Augdog1964
Member
- 522
- 15
- 18
- Location
- Richmond, IN
Hey all,
Well as promised... details of the latest armor move. Point of disclosure, this move is coming from Jacques Littlefield's collection, which sat on top of a mountain, requiring the trucks and load to move through narrow residential streets. So its not a picnic from the start.
The Leo 1 and Swiss Pz61 are finally here. The BTR70 made it easy and simple, not heavy and just slightly wide. However the tanks were a different story.
Travail #1: Non working armor is expensive to move... The stuff at Jacques sat, it was more a static collection than a working collection. The Leo 1 runs like a dream (Benz 800 hp 10 cyl diesel... it literally shakes your insides), however one warning light makes the unit not want to shift. Both of the Leos have this issue. This then required a crane to pick up the Leo and load it.
Travail #2: Working armor doesn't always stay working... The Pz61 was running fine out there, moving around etc. Loading day came, and you guessed it, she wouldn't run. Fuel issue... so another crane fee...
Travail #3: Transport is fraught with issues.... Pz61, location Nevada... State Trooper pulls over the tank for a "routine" inspection... apparently in our great country now, any commercial carrier can be pulled over and the cargo inspected?? WTH? Anyway the officer popped the hatch and went inside. He saw the fake 105 shells and lost it. The next thing we know the broker and I are getting calls that we are transporting dangerous ordnance, the SWAT team is called, ATF is called, and an EOD unit is put on standby. Tank and truck are obviously impounded. Despite our repeated statements that these are all dummy cartridges, they require ATF approval. We have to dig through the ATF release (another story) that allowed the tanks to move from Jacques... We provide the ATF original release, and MVTF also provides a statement. They relent and the tank is released after a 24 hour hold.
Travail #4: Heavy Haul is LONG. Ok the Pz61 weighs around 39 tons, the Leo 1 weighs 43 tons, both heavy and wide, but luckily not superheavy. Moving form the eastern states, both tanks would have just required a drop neck, w/ three rear axles and a two axle stringer. HOWEVER western states are much different, some do not measure weight by the axle like eastern states, but by the tire. SO, the Leo 1 NOW required a two axle stringer, three axles on the trailer, a two axle jeep (goes between the trailer and truck), and a 4 axle truck... total axles... 11.. total tires... 42. This made the entire unit over 125 feet long. FUN FACT... this type of unit can never back up.. so you guessed it, this is more expense, and routing requires no backing... along with the sundry permits. Forget close 90 degree turns... and NO tight maneuvers. My 60 ton Chieftain did not require this much trailer from Baltimore. The heavy haul rig alone weighed 87,000 lbs.
Travail #5: Truckers don't know how to drive at times. The Leo then comes in, all 125 feet. We had to drop the jeep (between trailer and truck) in order to even remotely make the 90 degree turn on to our road. So we detach on the turnout and run the jeep down. Come back and hitch truck... move to make the turn... and the truck almost hits a concrete telephone pole with my Leo 1 (envision me screaming and pushing on the Leo1 in a vain attempt to move it away from danger LOL! it happened). So now stuck and totally blocking a state road (BOTH lanes) we resort to chaining the stringer (rear added helper axles) with come alongs and pulling it off the ground so the truck can slightly go in reverse, then dropping the stringer to go forward, then pulling it up again etc. etc etc until we can make the turn.
Travail #6: Weather is an issue and DON'T schedule two on a day. Both tanks were set to arrive the same day. SO the team is assembled, and the 8x8 Mk48/15a1 is standing by to pull the units off. Who planned the driving rainstorm and SNOW? Ever seen what a semi with heavy haul does to a field in the rain? Ever seen how quickly a rig can get stuck? Suffice it to say the Mk48 earned her keep. She actually pulled the entire rig backward with the brakes locked! YOU MUST have the correct equipment to make the process easier and safer. With two units, unforseen issues can set you back...
Travail #7: Non working tanks don't mean easy delivery, exactly the opposite. SO since both were not moving we were going to just pull them off the trailer with the Mk48/15a1. We hitch to the Pz. 61 (first to show), and NOTHING. During the trip in the rain, the brakes locked, which we surmised was a parking brake feature that auto sets when the system is shut down, and/or when hydraulic pressure subsides. Since we can't start the unit, the parking brake cannot come off. WHAT NOW? Long story short, we finally got the APU to run for a short time and by pumping the pedal, and a healthy pull by the 48, the brakes came off. Set back about 2 hours. Trucker complaining and calling company... lunch provided.
Travail #8: The Leo 1 finally gets on to the property (see Travail #5) and she pulls off easy. We first have to crane the jeep (8,500 lbs) up with the Mk48 and set it on the trailer (warning they never tell you this is required). NOW its dark and the truck is stuck and its snowing after pouring most of the day. We postpone any further action till 7:30 next morning. Next morning Mk48 is called back and we chain it to the end of the trailer, and the entire unit is now only 95 feet long. We then commence to pulling the rig out, and him driving forward repeatedly until the unit is almost lined up with the road, but it now clearly will not clear the mailbox, and will end up in the neighbors field. After a strong verbal altercation, the trucker relents and drives the pin out of the stinger allowing it to move. I pull the stringer over with the Mk48 allowing us back and align the trailer with the road. WE THEN have to pull the trailer and truck in reverse, 1/2 mile down the road while the trucker is going into the ditch on the left and right sides, as HE HAS NO IDEA HOW TO BACK A TRAILER. We finally get to the state highway we originally blocked, and have to make the 90 degree turn with the trailer. By this point BiffJ says just pull him through, I make the turn, gun it and begin to pull the entire trailer sideways, dragging it in the direction it needed to go.... Trucker SLAMS his brakes on... (Mk48 just keeps pulling). We finally got the trailer drug over and the rig makes it out. Goodbye.
Travail #9: Small issues can stop you cold, and diagnosis can take time. The Pz61 is diagnosed after a day of crawling through her belly and in the engine bay. We had a seized fuel pump... that is pulled and rebuilt... BiffJ saves the day. APU starts and runs, but main engine won't turn over. More diagnosis, and we find the linkage to the main engine and the Transfer Case has been disconnected (which WE did trying to pull her off the trailer) so we have to pull the tank with a 5 ton till the lever will reengage... once it does she starts and goes to the barn. BEAUTIFUL tank.
Travail #10: Leo 1 still with warning light... if you know Leo 1s call us... she needs to get inside! We suspect fluid levels, which are being checked today, as she still neutral steers, and when you apply the brakes the light sometimes goes out. More on that later!
If you like armor be prepared to respond to anything!
Pics attached...
Well as promised... details of the latest armor move. Point of disclosure, this move is coming from Jacques Littlefield's collection, which sat on top of a mountain, requiring the trucks and load to move through narrow residential streets. So its not a picnic from the start.
The Leo 1 and Swiss Pz61 are finally here. The BTR70 made it easy and simple, not heavy and just slightly wide. However the tanks were a different story.
Travail #1: Non working armor is expensive to move... The stuff at Jacques sat, it was more a static collection than a working collection. The Leo 1 runs like a dream (Benz 800 hp 10 cyl diesel... it literally shakes your insides), however one warning light makes the unit not want to shift. Both of the Leos have this issue. This then required a crane to pick up the Leo and load it.
Travail #2: Working armor doesn't always stay working... The Pz61 was running fine out there, moving around etc. Loading day came, and you guessed it, she wouldn't run. Fuel issue... so another crane fee...
Travail #3: Transport is fraught with issues.... Pz61, location Nevada... State Trooper pulls over the tank for a "routine" inspection... apparently in our great country now, any commercial carrier can be pulled over and the cargo inspected?? WTH? Anyway the officer popped the hatch and went inside. He saw the fake 105 shells and lost it. The next thing we know the broker and I are getting calls that we are transporting dangerous ordnance, the SWAT team is called, ATF is called, and an EOD unit is put on standby. Tank and truck are obviously impounded. Despite our repeated statements that these are all dummy cartridges, they require ATF approval. We have to dig through the ATF release (another story) that allowed the tanks to move from Jacques... We provide the ATF original release, and MVTF also provides a statement. They relent and the tank is released after a 24 hour hold.
Travail #4: Heavy Haul is LONG. Ok the Pz61 weighs around 39 tons, the Leo 1 weighs 43 tons, both heavy and wide, but luckily not superheavy. Moving form the eastern states, both tanks would have just required a drop neck, w/ three rear axles and a two axle stringer. HOWEVER western states are much different, some do not measure weight by the axle like eastern states, but by the tire. SO, the Leo 1 NOW required a two axle stringer, three axles on the trailer, a two axle jeep (goes between the trailer and truck), and a 4 axle truck... total axles... 11.. total tires... 42. This made the entire unit over 125 feet long. FUN FACT... this type of unit can never back up.. so you guessed it, this is more expense, and routing requires no backing... along with the sundry permits. Forget close 90 degree turns... and NO tight maneuvers. My 60 ton Chieftain did not require this much trailer from Baltimore. The heavy haul rig alone weighed 87,000 lbs.
Travail #5: Truckers don't know how to drive at times. The Leo then comes in, all 125 feet. We had to drop the jeep (between trailer and truck) in order to even remotely make the 90 degree turn on to our road. So we detach on the turnout and run the jeep down. Come back and hitch truck... move to make the turn... and the truck almost hits a concrete telephone pole with my Leo 1 (envision me screaming and pushing on the Leo1 in a vain attempt to move it away from danger LOL! it happened). So now stuck and totally blocking a state road (BOTH lanes) we resort to chaining the stringer (rear added helper axles) with come alongs and pulling it off the ground so the truck can slightly go in reverse, then dropping the stringer to go forward, then pulling it up again etc. etc etc until we can make the turn.
Travail #6: Weather is an issue and DON'T schedule two on a day. Both tanks were set to arrive the same day. SO the team is assembled, and the 8x8 Mk48/15a1 is standing by to pull the units off. Who planned the driving rainstorm and SNOW? Ever seen what a semi with heavy haul does to a field in the rain? Ever seen how quickly a rig can get stuck? Suffice it to say the Mk48 earned her keep. She actually pulled the entire rig backward with the brakes locked! YOU MUST have the correct equipment to make the process easier and safer. With two units, unforseen issues can set you back...
Travail #7: Non working tanks don't mean easy delivery, exactly the opposite. SO since both were not moving we were going to just pull them off the trailer with the Mk48/15a1. We hitch to the Pz. 61 (first to show), and NOTHING. During the trip in the rain, the brakes locked, which we surmised was a parking brake feature that auto sets when the system is shut down, and/or when hydraulic pressure subsides. Since we can't start the unit, the parking brake cannot come off. WHAT NOW? Long story short, we finally got the APU to run for a short time and by pumping the pedal, and a healthy pull by the 48, the brakes came off. Set back about 2 hours. Trucker complaining and calling company... lunch provided.
Travail #8: The Leo 1 finally gets on to the property (see Travail #5) and she pulls off easy. We first have to crane the jeep (8,500 lbs) up with the Mk48 and set it on the trailer (warning they never tell you this is required). NOW its dark and the truck is stuck and its snowing after pouring most of the day. We postpone any further action till 7:30 next morning. Next morning Mk48 is called back and we chain it to the end of the trailer, and the entire unit is now only 95 feet long. We then commence to pulling the rig out, and him driving forward repeatedly until the unit is almost lined up with the road, but it now clearly will not clear the mailbox, and will end up in the neighbors field. After a strong verbal altercation, the trucker relents and drives the pin out of the stinger allowing it to move. I pull the stringer over with the Mk48 allowing us back and align the trailer with the road. WE THEN have to pull the trailer and truck in reverse, 1/2 mile down the road while the trucker is going into the ditch on the left and right sides, as HE HAS NO IDEA HOW TO BACK A TRAILER. We finally get to the state highway we originally blocked, and have to make the 90 degree turn with the trailer. By this point BiffJ says just pull him through, I make the turn, gun it and begin to pull the entire trailer sideways, dragging it in the direction it needed to go.... Trucker SLAMS his brakes on... (Mk48 just keeps pulling). We finally got the trailer drug over and the rig makes it out. Goodbye.
Travail #9: Small issues can stop you cold, and diagnosis can take time. The Pz61 is diagnosed after a day of crawling through her belly and in the engine bay. We had a seized fuel pump... that is pulled and rebuilt... BiffJ saves the day. APU starts and runs, but main engine won't turn over. More diagnosis, and we find the linkage to the main engine and the Transfer Case has been disconnected (which WE did trying to pull her off the trailer) so we have to pull the tank with a 5 ton till the lever will reengage... once it does she starts and goes to the barn. BEAUTIFUL tank.
Travail #10: Leo 1 still with warning light... if you know Leo 1s call us... she needs to get inside! We suspect fluid levels, which are being checked today, as she still neutral steers, and when you apply the brakes the light sometimes goes out. More on that later!
If you like armor be prepared to respond to anything!
Pics attached...
Thank you for all warnings and I am glad in the end everything worked out.
