What cool trucks (rigs or pick ups) have you seen lately?

[Aaronw]

These are a few years old, but I ran across them on the hard drive while answering another post. All were in the Truckee, CA area in 2009.

Bottom dump gravel trailers pulled by a FL

 

Hay haulers, a Peterbilt and a KW

 

 

[Force]

These are a few years old, but I ran across them on the hard drive while answering another post. All were in the Truckee, CA area in 2009.

Bottom dump gravel trailers pulled by a FL

I've seen that type of truck combinations all over the Los Angeles area and I wondered what they hauled, gravel is one thing but I have also seen these dumping asphalt for road paving.

[Petetrucker07]

They haul anything they can get out of the bottom. Sand, gravel, rock, asphalt grindings, asphalt, whatever. 

[Aaronw]

Yeah, I use gravel very loosely. You often find these trucks used in road construction because they can lay out their load in a line which can then be worked by the appropriate equipment.

Here is a video showing how they can be used.

 

This is the kind of work my brother mostly did before new state emissions laws caused him to find other work (his truck is no longer legal for work in California).

 

[10thumbs]

I just saw this asphalt laying operation and am amazed at it's simplicity.  Here in old Europe there's a convoy of real heavy equipment involved (recently saw this done in front of my house).

Aaron, question;  In the bigger asphalt carriers shown right after the video ends, how is the brew kept hot?  I don't see any cookers.

[Aaronw]

I don't directly work with the stuff so I'm not sure, but based on talking with my brother these trucks stay on the move so would assume they just come straight from a plant where they are loaded with hot asphalt. Asphalt stays hot for a long time, so unless you are way out (like Australian outback out there) I'm assuming it stays hot enough to work for several hours. When I worked in Yosemite they were doing major roadwork, and the asphalt trucks had to be coming from at least 2-3 hours away. There were no onsite cookers that I saw. 

 

[10thumbs]

OK, thanks.  Still seems like a slick operation going on there.  Makes me wonder about the asphalt composition.  I know there are very many possibilities here, all depending on climate conditions and type of road, like parking lot, suburban, rural or a through-way type with heavy vehicle allowance.  Maybe other factors too. 

Good info.

 

PS:  I haven't seen those cube shaped bails in ages.  In Europe they do the big round, wound up rolls.  I don't know their dimensions but they are large.  I have my workplace on a prosperous farm, the modernized old family farmhouse building.  I love the smell of hay.  Sweet and clean. 

Edited December 29, 2015 by 10thumbs

[Petetrucker07]

Usually asphalt jobs are close to the plants or they will setup a plant close to the job. I think the farthest I've seen asphalt go from plant to job is about 40 miles. It does stay hot a long time. 

[Petetrucker07]

Some may remember me posting some old tow trucks in this thread, an old needle nose KW and a COE Chevy, 50ish. Well, I was finally able to get a couple shots of this mid to late 50s tow truck.

[Petetrucker07]

Saw this when I leavin the truck stop this mornin.

[10thumbs]

I like!

That red oval vehicle is cool in my book.  Hmmm, the look kind of fits too in my current project plans.

Yep.  That's a long wheelbase.  Amazing, as a Day Cab, that would be real long.  I like.

[Petetrucker07]

This is one of coolest 579s I've seen yet.

[Fabrux]

A little late but to add to the asphalt conversation, speaking from a civil tech/inspector role I would definitely not approve of asphalt being laid down out of the truck like that. Unless it is strictly for patch work. Usually you dump the asphalt in a spreader that mixes and heats it up somewhat. For highway mixes a transfer buggy is used that has an internal hopper so that there are no cold joints in the road, just a steady stream.

[k100]

I saw this parked in the Walmart parking lot tonight .

Edited January 28, 2016 by k100

[Petetrucker07]

Saw these 2 yesterday. I have a bunch of pics of the T800 and the heavy haul if interested.

[Crazy Ed]

    I've seen the Pickups with Train Track Wheels, but I can't recall ever seeing a Kenworth with 'em!

[10thumbs]

Guys, are those Heavy Haul trucks FWD too?

I like 'em.

[Petetrucker07]

Some are, some aren't. It just depends on the application, where it needs to go.

[Petetrucker07]

Saw near a wrecking yard in the middle of nowhere.

[gino]

this old girl is sitting in a lot in south Portland maine around the corner from where I work.

I pass by this lot twice daily to and from work. the other day I noticed that it was put out by the road.

I figure its up for sale or its going to the bone yard. this morning on my way in to work I decided to stop and take these pics.

I last saw this truck a couple of years ago in the back part of the lot. you could see it from the road until all the storage containers went in.

I seem to remember that it had a red ball express sign on the passenger door but when I took these pics I couldn't see the sign anymore.

boy would I love to snag this truck as old freightshakers are my favorite.  it's cummins powered ,  check out the custom exhaust !

[Petetrucker07]

That is cool old piece of iron. Looks like it needs A LOT of parts before a resto can even begin. I'd be up for it though. Too bad it's about 3000 miles away from me.

[gino]

That is cool old piece of iron. Looks like it needs A LOT of parts before a resto can even begin. I'd be up for it though. Too bad it's about 3000 miles away from me.

yes it certainly is cool ! it also needs a lot of work ! I figure it is a early to mid 70's as it has the long wiper arms (1970) and the front intake (1971).

I wish the amt sd kit would be reissued so I could build a replica of this one.

[landman]

Not on the road but on the facebook page where people post old photos of my hometown. An International (K8?) with a bulldozer getting ready to drive off the side. Judging by the licence plate and the cars in the background it could be 1951. I am amazed by the brightness of the colors. Most color pictures from that time usually fade a bit. I remember the contractor whose name is on the door.

[Mike77]

My brother (a truck driver) was behind this the other day in Indiana. I guess this is the Army's version of the Yosemite Sam "Back Off" mud flaps!

 

[Petetrucker07]

A little late for this explanation of the bottom dump and asphalt thing. Out here, they've steered away from dumping into the box on a spreader. They have a scraper/conveyor attachment that loads the box. Doing it this way, it cuts down on the stand by time of the trucks tremendously. They usually bring the hot mix, wind row it in front of the paver, go down a little bit to the chipping/grinding machine, load the grinding, then take that to the batch plant, dump it and reload with hot mix. Rinse, lather, repeat.

A little late but to add to the asphalt conversation, speaking from a civil tech/inspector role I would definitely not approve of asphalt being laid down out of the truck like that. Unless it is strictly for patch work. Usually you dump the asphalt in a spreader that mixes and heats it up somewhat. For highway mixes a transfer buggy is used that has an internal hopper so that there are no cold joints in the road, just a steady stream.