Ft Bliss Recovery and MV Finds

[mkcoen]

Okay, I have to say my road trip recovery events are not near as exciting or nary as hairy as Sarge or Green_Gator but are fun never the less.

Sunday a friend and I set out for Ft Bliss to pick up my new MEP003A Genset. We were driving the M1009 that I had just gotten a week ago and this was going to be her shake-down cruise. Loaded down with Doritos and trail mix we hit IH10 headed west from San Antonio.

Sorry, no excitement for 7 hours going 75-80mph in a 23 year old Blazer. Got to El Paso, had dinner at the high priced Long John Silver's and crashed at La Quinta.

Monday morning, up and at 'em with a lovely glass of orange flavored water from the Continental Breakfest (more like the used Vega breakfast) and off to Ft Bliss. Ten minutes after hitting post we were backed up to the trailer and closing the pintle.

Now it get's interesting. Seems GL forgot to photo the tongue where the wiring pig-tail was missing. Hmmm, what to do.

Being far removed from the Army (17 years) my suggestion was to head down to Wally World and get a set of magnetic lights and wire them through the tail lights and go...

To Be Continued.

 

[mkcoen]

Back to our intrepid adventurers at Ft Bliss...

My compadre on the other hand being removed from the Army by a mere 3 months thought it better to hit one of the motor pools and see if he could get chummy with someone and maybe talk one out of them.

So while he was haggling over a pig-tail I decided to tap the top bows down to pin them in for the trip. I tried to knock some sense into myself while climbing up on the trailer but eventually got all the bows secured just in time for him to return with said pig-tail.

Now off for the road and a long drive home.

Opps, passed a junk yard with MVs in it.

 

[mkcoen]

If anyone ever tells you that in the state of TX you do not have to display license plates while driving a former military vehicle still painted in military colors, don't believe them.

If they pull out a copy of the TX statute 504.502 and show you that same information, don't believe them.

If you pull out a hard copy of the TX statute you keep in your cruiser, don't believe them.

If you call your SGT back at the State Patrol barracks and he tells you he's never head of any such BS and that a former military vehicle registered in the state of TX has to display "Former Military Vehicle" license plates, believe him.

Lucky I had purchased a Trip Permit to get on base so was able to wave "bye bye" to the nice young State Trooper without getting a ticket.

Now while I'm sure I could have gotten the ticket thrown out I'd prefer not to have to drive back to El Paso to do it.

And here's the pics of the generator:

I'm going to have to check the TMs to figure out what's missing from the one pic but everything else looked good.

 

[AaronW]

Thanks for the story and pics!

 

[Chevytruck]

these gensets come with a huge sledge hammer???

what for?

 

[mkcoen]

these gensets come with a huge sledge hammer???

what for?

Well I used mine for tapping down the top bows

I would imagine some highly motivated grunt used it for setting the grounding rods or for tightening the lug wrench since I couldn't budge the lug nuts even with a star wrench.

 

[AaronW]

What is the military purpose of the white trailer?

 

[mkcoen]

What is the military purpose of the white trailer?

Absolutely no idea although I'm sure someone can ID it sooner or later.

I did figure out what was missing from my generator. It appears to be one of two fuel pumps. Anyone have a line on where I can pick one up?

 

[NDT]

Love your stories. Amazes me all the support you get from the installations.
Looks like I will be heading your way soon, I won the Ft Sam lot today with the windshield, hard top, troop seats and pickup topper.
Where was the circus wagon? That is WWII.

 

[waayfast]

Thanks for the cool pics and story.AND for reminding me of a personal rule of thumb I stick to when dealing with ANY beaurocrats or LEOS.
It goes something like this: "even if the statute book clearly shows that you're correct---ultimately it is the feller with the citation book (and that big stick) that you must keep happy or YOU ain't gonna be happy."
In researching a recovery trip I'm thinking of doing that would extend over several days travel and states--I read in the federal motor carrier rules that if I am using my commercial motor vehicle to haul my personal belongings(even gives the example of using it to haul goodies for a hobby such as yer horses to a horse show) that I am NOT required to run a drivers hour of service log book. It CLEARLY says in the rule book I DON'T need to run a log book for the trip I would be taking to retrieve my new big green toy.(HOBBY--PERSONAL BELONGINGS--- HAVING NOTHING TO DO WITH COMMERCE--SAYS SO RIGHT IN THE LITTLE BOOKIE!!!DON'T NEED TO RUN A LOG!!)

I'll be running a log.
Jim

 

[wsucougarx]

Say, what it that circular thing w/the hole in the middle and the two handles used for? I've got one that came with a truck and have been using it as a sledge hammer too cheap to get a real one I guess.

 

[nk14zp]

ground rod slide hamer

 

[mkcoen]

Love your stories. Amazes me all the support you get from the installations.
Looks like I will be heading your way soon, I won the Ft Sam lot today with the windshield, hard top, troop seats and pickup topper.
Where was the circus wagon? That is WWII.

Good thing I got home late last night or you would have paid more for the top.

All of the MVs in the pics were in what appeared to be a truck salvage yard about 10 miles east of El Paso. There wasn't a sign or anyone there but we were able to squeeze through the locked gate (oops, did I say that out loud?) (very loooong chain between gates) and snap some photos. What was the circus wagon used for?

If I had a little extra time today I could have grabbed your stuff as I'll be at the meeting tonight. Not sure where I could have put the pickup canopy but I guess I could have just tied a tow chain to it.

 

[maddawg308]

That white trailer looks like something flight-line related, and commercial, not military. Like something you'd see at an airport for handling luggage or aircraft servicing. Not sure, just has that look.

Is that an M764 auger truck at the junkyard? Wow, that would be something to save right there....

 

[Chow717]

great story...thanks for posting your trip!

 

[txdodge43man]

FYI My dad has former military vehicale plates on his M725, M715 and m135 and has never had any problems for cops. I also know a number of MV collectors in Houston that do not run plates on their MV's they just use the hood numbers I have been driveing my duce in houston Tx that way for may years.

If anyone ever tells you that in the state of TX you do not have to display license plates while driving a former military vehicle still painted in military colors, don't believe them.

If they pull out a copy of the TX statute 504.502 and show you that same information, don't believe them.

If you pull out a hard copy of the TX statute you keep in your cruiser, don't believe them.

If you call your SGT back at the State Patrol barracks and he tells you he's never head of any such BS and that a former military vehicle registered in the state of TX has to display "Former Military Vehicle" license plates, believe him.

Lucky I had purchased a Trip Permit to get on base so was able to wave "bye bye" to the nice young State Trooper without getting a ticket.

Now while I'm sure I could have gotten the ticket thrown out I'd prefer not to have to drive back to El Paso to do it.

And here's the pics of the generator:

I'm going to have to check the TMs to figure out what's missing from the one pic but everything else looked good.

 

[mkcoen]

Is that an M764 auger truck at the junkyard? Wow, that would be something to save right there....

It's in the same place. Unfortunately there wasn't any contact info around. Maybe FMJ can scope it out since he's in Las Cruces. Much shorter drive than mine.

 

[Pawnshop]

What happened when the trooper ran the door number? When that "plate number" came back to you he should have known what was up. I love it when a professional doesn't know their job.

 

[Pawnshop]

Looks like I will be heading your way soon, I won the Ft Sam lot today with the windshield, hard top, troop seats and pickup topper.

If I had won any of those trailers at Ft.Sam last week I would have also been competing with you on those parts

The troop seats in that lot looked too short for a M35, what do they fit?

 

[mkcoen]

If I had won any of those trailers at Ft.Sam last week I would have also been competing with you on those parts

The troop seats in that lot looked too short for a M35, what do they fit?

NDT said he thought the top was for a 900 series but I'm not sure about the rails.

The trooper didn't care about anything other than there were no plates. Contrary to most intelligent people I attempted to argue with a copy of the regulations but finally gave up and just handed him the trip permit.