M3A1 Halftrack Discovered

[CycleJay]

From the way it all looks to me.

It does not look like any of it is worth saving, but pour enough money into something,
maybe a miracle or two can happen.

It is sad to see that all those vehicles have rotted away in those woods though.
What a shame.

 

[73m819]

OH, it is worth saving

 

[lacoda56]

When it's all that's left, it's definately worth saving! There haven't been any built since '45 so parts are at an ungodly premium.

 

[spicergear]

$400 per ton for unprocessed steel in the wild? Yeah, right! Another family that's talked themselves into believing everything the old man had is on a par with the current exchange rate for gold. I've seen it too many times, someone dies and the bast***s come out of the woodwork wanting their "fair share"!

There's a place near my far where a guy is doing the same thing...everything he has is worth gold prices. A guy I used to know in the area had an Uncle or something whose property backed that other knucklehead's property. The knucklehead in question helped his dad out who you could actually talk to and purchase stuff hear and there at...not the worst price. Well, this guy I knew gave some money to the old man for some parts and the old man died. He told the son and son told him he was out of luck AND hid the parts in question. My buddy and another guy decided to take a stroll one night and did some shopping at 'midnight small stores' and literally ROLLED a 409 BBC across the field to his Uncle's place. So, not that I'm condoning any of that but when people are jerks...you certainly feel less bad.

 

[battlecr]

From the way it all looks to me.

It does not look like any of it is worth saving, but pour enough money into something,
maybe a miracle or two can happen.

It is sad to see that all those vehicles have rotted away in those woords though.
What a shame.

Cyclejay, believe it or not that half track is a gold mine of parts. I have 2 that are in worse shape but worth every dime I paid for them. I've already pull enough parts that they have paid for them selves. If it was closer I'd go after it.

Don G.

 

[phil2968]

I went to North Georgia Tech and Vocational school back in 1983 right down the road from there! I wish I had been to MVs when I was 18 years old!
Adam the bus would make a awesome Ga rally hooch!

 

[lazybum]

Gee, I wonder if they would just sell the pintle hitch? Of course I would have to cut it out with a torch like some bozo did on my M2

 

[glcaines]

I went back today and looked at the halftrack again. It is still there, although another guy was manning the site. He informed me that they have had a significant number of phone calls due to my thread. He also said that he believes the family will take $2500.00 for it. This is undoubtedly a very good deal since the entire drive train and many other parts are there, but I don't need another project. I also spent some more time looking around. This place is huge I saw probably another several hundred trucks and cars and I haven't even seen half of it. The place is thoroughly overgrown with trees and weeds and the vehicles are crammed in almost touching. The place is a goldmine for old car and truck parts. I found an old M35 gasser that is missing the bed, but still has the engine. I was told that there was also a tank retriever in there someplace, but I couldn't find it and the only guy there was manning the office and phone and couldn't leave. He also told me that a recycling company had made a bid for the entire contents. They were going to come in with a shredder and shred and bale everything on site and had no interest in selling parts. This would be a real shame. I don't understand why the family that owns the place doesn't make more of an effort to sell off some of the vehicles and parts. Many of the vehicles are intact and have never been wrecked. Again, if anyone wants the contact information, please send me a PM.

 

[Blythewoodjoe]

I was wondering if anybody had gotten it yet. I called and had made plans to drive my M813 and equipment trailer to pick it up, but $2500 was too much for me. It took a week to get the price out of them. I'm not saying it's not worth it, but it's not worth that much to me (I'm poor).

 

[73m819]

A few years or so ago, i tried for months to get a price, finially just gave up

 

[GAB]

Is it still there?

 

[CARNAC]

I followed up on this. The halftrack and vast majority of the old yard has been scrapped.

I was too late but not sure how I could have pulled off saving it any sooner. Missed another chance at a halftrack. F and double F!

 

[Danger Ranger]

Good to know Carnac. Thanks for the update.

 

[Mack Attack]

$400/ton ! ? where thats about 3.5x what it s here ! if they don't know you its $75/ton if they know you and you bring steady volume its $135/ton. So lots of trucks have just been left to rot which would have normally been recycled already . . .

 

[wb9btz]

I have many very fond memories of driving a halftrack around as a teenager in the mid-1960s. The better ones are when we would chase the neighboring farmer's cows back across the creek to their own property. Neither the halftrack or the cows were very maneuverable!

Actually, the school where I went had two of them. Both were originally equipped with quad fifties. We had stripped one of them down into a flatbed and this one was kept running. The other still had all the armor and the turrent (minus the barrels of course) and was our parts source. After I graduated from high school I lost track of them and wonder to this day what became of them.