RE: Re: RE: Deuce short comings
June 29th, 2008.
Mike:
You should've kept the Unimog, BUT I could find another way around that ledge with a Mighty Mite...... In the east the trick is to be able to avoid the impossible items....., generally trees and cliffs (strip mine highwalls are bad too, and abandoned mine shafts), AND the Mighty Mite CAN be picked up by a fairly light helicopter... so I could still beat your Unimog that way (if I had a small Sikorsky around), that's what those funny brackets on your bumper ends were for...... My mite did rescue work, getting folks out of flooded hollows and places where no other vehicle could go, not fast, not comfortable, but very, very agile with the four wheel independent suspension. Jeff Miller may yet have the spare hub bolts I had machined out back in the 1970's for the Mite, a real pain to make, and prone to failure through the cotter pin holes (bolts were too small (5/8" OD , I believe) and too over-stressed, the weak point in the design. I don't know if anyone makes spares, but mine were longer, using a second nut cottered to lock the first nut on.... The wild thing with your Mite will be to watch the front hubs flex on potholes and rough terrain, these jeeps were so light that even the wheel centers are skeletonized.... And unlike the Unimog, they can run on three wheels (I know, I had to do it once!)!!! Another downside with the Mite (not a problem in Vietnam), was in the late 1970's, West Virginia suffered several winters with -30*f temperatures..... in that condition, even a Mite with side curtains and doors can be unbearably cold. Possibly a problem in Nevada in the winter? At least the Swiss Army Unimogs came standard with a cab heater, better on the driver's side then the other, and better then nothing at all.
NOW if I could only find a reasonable accurate replica of the Swiss top canvas, modified to handle rain better (mine's worn out, and the ears over the cab doors don't stick out far enough to deflect rain away from the side windows and floors.... , retaining the unbuttonable rear window (It does get hot here in Texas in the summer) without having to give up your firstborn (Me, I don't have one.....), as the Germans, Swiss and everyone else seems to think they are gold mines!!!!!
The Mite was a light reconoissance truck, nothing more, nothing less, able to go places in the swamps of Vietnam and preferred for Antarctic and Arctic work due to no coolant system problems in the cold....
And I doubt I would try that ledge crossing trick in the S404.114, as they are a lighter version of your Diesel, no use killing my truck without reason. I have heard a LOT of comments on here in the Unimog section and elsewhere of steering box and panhard beam failures doing that kind of stunt.... Sure, they can do it, but why kill the truck... particularly as parts from Germany are getting very expensive...
And yes, if the fairy godmother drops a wad on my desk, I'd love to have a diesel Unimog like your old truck, just for the ease of getting into a cab that has steps.... Try getting into an S404.114 when you've pulled a back muscle or bruised a disk, heck, even the M35A2's a misery under those conditions. In any case, the price on the Diesel Unimog's (Used) are about like the HMMWV's, the only difference is the Unimog is more capable as a hauling vehicle (Unimogs and M35's are indeed Land Rover, Hummer and almost any other SUV Uber Recovery vehicles.....), and new, well, Man, you best win the lottery for one of those...
In passing, I have noticed that the Unimog owners are just about absolute fanatics over their vehicles.. I suspect they'd trade in the wife for a modification or a new Unimog..... is it a security thing, or just some psycholgical need.....? Smile, gents, and PLEASE, don't bend the MV iron too much, or our insurance will go through the ceiling, just like the civvy PU's driven by pin-heads.....
Smile, they'll wonder what you've been doing with your MV.......IBID: Mike, have you or the other Unimog owners ever considered adapting a Unimog Trailer plug (7 wire) to harness up the essential features (Tail, Stop, Turn) light circuits on the M105A2 Cargo trailers?
With great respect,
Sincerely,
Kyle F. McGrogan
1971 Kaiser Jeep M35A2 Wo/W "Saddam's Nightmare" Desert Storm and Vietnam Veteran Truck
1968 Johnson Corp M105A2 Cargo Trailer
1967 Hercules MEP023A Gas Gen-set APU
1963 Swiss Army Cargo Unimog, S.404.114 MB