From: ygmir (ygmir@onemain.com)
Date: Wed Oct 09 2002 - 20:48:01 PDT
what a great story, thanks David.
Kind of on the same note, and with a warning, or advise........
Have you ever watched an M105 trailer with the landing gear down come
unhooked from your backhoe and the chain come off, too, and roll down the
hill, across roads and not get hurt? I did.
It rolls really well balanced with the two main wheels and the landing gear.
But, I ruined part of the landing gear assembly retrieving it.......
Just a few words of wisdom and warning from one who learned his lesson......
Henry
Ok, laugh now............
----- Original Message -----
From: <ddoyle9570@aol.com>
To: "Military Vehicles Mailing List" <mil-veh@mil-veh.org>
Sent: Wednesday, October 09, 2002 5:44 PM
Subject: Re: [MV] Hercules engines, wheeled missiles and humor
> In a message dated 10/9/2002 7:13:13 AM Eastern Standard Time,
hellcat@provide.net writes:
>
> > By the way how about finishing (or starting) the story of one of your
> > wheeled missles going through your neighbors building.....
> > ;^)
>
> Time for a little humor.
>
> Back in 1999 I was just finishing the restoration of my M45 chassis with
mounted LeRoi 210G1 compressor. Most of the work had been done at my dad's
shop facility, 40 miles from my house. Our local chapter was going to have
a display at a charity airshow 5 miles beyond my house over a holiday
weekend. So the weekend before I picked up the truck at my dad's shop and
drove it to my house, where it sat in the driveway during the week, with me
applying the finishing touches. I ran the truck engine, I ran the huge 499 4
cylinder compressor engine, I climbed off and on the trucks dozens of times.
Friday night I go to bed.
>
> I should point out that I live on top of a hill (those of you who read the
story of my mowing the lawn may remember that detail).
>
> About midnight I am awakened by a phone call, "How's it going?" said the
voice over the phone. It was Sammy, my mild mannered neighbor. A nice guy,
Sammy always has youths from his church, or underpriveldged kids from the
city, or his nephews over. Now Sammy is a professional fire fighter, and
works odd hours, so my first thought was that he didn't know what time it
was, until the conversation continued.
>
> "Say, you know that big ol' army truck you been working on all week?"
> "Yep?"
> "Its sitting in my shed now."
> "S#%T"
>
> Hanging up the phone, and pulling on pants I went outside and down the
hill.
> Now, what Sammy called a shed, most people would call a building, about
12x24. Well constructed, just like the house. Not a hauled to the lawn from
Home Depot, but a uniquely built structure. It has one window, and one walk
in door. And sits on a foundation, or it had.
>
> Now, it sat on the ground...well, not exactly, part of it was partially
supported by the remains of his new lawn mower and wheelbarrow that had been
stored beneath it.
>
> The compressor truck had rolled silently down the hill, just passing (4
inches) between to large trees, jumped a flower bed made by stacking
railroad crossties, before the front bumper hit the corner of his building,
brushing it aside until it hit the huge tool compartment behind the truck
cab that stores the pneumatic chainsaw, lube set and woodboring machine. The
toolbox collapsed, and the truck came to a rest (have I mentioned than in 4
years of looking I have only found one other 210G1, and all the parts are
unique?).
>
> Damage to the truck bumper, right fender, right running board, an the
unique toolbox.
>
> Damage at Sammy's: destroyed lawnmower, wheelbarrow, broke every
floorjoist of the shed, and demolished its foundation.
>
> Sammy, his wife, and two teenage boys were standing in the lawn, surveying
the damage.
>
> We all went back to bed, and the next morning I went to retrieve the
truck, and to make amends. Thankful that it had hit his shed, just 6 inches
to the left, and it would have sailed unimpeded right into the back door of
his home, a mere 15 or so feet beyond.
>
> In my conversation with Sammy, I asked him what his young guests thought
of the excitement. "What guests?" He asked. I mentioned the two boys, and
he said "Oh, they weren't my guests, they said they were walking down the
road and came to check out the noise."
>
> Yet they beat him to the truck, which was only 15 feet from his door (the
road being 50 yards away).
>
> Sammy and I walked to the truck, and opened the drivers door, noticing the
parking brake lever depressed to the floor (the early squeeze type, not the
later toggle type).
>
> Hmmmmm......
>
> Now, I set the brakes, double chock everything, and aim them at big trees
in my yard whenever something is parked here.
>
> Since I had changed insurance carrier only a week before, I wrote Sammy a
check for the damages, and took the truck to the body shop, where the
bodywork was repaired, and the bumper straightened.
>
> They couldn't straighten that end of the same bumper after it took out a
full size van, but that is another story, for another time.....
>
> Regards,
> David Doyle
>
>
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