January 11th, 2008.
The thought of an overdrive gear change would be interesting, given that my 1971 M35A2 empty maxs out at 53 MPH with the original 9:00x20:00 NDT's. She is, however scheduled for conversion to six 1100R20 Goodyear G177 Unisteels M+S Load Range "H", which give a single rating over 7,000 lbs each. Given that the truck is designed for 23,500 LBS GVW, and the tires can handle 35,000 lbs safely, I do belive there is a greater margin of safety then with the NDT's. However, I am curious as to the Goodyears speed rating, and I do realize that the increased diameter is going to increase the road speed, but decrease the torque output accordingly.
The conversion is being done for two reasons, FIRST: tp increase traction on wet and snowy roads and to lessen the chance of getting stuck in mud by "Floating" on the rear duals, Secondly: to reflect the next step conversion that would have occurred in the late 1990's/early 2002 period of truck scheduled for Operation Iraqi Freedom. This truck was by then seconded to the 88RRC, 300th QMC in Illinois, but it had participated in Desert Storm in 1991, and there are several areas that reflect that operation evident on the truck.
Keep up the good work, and if your OD gearing holds up in service, you may want to intice some of the equipment dealers to carry them in the future.
Thanks Again,
Sincerely,
Kyle F. McGrogan
1963 Mercedes Benz S404.114 Unimog (Swiss)
1971 Kaiser Jeep M35A2 Wo/W "Saddam's Nightmare" Vietnam and Desert Storm Veteran Deuce