Well Everyone, after al lot of patient years (about 15) the truck that I have been waiting for is finally home!!
About 1994 I stumbled on this truck at a research facility and it finally came up for auction and I was lucky enough to be able to bring her home.
From everything that I have been able to put together, it is a one-off custom prototype put together by TACOM in Michigan back in the mid to late 1970's.
I believe that it was a test bed to check the viability of some ideas/equipment for use on the soon to be designed HEMTT series of trucks.
Note - this truck is not a HEMTT but rather a HMTT (High Mobility Tactical Truck).
This truck does appear in the "U. S. Military Wheeled Vehicles" book by Fred Crismon on bottom left of page 394.
Again, I think this is the only one of these built, at least on a 5-ton chassis.
The only change of signifigance that seems to have occured over the years is the self-loading crane (by HIAB). Seems to be a slightly different unit with manual outrigger supports.
Dave
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Hey, I remember that truck from when I worked at KRC when I was at Michigan Tech. Where did it finally get auctioned off?? I think it wasn't there when I graduated, about 1997, but it might have been... I remember the big yellow trailer. And a red PowerWagon with deuce axles under it...
Congrats on getting it, I bet you're excited!!! Is it up there, or already in Chelsea? I wouldn't mind checking it out when it gets down here... Perhaps when the weather is warmer too...
Chris
Ya, I think the one you show might be the 10 ton one built for testing by pacific car & foundry about the same time - very cool to see it is still out there!
Yup - that's the one. matter of fact I know of the power wagon you speak of - saw it up there quite a while ago but they said that it left a few years back. I have pics i should post of it.
I just think that it is pretty cool being built by the army as opposed to being outsourced.
The 5-Ton HMTT is home!
