A view of the Past, Vintage Photos

We'll call him Mr Keller he has owned the truck since it was new. He owned and operated Keller Turkey Farm east of Pueblo. It originally had a 350 Cummins in it. The truck to this day looks like new.

 

This old girl hasn't moved in my lifetime till today. Road King #12 Grader.
It sat way out back in a neighbor's fence line.
I graded thousands of miles with it as a little kid trying to run the wheels. Lol.
It must a been top of the line in it's day. Wheel lean front and rear. The rear axle can extend out either side on a gear track.

The drawbar will swing side to side on a set of gears.


I dang sure wouldn't wanna tangle with a guy that wrestled them wheels all day!

 

I've got news for ya', we could use something like this on the back roads of Colorado today. They don't grade the gravel roads anymore, the new county Cat grader just sits, and these rock climbers make it worse and worse, 12 miles of rumble strips, sucks all the fun out of it.

 

There use to be one similar to that only bigger sitting in Pritchett Colorado in the county road maintenance yard. Will have to get a pic of it the next time I'm avoiding the scale in Lamar Co.

 

More late 70's pics as an O/O.
Nebraska.

Grouop of 7 or 8 trucks running together with a high tower crane, crossing into US at Emerson ND.

Load of IH tractors at rest area in ND.

Empty near Alamosa CO, next load was waiting in Pueblo, best git while the gittin is good.
(so close to Wolf Creek Pass and yet so far)

First load with GCVW over 100,000 lbs, Rochester MN.

Two stack Mack in the antique shack.
Saskatchewan truck, 1965 or older KW.
Originally had an 8V71 with a two stick trans, later in life was re powered with an 8V71T @ 350 HP and a 13 spd OD.

About to pass a 400 Cummins with my NTC-350 with a full load on somewhere in Montana, I think?

One of my early mentors, Big Dave, R.I.P.
Died by the truckers code, one life for ten.

 

Thanks for sharing these. What a time to be a trucker.

 

When I was a kid growing up on a cattle ranch in MT in the 80s, we had one identical to that one. We did use it though, would pull it with a small bulldozer to grade all the ranch and farm roads on the place.

 

Hi from TLX918 in 77, TLX244 in 78.

 

Howdy from TLX 247, moved on in 1977 to International Transport and better times.

 

Best time to be a trucker, great bunch of people out on the roads back then, freedom was not just a word.