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Oshkosh P-4 Fire Crashtruck Preservation

m1010plowboy

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Any news?

Pics?

Anything?!
It's kinda funny you should ask because Demon and I had a phone conversation about Jellybean just the other day. The trucks usually wait around the farm until the right people come along and Jellybean's story isn't over. We know it's heavy. .....HDN heavy lol. Gave it a little tug with a 5 ton today on frozen ground and Jellybean is going to need more persuasion then a little 5 ton.

The truck came from Fort Indian Town Gap and I gotta tell you the American spirit was strong out here today. It's not often we get a visit from an Eagle this size.

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or get to see gear like this rolling by.


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Mullaney

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I WISH I could have presrved that machine....Such a shame someone with better intent did not get to own it...BIG sighhhhhhhhhhhhhh.
and wanders off........to..........find...........a

tissue
.
Yes Sir... I have shopped several times on GP hoping to find a crash truck. I found several USMC versions but they seem just a little out of my price range. Especially the one I found up in Mooresville and I thought maybe a preview of it might be possible. Kinda got told no, so I just decided to abandon that idea for now.
 

m1010plowboy

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Alright Jellybean lovers, we need a distraction, let's do something fun....but nothing with balloons.

I found a little budget to explore Jellybean more. Head gaskets aren't expensive if that's all it is. I have invented time to take stuff apart and look for problems. We're planning on good weather to dive into the 1693 before April.

My decade long distraction isn't quite over but we need to manage Jellybean. Whether it's repairable with the budget that I have, we leave it in mothballs, have folks fund raise to get this girl driven back to Fort Indian Town Gap, drop at the Oshkosh museum or she gets listed for sale, we'll make a plan.

I've talked to Cat boys that say infield repairs are a nightmare and a Brent that says it's just nuts and bolts. I'm going with the Brent. If there are some Brents out there that have some 1693 exploration experience, let's hear what you've done. I'm in way over my head but have support.

A little recap on earlier efforts and an agreed upon statement of facts,..........

That, P4 was shut off by PO after overheating before 2012.

That, PO's last use for truck prior to overheat plugged radiator with Canada thistle. If it's not the Geese it's the thistle.

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That, two Dave's went through pre-start inspection, placed batteries, rolled the engine over with ease....almost a decade ago. Engine oil was checked and checked before roll over.

That, anti-freeze was purchased but not added until diagnosis said it was cool to spend money.

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That, diesel smoke began to rise from the radiator overflow almost immediately upon rolling engine over.

That, diagnosis was stopped and this symptom could simply be a wee tiny little heat bulge in the head gasket, no other damage, nothing to see here.

Current evaluation,.........

That, the oil in Jellybean is not milky

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That, ole' Jellybean built fluid in the engine oil holding spot since that day or on that day.

That, she may have built magical oil/diesel mix while we were doing that original testing. I don't recall checking fluid after we tried to turn it.

That, it says right on the dipstick "Do not overfill" so nobody added oil. A head gasket could let exhaust out but I'm trying to picture how it let diesel into the crankcase.... more imagination required.


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That, this bracket is broken and if this ole Cat runs, we're going to need to fix that that and that.

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That, we have books and pictures so plowboy can begin to understand what he's diving into.

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That, we should be on the lookout for the big ol' 18-22.5 rubber shoes jellybean will want one day....if she rolls and runs.

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m1010plowboy

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Where are my rubber and rimmer guys???

Will this 20 inch 5 ton rim fit the P4 Oshkosh.....for loading only. Jellybean has one tire that won't take air for some reason. I have surplus 900 20's I can slam on the yeller 5 ton rim but really would like to know the effort is going to be a win.......

We get the energy around July 4 to show the cousins down South we think of them. This July 4 is extra special and I need Jellybean ready to winch on to a trailer............something's happening here, what it is ain't exactly clear, stop hey what's that sound everybody look what's going down......


In a perfect World we find a used 18-22.5 to slam on to make loading easier. Alternative tire sizes appear to be 445/65 R 22.5 (not D) or S825......New tire costs are between $730.00 and $786.49... Sailun brand ...... so far we've skunked out on used but keep hunting locally.

I did the tape measure work and the bolt pattern, bolt spacing and that big hole in the middle all seem to match. Those 5 ton rims came all the way from the Eastern U.S. with 11:00 - 20's on them for Goose the Deuce. Some crazy canuck hauled 6 fairly new....... $50.00 each..... rubbers and rims all the way to the 53 parallel for me....no charge for the hauling. That's Seano11 spending his own cash to keep the hobby rolling and I hope to keep paying it forward.

Will they fit?
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marchplumber

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Where are my rubber and rimmer guys???

Will this 20 inch 5 ton rim fit the P4 Oshkosh.....for loading only. Jellybean has one tire that won't take air for some reason. I have surplus 900 20's I can slam on the yeller 5 ton rim but really would like to know the effort is going to be a win.......

We get the energy around July 4 to show the cousins down South we think of them. This July 4 is extra special and I need Jellybean ready to winch on to a trailer............something's happening here, what it is ain't exactly clear, stop hey what's that sound everybody look what's going down......


In a perfect World we find a used 18-22.5 to slam on to make loading easier. Alternative tire sizes appear to be 445/65 R 22.5 (not D) or S825......New tire costs are between $730.00 and $786.49... Sailun brand ...... so far we've skunked out on used but keep hunting locally.

I did the tape measure work and the bolt pattern, bolt spacing and that big hole in the middle all seem to match. Those 5 ton rims came all the way from the Eastern U.S. with 11:00 - 20's on them for Goose the Deuce. Some crazy canuck hauled 6 fairly new....... $50.00 each..... rubbers and rims all the way to the 53 parallel for me....no charge for the hauling. That's Seano11 spending his own cash to keep the hobby rolling and I hope to keep paying it forward.

Will they fit?
View attachment 926679View attachment 926678
Try just the rim first? See if it "fits"? If it does, then do tire work? Unless you desire hard labor for possibly no reason?
 

m1010plowboy

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Try just the rim first? See if it "fits"? If it does, then do tire work? Unless you desire hard labor for possibly no reason?
I had to play guitar tonight and asked the question to avoid the labour. lol If someone said they don't fit, I'll have fingers to play tomorrow. If someone said they absolutely most certainly fit, I'd need to lift things and risk breaking a pickin' nail. A 445 / 65r 22.5 on rim is in the works but bush wrecker timing means Jellybean should come out of the hole before an expensive trailer shows up. A $125.00 / hr tire truck operator that doesn't play guitar would need to drive to the bush to do the swap so just pickin' for info before anything gets lifted.
 

m1010plowboy

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Not many pics because wrecker guy kept me busy after making me read the book. This had to happen.

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Jelly bean came out of the hole like a handful of Jelly Beans at a dime machine.

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The rubber issue is solved with a used 445/65 R22.5 off a cement truck that just happened to show up somewhere on July 4th. That sounds like a good day to put a tire on a Fire Truck and pay a little extra tribute to those emergency responders....wherever they are.......with many working on July 4th.

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The flat tire had a sidewall split and we weren't going to hurt it more. Moving 30,760 lbs before it rains is a good idea. We'll still find out if the 5 ton rim fits the P4. When they pull the flat off and nobody is looking, I'll slip a 5 ton rim on for photos.

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m1010plowboy

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Drive-shaft removal 5-ton preparation for transport.

Not many pics but I did check with the professionals at youtube before removing the 5 ton drive shaft. U-joint removal on a 5-ton looks scary......https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdi5VX-X6hk

It turns out if you maintain your truck like the Fire Department would, the U- joints come apart real easy. Pulled the bolts out of the caps, used a 4' pry bar with beef belly pressure and 3 cups slid out. Squeezed the slip shaft forward, discussing with the u-joint which way it wanted to come off the yolk and there it is....off.

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I was so impressed with the clean grease that came out of the slip shaft, I took a picture. I should have cleaned it up at that point and you should too if you spill grease from your slip joint. Sometime later I rolled in it, didn't know it, climbed in the truck.....and then I cleaned up the grease.

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I think Jellybean and the TM's will be around for a long time but I wanted to grab some pics of the more interesting schematics before their adventure, closer to the 49th. Everyone loves a good lube chart.

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m1010plowboy

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THE SHOE FITS, the Shoe fits and the Shoe fits.

Happy 4th of July folks. For anyone wondering if the 5 ton wheel off a 5 ton cargo truck fits the 5 ton Oshkosh 240 it's a yes. The shoe fit.

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For anyone wondering what's happening with Jellybean, the shoe fits. I'll let the new owners tell their story but it started off with a guy and a girl that wanted a command truck. They came to the G749 farm to get the command truck ........and the girl saw Jellybean. Next thing we know the Dad of the guy wanted a cargo truck then the guy and the girl came to the G749 farm, took the cargo truck.....and the girl saw Jellybean. The girl told the guy the shoe fit, Jellybean was going to be her project, then the guy and the girl told me ,......Next thing we know the guy and the girl came to the G749 farm, the girl saw Jellybean, the shoe fit, .........and she took it.

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The 445/65 R22.5 off a cement truck fit the Imperial 18 - 22.5 Oshkosh by gosh wheel. The shoe fit.

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It was real cool coming out of the trees and seeing the kids bouncing around the truck to get it ready.

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Ironside made loading easy with a snatch block winch pull.

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Not many pics again busy with the load but I'm real sure we'll see and likely hear more from Jellybean,

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Last edited:

marchplumber

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THE SHOE FITS, the Shoe fits and the Shoe fits.

Happy 4th of July folks. For anyone wondering if the 5 ton wheel off a 5 ton cargo truck fits the 5 ton Oshkosh 240 it's a yes. The shoe fit.

View attachment 927191

For anyone wondering what's happening with Jellybean, the shoe fits. I'll let the new owners tell their story but it started off with a guy and a girl that wanted a command truck. They came to the G749 farm to get the command truck ........and the girl saw Jellybean. Next thing we know the Dad of the guy wanted a cargo truck then the guy and the girl came to the G749 farm, took the cargo truck.....and the girl saw Jellybean. The girl told the guy the shoe fit, Jellybean was going to be her project, then the guy and the girl told me ,......Next thing we know the guy and the girl came to the G749 farm, the girl saw Jellybean, the shoe fit, .........and she took it.

View attachment 927193

The 445/65 R22.5 off a cement truck fit the Imperial 18 - 22.5 Oshkosh by gosh wheel. The shoe fit.

View attachment 927189

It was real cool coming out of the trees and seeing the kids bouncing around the truck to get it ready.

View attachment 927188View attachment 927192

Ironside made loading easy with a snatch block winch pull.

View attachment 927194

Not many pics again busy with the load but I'm real sure we'll see and likely hear more from Jellybean,

View attachment 927195
Are they "members" here? Long road to new domicile? ALWAYS a joy when History finds a new protector! THUMBS UP!
 

MyothersanM1

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How close are 5-ton rims to the 10-lug rims we see on most heavy commercial trucks? I thought they were interchangeable.
The two-piece 5-ton OEM rims are a 20" tube-type rim. Most commercial trucks are running 22.5" and 24.5" tubeless rims. Bolt circles, 11.25", are the same. The disc offset, and backspacing are near identical. I put tubeless-type 22.5" X 8.25" rears and 22.5" X 12.25" (4.75" centerline offset) fronts on an M818 with no problems.
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HDN

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The two-piece 5-ton OEM rims are a 20" tube-type rim. Most commercial trucks are running 22.5" and 24.5" tubeless rims. Bolt circles, 11.25", are the same. The disc offset, and backspacing are near identical. I put tubeless-type 22.5" X 8.25" rears and 22.5" X 12.25" (4.75" centerline offset) fronts on an M818 with no problems.
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Good to know, thanks! A good thing for the heavy truck crowd to know (y)

And nice truck you have there :cool: Whenever I may get a 5-ton I'd consider a wheel-tire combination like that!
 
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