Friday Edition: Carnage, Wreckage, and Gearhead History

[cjforumadmin]

http://www.bangshift.com/blog/Friday-Edition-Carnage-Wreckage-and-Gearhead-History.html

[TheSilverBuick]

Re: Friday Edition: Carnage, Wreckage, and Gearhead History

Dude, ALL those were AWESOME! I don't even know where to begin.

[oldrustycars]

Re: Friday Edition: Carnage, Wreckage, and Gearhead History

Oh sure, those B model Macks were just a piece of cake to drive or work on.

[oldrustycars]

Re: Friday Edition: Carnage, Wreckage, and Gearhead History

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-aDqAWkZHQ&feature=related

"just like handling a sedan" my ass...

[Scott Liggett]

Re: Friday Edition: Carnage, Wreckage, and Gearhead History

Is this where the BS Red Ball Express got it's name?

[Brian Lohnes]

Re: Friday Edition: Carnage, Wreckage, and Gearhead History

Is this where the BS Red Ball Express got it's name?

Bada BINGO!

The story I scanned was from after WWII when the Army used the route as a training deal for the truck drivers/supply chain guys.

[JGMagoo]

Re: Friday Edition: Carnage, Wreckage, and Gearhead History

I actually drove one of the turbine-powered experimental trucks. The chassis was a Freightliner Cab-Over single axle tractor that was operated by Consolidated Freightways. The engine was a joint-venture between Boeing and Caterpillar. The engine was probably the same as the one shown in the KW Conventional shown here. The thinking at the time was that the great decrease in weight, and thus more payload, would offset the loss in fuel economy. The turbine shaft rotated at 40,000 RPM which went directly into a 4:1 reduction box to which was attached a conventional racing flywheel and racing clutch. The transmission was a non-synchro 5-speed (direct in 5th) Clark of about the size used in a 2-ton truck. The driveshaft to the rear axle would rotate up to 10,000 RPM and was connected to a Spicer 4.88:1 differential which would reduce the 10,000 RPM (max) driveshaft speed to an axle speed of about 2,000 RPM....Then, there was a planatary gear in the wheel-ends of about 4:1 that would reduce the axle RPM down to the nescessary 500 RPM wheel speed which would produce about 60-MPH. The idea was to keep the weight of the entire drive line down by transmitting high RPM instead of high torque. Shifting that 5-speed non-synchro Clark at 10,000 PRM was an ART! There was a two-handed tachometer that showed the relative RPM of each gear just before you shifted. When the two hands lined up you shifted. If you missed.....BLAMO!! no trans.