Thursday, July 30, 2015

Going, going, ......

Go'in Fish'n

In the next few days I will be departing on my annual August break from computers. I doubt that I will be doing any fishing, but I will be absent from the keyboard until September.



This (mostly) Dodge pickup plays a role, along with Ned the Dog, in the upcoming move The Healer filmed recently in Nova Scotia. In these photos it was being transported to a shoot in Point Pleasant Park in Halifax. The containers in the background are stacked in the adjacent Halterm Container Terminal.


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Saturday, July 25, 2015

Now for Dessert

What better way to enjoy a cone than from a Chevrolet Step Van. Particularly from one built in the days when they had rounded shapes.


This 1950s-1960s unit was likely built by Grumman on the Chev chassis with a few Chev grille components thrown in. It was pumping out the soft icecream in Bedford, Nova Scotia on July 17.

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Friday, July 24, 2015

Everything from fish to chips

From the strange things on flatbeds department of Truckfax comes this selection of unusual loads moving through the port of Halifax.

First: Fish
Exactly a month ago I spotted three wide loads on heavy trailers - no trucks visible. I couldn't begin to guess what they were.



A close examination of labels revealed that they a line of fishmeal processing equipment from Haarslev Industries, a worldwide company based in Denmark. The loads were bound for Connors Brothers in Black's Harbour, NB. Due to their size they were restricted to night time travel hours, so I never did see whose trucks were hauling them.
http://www.haarslev.com/Business-Areas

The tonight I saw the second half: Potatoes 


This double row harvester, a used Spirit 8200 model, made by  AVR of Belgium was heading for Alberta.  Hauling it is specialized carrier Briway Carriers Inc of Alliston, ON. Interestingly the Briway owners are a potato farming family, but they have expanded into other specialties too. They have some very impressive trailers as you will also see from their website.

http://www.briwaycarriers.com/

If you want to know more abut the harvester here are a couple of informative links:
http://en.uniekum.co.za/products/harvesting/avr-spirit-8200/?id=145

http://www.avr.be/index.php?lng=en&id=1

The driver for this rig is actually based in Brussels, ON (not Belgium). His backhaul after this load will be another potato harvester from Idaho to Prince Edward Island.

He will only get as far as New Brunswick on Saturday and will have to lay up since he won't be able to run through Quebec on Sunday.

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Thursday, July 23, 2015

In for service

When I take my car to the Ford dealer for service I often see Ford trucks there too. In the last short while I seem to be seeing red.
The Municipality of the District of West Hants is served by the Uniacke + District VFD. This 2012 Ford F550 crew cab runs as Pumper Rescue 305, and was built as a mini-pumper/tanker/rescue by Metalfab.



Part of a 2011 order Halifax Fire + Emergency Services has three of these small rescue units in service. Built on a Ford F350 chassis it carries a Reading body with dual rears and a towing hitch. Numbered 11-517R,   it runs as Rescue 36 assigned to the Meagher's Grant station, a good 45 miles from the this Ford dealer, but still within Halifax.

Halifax also runs numerous utitlities, among them this 2002 GMC Sierra 4x4, numbered 02-280U. It is fitted with a communication and light package, but aside from the cap is pretty much an off the shelf pickup. It is assigned to general duties.

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Tuesday, July 21, 2015

Who's LAVs

A quartet of LAVs showed up on the waterfront July 21. Shrink wrapped for shipment, the LAVs showed no identification markings.


General Dynamics Land Systems in London, ON manufactures the rigs and has had contracts with many countries in the past, primarily Saudi Arabia. A huge 14 year contract for more LAVs for SANG (the Saudi Arabian National Guard) was signed last year, but deliveries are not expected to start until 2016. Although the deals are between the US and Saudi Arabia, Canada takes credit for them because the LAVs are built in Canada and exported through the Canadian Commercial Corp. However Saudi Arabia is free to buy "one-off" units directly too, and these usually receive no press coverage.
If not for Saudi Arabia, these four may then be part of an order for Columbia which is ongoing now.



In the past scores of the LAVs have been stockpiled in Halifax then shipped out en masse on Saudi Arabian ships. We will keep an eye open for more.


As usual it was shiny black and red Kenworths from Earl Paddock Transportation of Stoney Creek, ON that delivered the LAVs using B-trains. The company is now marketing itself as Paddock Transport International:  http://paddocktransport.com/

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Long arm grab makes long load

Amongsat the many pieces of machinery that have arrived in Halifax by ship over the last few days, this Terex Fuchs MHL360 caught my attention. It is specially built to handle scrap metal with an orange peel grab.


Not immediately obvious from the photo is the fact that the operator's cab is also mounted on an articulated hydraulic boom that can raise it to about half the height of the boom. The company's product literature shows more:  http://www.terex-fuchs.com/en/machines/product-range/mhl-360.html


Carrying the unit was S&M Trucking of Sydney, NS, with one of their Freightliners. It is equipped with a chrome bull bar - a most useful device for traveling in New Brunswick and Newfoundland with huge moose populations and Nova Scotia with deer in profusion.

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Monday, July 20, 2015

Mack victorious in battle for MSVS


 
Mack Defense LLC of Allentown, PA won the bid to supply the Canadian military with 1500 8X8 Standard Military Pattern trucks, 300 trailers and armoured protection kits in a $843 mn deal announced last week.

The trucks will be assembled in Quebec, creating 700 jobs before the expected 2017-2018 delivery and a five year, extentable in-service support program thereafter.

Many expected Oshkosh would get the job using a variant of their HEMTT (Heavy Expanded Military Tactical Truck) which is used by the US. (There may have been other bidders too, including BAE, Daimler, Navistar, Renault and MAN).

The much delayed program to replace 1980s era Canadian trucks, called the Medium Support Vehicle System (MSVS), built by Bombardier, started in 2006 but was canned a couple of times due to budget constraints and political timing.

So what will the new trucks look like?


(Armoured cabin version shown)


There will be several versions, including cargo, cargo with crane, load handling system (shown above), mobile repair, and gun tractor. Plus up to 150 can be fitted with the add-on armour kits.

Mack is owned by Volvo nowadays, but has managed to retain much of its engineering in house. However the Volvo bus subsidiary, Prevost Car, will assemble the trucks at its Ste-Claire, QC factory, southeast of Quebec City.

Other companies involved are Dumur Industries, of Saskatoon (armour), EODC Inc of Ottawa, part of IBD Deisenroth (armour), and Raydan of Edmonton (Link Suspension, twin steers, etc.,)

And yes, the will carry the bulldog on the front hood. 

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Saturday, July 18, 2015

International fire apparatus chassis - Part 2

The Town of Windsor, NS, favoured International chassis for its department for many years. This was their International fleet in 1991:


Built on an International chassis but with a Cincinnati cab, No.1 was the most impressively decorated truck, and was built by Thibault.

Number 3 was a similar unit, delivered in 1971 by Thibault, but much less decorated.



Pumper/Tanker No.2 was built by King in 1979 on a CO cab/chassis. Note that King filled in the large gap in the fender wells, making for a much nicer looking  rig.


Number 5 was a conventional cab with centre mount pump panel. It was built by Superior in 1987.

No.6 was a utility rescue dating from 1983.

Number 7, a 2000 gallon tanker with 625 gpm pump rode with a CO extended cab and tandem axle chassis, built by King. It did not have fairings on the wheel wells.


No.10 was a big 3200 gal tanker, dating from 1969 built with a Fort Wayne commercial tilt cab.

The department also ran two aerials, one being a King CM1, which was featured here before:
http://truckfax.blogspot.ca/2011/10/rare-cm-1s-made-it-to-nova-scotia.html
It is still on the department's roster, and was fighting a fire in Windsor just this week.

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Friday, July 17, 2015

International fire apparatus chassis - Part 1

It has been a long time since International built small tilt cabs. They were favoured by many fire departments because they were compact in size, but like most North American truck manufacturers International abandoned the small tilt cab market.
Few International tilt cabs are left in front line service, but four of their CO models live on at the Nova Scotia Firefighter School at Powder Mill Lake in the Halifax suburb of Waverley.

These two were the gifts of the Town of Truro, a Thibault 1050/100 ft aerial, dating from 1987  and a Superior 1050/1000 pumper/tanker from 1986.They still wear the trademark Truro white paint scheme..

Bridgewater donated this Thibault 85 ft aerial. Note the custom grille. It was originally delivered in 1981.

 An unbranded pumper numbered 840-SS-83 was donated by the town of Middleton.

For more on the school see: http://www.nsfs.ns.ca/.

Some more Internationals to follow in Part 2............

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Sunday, July 12, 2015

Road Trip Wrapup - Vocational Petes

The term "vocational" is used to describe truck chassis built to take on specialized roles, rather than general over the road use. Peterbilt, despite its reputation for high end highway tractors preferred by owner/operators, also has a large niche in the vocational field because their trucks are made to order. Some recently spotted Petes both on the road trips and at home are examples of specially equipped Petes.

Simard Suspension in Baie-St-Paul, QC built this big Pete for Lafarge. One interesting feature is that the power take off for the mixer is not mounted in an extended front bumper. I am sure the driver will appreciate it, since visibility will be enough of issue with that big square hood.

In for service at the dealer in Moncton, this line painting truck carries number 21465 for the New Brunswick Department of Transportation and Infrastructure. As Canada's only bilingual province it carries "Wet Paint" and "Peinture Fraiche" warnings on its front. They are so tiny I'm not sure why they bothered.
I do miss the old green colour of NB DoH trucks, but it seems universal now that highway department trucks are yellow.

Another seasonal use truck is CN's Air Forced One. As with most of CN's big trucks it carries Manitoba license plates.

Used to blow ice and snow out of switches and crossings, with jets of heated air, it nevertheless is not fitted as a hi-railer. The rear mudflap comes from RPM Tech / Tor Truck Equipment, which builds a variety of specialized trucks using Mack, Pete or other cabs.

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Wednesday, July 8, 2015

Road Trip #2 - Report #2 E-One for Stewiacke, NS

By now the Stewiacke and District Volunteer FD has probably taken delivery of this 2015 E-One Cyclone II pumper tanker.


The spectacular looking rig was wedged in between other trucks preventing a clear shot, and I did not take time to read the particulars on its Underwriter's plate.


On July 6 the engine appeared to be on its delivery trip from the builder or the dealer. Its number is E-1711 and it joins a roster of other interesting gear in the village of Stewiacke.
http://fire.wikia.com/wiki/Stewiacke_and_District_Volunteer_Fire_Department

Among the many pieces of apparatus Stewiacke has operated over the years I have photos of at least two.

The 1984 Ford C Series/ Superior was an 840/1200 pumper/tanker, and


on the evening of May 26, 1993, it and the members were exercising with their classic ladder truck:


The big mid-mount Bickle Seagrave service aerial appears to be one of about 1952 vintage.
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Tuesday, July 7, 2015

Road trip #2 - Report #1 - Scania, Freightliner

Another road trip through New Brunswick to Quebec last weekend turned up some more interesting finds.

I finally managed to stop in time to catch the famed Scania water truck, almost three years to the day after seeing it for the first time: (July 3, 2102 to July 6, 2015.)
http://truckfax.blogspot.ca/2012/07/scania-challenge.html

This vintage beast, certainly the only one in eastern Canada, continues to work for Maritime Road Recycling of Moncton, but works all over New Brunswick. http://maritimegroup.ca/index.html

These trucks were imported into the US for a time but are rarely seen in Canada.

I also keep turning up Freightliner COEs - I missed at least wo at high speed, but managed to find one standing still and one barely moving:



This one has been carefully fitted out with a lot of extra chrome, but looks ready for some repainting on the flat front. Its long wheelbase suggests a western origin.

Now working for All Set Transport of Grand Falls, NB, this long wheelbase unit may have been another western unit or even a Manitoulin Transport unit. If the latter, it has had its second steering axle removed, which might explain the gap under the sleeper.
More July 13
I heard from the owner of this rig who tells me it is a 2007 Argosy with a Detroit engine, 18 speed transmission and 3.90 rears, originally ordered through the dealer in Sault Ste.Marie, ON. The truck was on the return leg of a very long haul carrying a John Deere 350G from the factory in North Carolina to Goose Bay, Labrador - a trip just shy of 2,000 miles (3200 km) one way!
1116 km of that is from Baie Comeau north through Labrador City and and east over the Trans Labrador Highway through Churchill Falls - have a look:
https://www.google.ca/maps/dir/Baie-Comeau,+QC/Happy+Valley-Goose+Bay,+NL/@52.388419,-64.4268601,6z/data=!4m14!4m13!1m5!1m1!1s0x4c94099ff6256a2b:0x7f80a4113bb37945!2m2!1d-68.1503944!2d49.2212971!1m5!1m1!1s0x4c7b7a8694669de5:0xe0310cf21c3faf20!2m2!1d-60.3260842!2d53.3016826!3e0
and more here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trans-Labrador_Highway
I spotted the truck coming off the ferry at Rivière-du-Loup, QC on his return.

Thursday, July 2, 2015

Paccars and colour schemes

With so many trucks delivered in factory white these days, it is a pleasure to see trucks carrying custom or company paint schemes. Paccar's Peterbilts and Kenworths tend to be built to order, and special paint jobs go with the territory. Some recent examples.

 Well painted KW is enjoying a second career hauling excavators. (New Minas, NS.)



 British racing green and white makes a slick look for this Pete, especially with some gold trim.. (Woodstock, NB)

Bigfreight from Steinbach, MB has landed in Atlantic Canada recently with their standout swoops. (Woodstock, NB)

 Single colour KWs at the dealer in Dieppe, NB, look uninteresting...

next to one with some nice detailing, particularly with the classic long hood variant.

Pete low cab forward fueler at the Colbrook, NS delaer is likely destined for CFB Greenwood. Note it is carrying Tremcar mudflaps.
According to the Tremcar website, they are building 26 of these fuelers for the Department of National Defence. The trucks are assembled at their London, ON plant. http://www.tremcar.com/en/

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