Bringing My MV Home

[simp5782]

Alright! Made it to Atascadero for family turkey day. Now for a couple days rest and getting the nieces and nephews to play with the crane. Only 150 miles to home and after 2370 miles in 5 days I think I'll be fine.

Quick question for those who operate wreckers: I played with for the first time today and could do everything but rotate. I must be missing something simple. It got dark and I put it away but any insight appreciated.

PS Im still typing on a phone don't think I'll ever get the hang of it

Rotator locks on the bed are probably engaged.

 

[m1010plowboy]

Alright! Made it to Atascadero for family turkey day. Now for a couple days rest and getting the nieces and nephews to play with the crane. Only 150 miles to home and after 2370 miles in 5 days I think I'll be fine.

Quick question for those who operate wreckers: I played with for the first time today and could do everything but rotate. I must be missing something simple. It got dark and I put it away but any insight appreciated.

PS Im still typing on a phone don't think I'll ever get the hang of it

What a great trip I didn't take. Thanks for sharing it. I can't run your wrecker but once you get it moving could you duct tape a knife to the hook and cut up a piece of Apple pie with it. We do food tricks with the skidsteers and track hoes and always wondered if a wrecker could do it. Fantastic adventure!

 

[KN6KXR]

Rotator locks on the bed are probably engaged.

Thanks. Absolute you can feel it hit the stop. So after dark I skimmed through all 489 pages of the TM and am still at a loss how to unpin it. Seems a great thing to have. Any hints on where it's located?

 

[KN6KXR]

Haha I figured it out needed to rev the motor more! Also finally got the horn working sure could have used that on the trip oh well.

Taking the kids out to do stuff like get doughnuts. Good times!

 

[Mullaney]

Haha I figured it out needed to rev the motor more! Also finally got the horn working sure could have used that on the trip oh well.

Taking the kids out to do stuff like get doughnuts. Good times!

.
Really Nice! The pink box doughnut shops are a few steps above Krispy Kreme.
Last time I went to a place like that, they had doughnuts Maple Icing on them WITH BACON (Yum!!)

 

[simp5782]

Haha I figured it out needed to rev the motor more! Also finally got the horn working sure could have used that on the trip oh well.

Taking the kids out to do stuff like get doughnuts. Good times!

Never run it below 1600rpms.

 

[98G]

Never run it below 1600rpms.

Emphatically this. Otherwise you'll invest in a new transmission.

 

[KN6KXR]

Well alright sorry for the late update once I got back on home turf I just needed to unwind a bit. I made it about 2,400 miles in 5 days with one airline break/repair, a new fiberglass hard top installed, and some important lessons for cold weather (as well as an opportunity to test the ether start system!). The last 150 miles was without incident. According to my logs I went through 397.25 gallons of fuel to get home.

Truck stops: They were almost all closed! The only two open were the CA agricultural and one on Tehachapi Pass. I bypassed both and no trouble. Hey it says "Commercial" vehicle and I'm Historic. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.....

Tools: should have brought a 3/8" socket set I just had my 1/2" setup. Box wrenches came in handy. Plumbers tape, zip ties and electrical tape all got used. Some 550 cord as well. Don't leave home without it!

Electronics/Gizmos: The 70A 24/12 converter I shipped to the seller was perfect. I brought ring tee's, crimper and some 10AWG. At Harbor freight I got a cheap 750W modified sine wave inverter with two USB ports. The MOST handy thing was the GPS zip tied between the windows where I could keep an eye on it. The truck has some resonant frequencies that are probably hard on it over time and it was good to note and avoid those. It was super handy on downhills to scrub speed and keep it under 60mph. Most notably the canyon between St George and Arizona on I-15. Also helped on when to put hazards on, pace yourself for stretch breaks, get an idea of the day, etc.. The stock gauges are too far out of the way. Truck is a handful at 55-60 for 12 hours a day. This was my most useful item. Also kept my phone charged.

Looking forward to slowly getting to know all the mechanics on it. I don't think I would have done this in a GL truck or rescue. Not without another week budgeted and a few days of prep at minimum. The fact that this one was so well kept by an aviator who likely over maintained it made it possible.

Thank you all for your advice and support! Super valuable!

See you in the other threads I already have a lot of questions on my new to me toy...

 

[Mullaney]

Well alright sorry for the late update once I got back on home turf I just needed to unwind a bit. I made it about 2,400 miles in 5 days with one airline break/repair, a new fiberglass hard top installed, and some important lessons for cold weather (as well as an opportunity to test the ether start system!). The last 150 miles was without incident. According to my logs I went through 397.25 gallons of fuel to get home.

Truck stops: They were almost all closed! The only two open were the CA agricultural and one on Tehachapi Pass. I bypassed both and no trouble. Hey it says "Commercial" vehicle and I'm Historic. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.....

Tools: should have brought a 3/8" socket set I just had my 1/2" setup. Box wrenches came in handy. Plumbers tape, zip ties and electrical tape all got used. Some 550 cord as well. Don't leave home without it!

Electronics/Gizmos: The 70A 24/12 converter I shipped to the seller was perfect. I brought ring tee's, crimper and some 10AWG. At Harbor freight I got a cheap 750W modified sine wave inverter with two USB ports. The MOST handy thing was the GPS zip tied between the windows where I could keep an eye on it. The truck has some resonant frequencies that are probably hard on it over time and it was good to note and avoid those. It was super handy on downhills to scrub speed and keep it under 60mph. Most notably the canyon between St George and Arizona on I-15. Also helped on when to put hazards on, pace yourself for stretch breaks, get an idea of the day, etc.. The stock gauges are too far out of the way. Truck is a handful at 55-60 for 12 hours a day. This was my most useful item. Also kept my phone charged.

Looking forward to slowly getting to know all the mechanics on it. I don't think I would have done this in a GL truck or rescue. Not without another week budgeted and a few days of prep at minimum. The fact that this one was so well kept by an aviator who likely over maintained it made it possible.

Thank you all for your advice and support! Super valuable!

See you in the other threads I already have a lot of questions on my new to me toy...

.
Wow. That is a heck of a good story.
Happy that everything went well.
You sure covered a lot of ground in a short time!

 

[cagosti]

greetings
If anybody is interested who the "over maintainer" War Bird Aviator is, Its Tom Hibiske of Battle Creek Mich.
we have a saying about his stuff, there is Mil spec then there is Hibiske Spec....
I know he has a few more trucks he plans for sale in the future!. last week he sold a 939 5 ton tractor truck the guy who bought it had looked at several "great " trucks in a 400 mile radius and turnned them down on inspection , He could not get his money out fast enough for Tom's truck.

Charles
WD8AXA
PORTAGE MI.

 

[KN6KXR]

greetings
If anybody is interested who the "over maintainer" War Bird Aviator is, Its Tom Hibiske of Battle Creek Mich.
we have a saying about his stuff, there is Mil spec then there is Hibiske Spec....
I know he has a few more trucks he plans for sale in the future!. last week he sold a 939 5 ton tractor truck the guy who bought it had looked at several "great " trucks in a 400 mile radius and turnned them down on inspection , He could not get his money out fast enough for Tom's truck.

Charles
WD8AXA
PORTAGE MI.

Yep. Not only that but Tom is a class act and a great guy. He really went the extra mile. Picked me up at the hotel, stocked me with spares he could part with, went for a drive down to Harbor Freight with me to make sure I was good with the truck. He's super happy the wrecker went to somebody who'll keep it in stock trim and a nice climate in CA. I couldn't ask for a better condition, better looked after 5-ton. If he has anything else he parts with I would recommend you give it top priority!