Monday :: 08 February 2010 :: 08:48 PM
320 days to Christmas!
If you love old crawlers, then you've come to the right site. From the finding of old dozers hidden in woods and bogs, lying rusty and waiting, to the restoration of all types of crawlers, bulldozers and loaders back to their original grace and power, we love these old machines. We love bringing them back to life.
When you consider that the use of this type of heavy machinery only came into common use around the turn of the century, you have to wonder about how hard it must have been to build the roads, dams and infrastructure of modern cities using only rudimentary draw or batter boards, horses and men. These machines were literally earth changing and rebuilt America, as well as most of the developed nations of the world. The history behind their feats is rich and extremely interesting. These machines were built to last, and the stories of the men who drove them are amazing. We will be featuring some of these stories in the months to come, so be sure to come back and visit us.
My Purple Peterbilt
You know, a truck is just a tool but every once in a while you come across a tool that just sticks to your heart -- you think it becomes a part of you. This was the case with my purple Peterbilt dump truck.
I looked around for a good used Peterbilt for about five or six months before we found this old 1988 at a dealer in Boise. My friend, Doug Sherman who owns North Idaho Truck Center found this truck and asked me if I was interested in it. Subject to certain criteria, I commissioned him to travel to Boise and pick it up. Here is the picture of it as we purchased it. It had been an over-the-road truck for a cattle company in Wyoming. It had only 360,000 original miles (that's low miles for all you four-wheelers (car owners) out there).
We took this truck and put a dump box on her. That is another story about a very unscrupulous businessman who is no longer in business. We spent over $2000.00 repairing his mistakes and fraud. Oh well. Nonetheless, we got her on the road and aside from the normal repairs and maintenance you'd expect in a used truck, she gave us real good service for about three years. She drove like a dream; 425 Cat powerhouse and 15 speed tranny, air leaf suspension and El Dorado seats on both sides. You don't find many dump trucks with air seats on the passenger side.
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The purple Pete was useful for all kinds of work. Not only did we use it to move dirt as we dug ditches and excavated but we used it to move our equipment. We moved a shed for my sisters. One sister gave the shed to another when she moved and we transported the shed for her. Fortunately, our skid steer has forks. So we used that to load the shed on the trailer.
I'm going to miss this truck but I sold her to a real good owner. In a way, it's kind of ironic: We bought the truck, through a dealer, from a rancher in Wyoming and we sold her back to a contractor in Wyoming. She's probably glad to be home.
Yes, that's what you saw -- there is a flying pig ornament on the hood of that truck!
Random Humor: Tax Problem
Dear IRS,
Enclosed is my tax return showing that I owe $3,407.00 in taxes. Please note the attached article from USA Today, wherein you will see the Pentagon is paying $171.50 for hammers and NASA has paid $600.00 for a toilet seat.
I am enclosing four toilet seats (value $2400) and six hammers (value $1029), bringing my total remitted to $3429.00. Please apply the overpayment of $22.00 to the "Presidential Election Fund," as noted on my return. You can do this inexpensively by sending them one 1.5" Phillips Head screw (article from USA Today detailing how HUD pays $22.00 each for 1.5" Phillips Head Screws is enclosed for your convenience.)
It has been a pleasure to pay my tax bill this year, and I look forward to paying it again next year!
Sincerely,
A Satisfied Taxpayer