Following this thread with interest-----just dawned on me once I started reading about potato farming----I got my A$$ chewed out because of one of these trucks!!
YEP, way back when I was younger (much!) I worked for a local spud farmer.Same deal, sometimes we couldn't get into the fields because of the mud.
So, he comes along with his new secret weapon-- a 211/135 (can't remember what variant) GMC 2 1/2 ton military truck equiped with a spud bed.
Assigns me as the driver. NOT FUN! Between my inexperiance as a driver (young, really young) and that crazy self shifting (I still say POSESSED) transmision, I just about tore the final chain platform off of the spud harvester.
Harvestor would go too fast/truck to slow--BANG hit the headboard with the chain (scream/hollar/fistshake) ---gas it to get the piler centered in the bed--trans would shift up --BANG into the tail board (scream/hollar/fist shake).
Repeat all day long---------
I now know(remember) why I have no interest in the post war GMC's
If you are interested, I know of another one of these for sale -- I can PM you for the details if you like.
JIm