NOT the Real Deal?


Just keep it clean please....

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Fri Aug 25, 2017 11:19 am

NOT the Real Deal?

I know tow trucks were sometimes built on 1/2 ton chassis. People used what they had. But this one looks..."made up"?
Any comments?
I smell...late add on...Am I wrong?
Gorgeous vehicle!
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Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Fri Aug 25, 2017 12:49 pm

Re: NOT the Real Deal?

It appears to me to be someone's pretend tow truck for an attention grabber at shows. Nicely done, of course, but would be useless for an actual tow job. Although, I suppose he could hitch up and pull a golf cart that would then bang into the tailgate and bumper, wrecking them. (The truck could possibly be of the 3/4ton variety.)
L110 owner since 1974, finally rebuilt 2014.

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Fri Aug 25, 2017 2:00 pm

Re: NOT the Real Deal?

Thank you! I agree!
I think the tow hoist "overpowers" the truck, visually.

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Fri Aug 25, 2017 6:11 pm

Re: NOT the Real Deal?

Bird $hit welded joints versus rivets is my first clue about the age of the tow structure. There is a label or term used in the hot import car circles to describe too much fake add-ons.
I would rather have tools I do not need than to need tools I do not have
Thinking risks being controversial and possibly being offensive
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Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Fri Aug 25, 2017 9:01 pm

Re: NOT the Real Deal?

is it constructed of old bed rails? Nice truck.
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Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Sat Aug 26, 2017 8:39 am

Re: NOT the Real Deal?

Three things tell me it's not a viable tow truck. First, it appears there is no power hook up to the hoist, rendering it a manual hoist. Who wants to hoist a vehicle up manually. Second, the main sheave is located too far forward over the bed of the truck instead of extending out behind the bed where it would give a straight up pull on whatever it's lifting. Third, the hoist is bolted down to the wooden floor. For real strength it should be attached to a good solid steel base frame attached directly to the truck's frame. I won't go so far as to say the hoist isn't a real hoist, possibly fabricated in the '20's or '30's, but I don't believe it is a manufactured unit from a bonafide maker of equipment for wreck trucks. If it is, then it is a prototype or one of their earliest efforts because it looks so "primitive".
L110 owner since 1974, finally rebuilt 2014.

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Sat Aug 26, 2017 2:45 pm

Re: NOT the Real Deal?

WEWS, I agree with you.
There were manual hoists like the Manley Hand Crank. The tow truck part often outlasted the truck itself and therefore older units got transplanted onto newer trucks. I know this only because I purchased a "history of tow trucks" kinda picture book at the bookstore.
I don't think this is a one-company update, though. I think someone bought the hoist for added interest in his otherwise stock old Chevy pickup.

Pile of Parts
Pile of Parts

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Post Sat Aug 26, 2017 7:43 pm

Re: NOT the Real Deal?

I have seen similar set-ups on old Willys agriculture jeeps.... Used for cutting up a down tree or dear carcus.. Pheraps this was used for smaller jobs around the homestead.

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Sat Aug 26, 2017 8:49 pm

Re: NOT the Real Deal?

Am I right in thinking this is an old hoist? NOT a new creation?

Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee

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Post Sun Aug 27, 2017 8:28 pm

Re: NOT the Real Deal?

I think the winch is the only period piece, the frame is welded, and that would be very un common for an early boom.
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