. Then Illinois, then Virginia. I move all equipment within my limits for everyone from a DIY'er to a homeowner, to contractors, dealers, auctions, etc. 40+ years in the field, and still enjoying it every day.

I put this truck on the road in April of 2015, fresh off of a 4 month restoration stem to stern. Over the past several years I've upgraded a LOT of things including going from the original 3406A PCTA 375 HP motor, to a used 3406B 400++ that I totally rebuilt a couple years ago. I put a brand new 18918B 18 speed in 2 years ago, and went from 4:33's to 3:90 Eaton gears. Has KW 8 bag air ride. I've got her dialed in beautifully now.

Ran the first year with that 375 horse Cat, and no power steering and no a/c. I'm old school but not quite that old school...so I put power steering in it the second year, and swapped motors and all the driveline to make it a pleasurable experience. Also added a Vintage Air a/c system that cools/heats nicely. I big holed the cab and bunk with a Peterbilt Unibilt opening, so I have ample leg room and can recline the seats into the mattress.

Monday morning on my birthday, instead of eating cake, I'll be moving a 525 Cat skidder from NH to MA, then shoot over by Delhi, NY to get a Ford 555D TLB going to central MA, then load a new Peterbilt truck on and carry that to Hinkley, Ill. From there a JLG telehandler, and stop in Michigan to throw a military truck on along with it...and head east. Never a dull moment.

It's nice to be able to say I still enjoy what I do, after over 40 years of it. Been an interesting ride for sure.
Can you tell me what that RR car weighs? It looks like some kind of a Caboose.
 

DMiller

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 21, 2010
Messages
16,427
Location
Hermann, Missouri
Occupation
Cheap "old" Geezer
1977 was allowed to assist a OLD mechanic at Mack Trucks STL in removing a bad Differential from a 1950s vintage Double Decker. NOTHING as to new parts existed, required sending the entire Diff BACK to UK for Rebuild as ALL were Hand Built/Hand Fitted and could not even swap from one axle housing to another or install Used parts from another bus, We Tried, NOTHING lined up!!! Worm Drive Differential. Wonder how much is still available for that old Gardner?
 

bccat

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 12, 2010
Messages
309
Location
Langley B C
Occupation
Retired millwright,Heavy Equipment Operator
Who needs a school bus conversion when you could have a full double decker?

Surely I'll find a gardner mechanic on every corner if I need help?


View attachment 258107 View attachment 258108
Simple, beautiful engines, worked on them early in my career. Mostly all of them here on the west coast of Canada were Marine engines, quiet slow turning engines would slip fuel. I am pretty sure you still can get parts , Nige would know for sure
 

Truck Shop

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 7, 2015
Messages
16,538
Location
WWW.
Spent most of free time last four days making new folders and sorting/moving the over 3,400 truck photos
I have stored on the PC. Just in KW folders alone are 900 or more. PC is fairly well loaded, but I deleted
some 500 plus.
 

Nige

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 22, 2011
Messages
28,974
Location
G..G..G..Granville.........!! Fetch your cloth.
Simple, beautiful engines, worked on them early in my career. Mostly all of them here on the west coast of Canada were Marine engines, quiet slow turning engines would slip fuel. I am pretty sure you still can get parts , Nige would know for sure
"L Gardner & Sons, Patricroft, Manchester. The Great British Diesel."
Ho yas, you can still get parts for Gardners, and there are people around who know how to rebuild them. You just have to know where to look.

 

Nige

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 22, 2011
Messages
28,974
Location
G..G..G..Granville.........!! Fetch your cloth.
Who needs a school bus conversion when you could have a full double decker?
Surely I'll find a gardner mechanic on every corner if I need help?
The bus is a Daimler Fleetline, the engine is probably a 150BHP Gardner 6LX, or could be a 180BHP 6LXB. What type of transmission does it have.? I'd bet it's one of Self-Changing Gears' famous pre-selectors.

 

crane operator

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 27, 2009
Messages
8,274
Location
sw missouri
Well the add said its a 1989 leyland olympian, and I'm not one to argue. For only $45,000 it could be any one of yours!

Gotta be able to steer from the wrong side, and the switchgear in that wrong side control platform, looks like the ZF pushbuttons from a grove GMK I used to drive. So I'm guessing german transmission. And how the critter ended up in oklahoma is anyone's guess.

And from what I read, the last of the gardner's were early 90's - so its one of the late ones.

https://www.facebook.com/marketplac...wse_serp:a5a36eab-6eb4-42ad-9fad-aced99e92936

leyland olympian 2.jpg leyland olympian 3.jpg
 

crane operator

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 27, 2009
Messages
8,274
Location
sw missouri
I honestly saw the picture and thought the engine looked like a work of art. You can look at it, and form follows function = beauty, and I can determine how its mostly supposed to work.

The website for the current "factory" support - looks like I should be a earl looking for parts for the fhaammly yhact.....

Sorry- my uppercrust British accent isn't the best.

https://gardnermarine.com/
 

DMiller

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 21, 2010
Messages
16,427
Location
Hermann, Missouri
Occupation
Cheap "old" Geezer
Are lovely as a art form Engine but are as my old Allis both farm And construction, orphan machines with parts available to those with deep pockets and a defined interest in spending.
 
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LowBoy

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 23, 2006
Messages
1,149
Location
Southern Vt. on the Mass./NH borders
Occupation
Owner, Iron Mountain Iron & Equipment (Transport)
Nice KW, and I like that paver special trailer. The no flat deck would have its moments, but I bet the ground clearance over a double drop comes in handy.

And inquiring minds want to know- are we running bug catcher or no bug catcher? DMiller's got a big decision coming up for his KW and I want all the info at hand for which way he's going to run.

View attachment 258008 View attachment 258010


Sorry for the delay. I tried to log in on my phone to reply, but I don't have my password saved on it, only my office computer, so I couldn't reply all weekend, lol.

To answer your questions crane operator, I have several trailers in my toolbox. That paver special is a handy dandy one for me, because of the odd deals I get myself into. Lots of non-running things that I drag onto it and can roll off by myself with that inclined plane deck. Sometimes the angle/deck height is an issue, so we switch to the double drop for a nice flat deck @ 22" overall. It is also a stretch trailer; goes from a 28 ft well, to a 50' 5" well.

The nice thing about the paver special is it's a hydraulic detach, so in the event that I get high centered on a road crown, I've jumped out with the PTO engaged and raised the trailer up and drove off. I high centered that mechanical detachable stretch trailer down in Tennessee a couple months ago backing into an ol boy's field to load something and I got her hung up pretty good. I carry two 12 ton bottle jacks in the toolbox, so I spent a good 45 minutes jacking and blocking and putting skids under the rails to free myself up finally. Almost had to call a wrecker, but I don't give up without a long, hard fight.
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As for a bug catcher; I had a nice one on for a few years. (below) I found myself having to constantly sit up high or about stand up when parked at a light or in the road, constantly checking for that chipmunk 4 wheeler trying to inch it's way in front of me to get ahead of me. I had one once do that and didn't see it until I had pushed it broadsided about 100 yards uphill through a busy intersection. Cops knew what happened and just brushed it off. So since then, I am paranoid of having it happen again with all the inattentive and distracted individuals around these days, I opted to remove it. I must say, visibility is much, mush better without it. Looked cool, like it better with it on...but I am a practical guy who has to weigh out options and go from there. It is much more practical for ME anyways, to have it off, lol.


Coady's~Caboose #1.jpg
 

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LowBoy

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 23, 2006
Messages
1,149
Location
Southern Vt. on the Mass./NH borders
Occupation
Owner, Iron Mountain Iron & Equipment (Transport)
Can you tell me what that RR car weighs? It looks like some kind of a Caboose.


This particular yellow car Old Doug, was a boxcar converted into a caboose. It was a little heavier than the usual ones I move, if I remember correctly, this one weighed in about 36,400 lbs while hanging on the 75 ton rotator's cables, according to it's scale. The trucks (wheel sets) by themselves are another 16k lbs. So all total she weighed in around 52,400 lbs or so.CABOOSE~11-4-21 (3).jpg

This green one below is a former Green Mountain Railroad caboose, built on the 20's. It was about 34,000 lbs by itself. I moved that last year to a retired GMRR employee's house who purchased it from the RR, and had a piece of rail built alongside his garage so that he could sit up in the house having coffee and look down at it. He said he worked on that caboose back in the 80's, so it has sentimental value. Caboose~ChesterVTDepot2020 (1).jpg
 
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