Beverly Hillbillies

[rickf]

This is where you need to mention the fact that the halftrack does not have its original armor on it. Otherwise that rollback would be sitting there looking at the stars. Even without I would imagine it made the rollback squat a bit.

[Horst]

I was about to ask how heavy that beast is.

Why is it moved?

[m3a1]

Well, no...the original armor wouldn't weigh quite a bit more. What you see there (while it is not actual hardened armor) is still the thickness of the original armor which was only face-hardened rather than homogenous.

Even the floor pan in the back (which is actually that of an M16 half track) is at least as heavy as that of an M2 because it is longer than the M2 and also has ammo-can lockers in the floor. So, all in all, the floorpan is probably heavier.

The most weight reduction would be that of the internal support surround (which is only partially there) and the absence of buckets full of splinter shields and hinges the fasteners that hold all of those metal things together and sadly, the gun ring surround which always seems to be the first thing to be discarded.

We can also add a little weight because the faux armor on the rear and the floorpan is the length of a M3 (this is actually a M2). The REAL weight savings is represented in its lack of kit. Stats for the M2 half track car would usually be representative of the vehicle fully loaded, wet, and with all its associated kit, radios, weapons and ammunition stores.

What you see here is just a big empty box which, arguably, makes this particular track one helluva lot more user-friendly at the moment.

[rickf]

I know the all original one that the guy brings to the Virginia rally requires a 12 ton trailer and he said it is all his deuce could do to pull it. His five ton pulls it but he knows it is there. I was all over that thing and there is some SERIOUS steel on it. He told me that you do not work on the body on it without a gantry and hoist. There are no light body parts. He told me what it weighed but I forget now. I think original is nice if you have it but light is practical if you do not. Much easier on the hard to find and very expensive tracks and you might actually get 4 MPG out of it!

[m3a1]

Horst, the half track has some stuck valves (a very common issue with flat head engines) so it isn't running at the moment. I spent four years in Afghanistan and during that time it just sat and sat. When I would come home on leave I just didn't have the gitty-up to do much of anything.

Mea Culpa.

It ran when parked (and it ran very well, by the way) but.... time and tide. This machine got parked around back but the lot behind me is going to be developed and so, it needed to be brought out of there and back up front where it will be far easier for me to work on it. Where it was in the back was covered, but on gravel. Around front it will be uncovered, but on concrete; a far better prospect for what needs to be done.

There are no concours vehicles at the Beverly Hillbillies'. Around here, everything is a work in progress. And that is why I say...

There's always SOMETHING going on at the Beverly Hillbillies!

Cheers,
TJ

[m3a1]

Rick, keep in mind he is also pulling the weight of that trailer so, add right around 7000-8000 lbs to his total. Add to that all the toys he no doubt hung on his half track it is no small wonder his truck was struggling. Half track owners are notorious for loading their machines down with everything, including the kitchen sink. Were they to actually be hauling a full crew, which on a M2 is 9-11 people in a tiny space...well, let's just say it's easy to figure out how the bustle racks came to be so popular. Images of WWII half tracks in the field look like The Grapes of Wrath.

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I'm totally guessing but I'd say my half track would come in right around 12,000 lbs. Now, if we begin talking about rolling weight...well, that's not all that bad on a paved surface with new tires up front (which it has) and those big wide tracks in the back (very little ground pressure there). Rolling weight changes a lot on unpaved surfaces but Dirty Gertie made short work of that...

All of this kinda makes you appreciate how little trouble your M151 presents, doesn't it?

I suppose some of you might like a little half track walk-around. The 'bad' and the 'ugly' far outnumber the 'good' on this machine...I assure you. But this half track is really representative of one of the stranger things about Texas that most folks up north have so little appreciation for. The state is so HUGE, and everything of a military vehicle nature is scattered so far and wide that the average Texas collector is always, always facing unreasonably high transportation costs. Costs, which in the case of my purchase of this half track, actually worked to my benefit.

If the collector is a small fish with limited financial resources (like I am) it makes having and enjoying lot of things almost impossible. It is also one of the reasons I am such a notorious cheapskate. The story of how I came to have this half track is a good one. It was NOT right around the corner...

Cheers,
TJ

[1SGCAV77]

TJ...I took these pictures from a Facebook post of a MVP rally at Ft. Hood few years back. Would you know about this half track and owner. The rally was on tour of ranges and gave some active duties soldiers a ride.

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[1SGCAV77]

It’s not an M211 but an odd vehicle. This truck and trailer belongs to a retired LTC in San Antonio, TEXAS. He organizes the rally at Ft Hood being he served there several times while on active duty. He carries and M38 with M100 trailer along with his Army Air Corp photography equipment display in big trailer. He drives the rig up to Ft. Hood to the rally. I “think” LTC Dan said took 6 hours road time. Now that is truly what we call in TEXAS....windshield farming. Just enjoying the scenery.

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[rickf]

Rick, keep in mind he is also pulling the weight of that trailer so, add right around 7000-8000 lbs to his total. Add to that all the toys he no doubt hung on his half track it is no small wonder his truck was struggling. Half track owners are notorious for loading their machines down with everything, including the kitchen sink. Were they to actually be hauling a full crew, which on a M2 is 9-11 people in a tiny space...well, let's just say it's easy to figure out how the bustle racks came to be so popular. Images of WWII half tracks in the field look like The Grapes of Wrath.


Grapes-of-Wrath.jpg

I'm totally guessing but I'd say my half track would come in right around 12,000 lbs. Now, if we begin talking about rolling weight...well, that's not all that bad on a paved surface with new tires up front (which it has) and those big wide tracks in the back (very little ground pressure there). Rolling weight changes a lot on unpaved surfaces but Dirty Gertie made short work of that...

All of this kinda makes you appreciate how little trouble your M151 presents, doesn't it?

I suppose some of you might like a little half track walk-around. The 'bad' and the 'ugly' far outnumber the 'good' on this machine...I assure you. But this half track is really representative of one of the stranger things about Texas that most folks up north have so little appreciation for. The state is so HUGE, and everything of a military vehicle nature is scattered so far and wide that the average Texas collector is always, always facing unreasonably high transportation costs. Costs, which in the case of my purchase of this half track, actually worked to my benefit.

If the collector is a small fish with limited financial resources (like I am) it makes having and enjoying lot of things almost impossible. It is also one of the reasons I am such a notorious cheapskate. The story of how I came to have this half track is a good one. It was NOT right around the corner...

Cheers,
TJ

No, Carl has no extras on his, but it is 100% original with all of the original equipment minus the guns. He drives it everywhere, on all of the off road trails and all. I am going to look for some pictures later but have to lay down and try to get rid of this killer headache.

[rickf]

Here is Carl's halftrack on the trailer. I have other pics of when we were riding around in it but I can't find them right now. I will post them here when I find them.

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Here is a pic of the drivers side from the year before with the gun mounted and my CUCV behind it. This was the year I blew a brake line coming down a steep mountain trail. My wife seriously debated walking the 13 miles back!!!! It was the back line, who needs back brakes anyway? I ran the rest of the weekend on the front brakes, I did stay away from the trails though.

[m3a1]

TJ...I took these pictures from a Facebook post of a MVP rally at Ft. Hood few years back. Would you know about this half track and owner. The rally was on tour of ranges and gave some active duties soldiers a ride. 2D12826C-676C-447B-827F-A288CE32CD3A.jpeg8FA7D227-E964-4F3E-89D0-A02083FA51D4.jpeg

There were only three half tracks in the San Antonio area. Mine (Boerne), another in Schertz (formerly owned by Jim Silvers) which was sold and now resides in LaVernia under the care of Ryan Schroeder, and the third was sold by Alex Kreuger to the National WWII Museum in New Orleans quite some time ago. It would help to know exactly when it was up at Ft. Hood. Almost a certainty that there would be other half tracks in Texas but I'm not a member of any kind of half track organization. Your question might receive a better answer on the 503.

[m3a1]

While we are in close proximity to Rick's last post, take a look at the second to the last photo...particularly at the return, or tensioning spring for the rear idler wheel. You will soon see something very different on my halftrack, which is an early model that never received any upgrades.... When I get caught up around here and get some free time to take some pics I'll post 'em.

By the way, I think I've identified all that extra weight. It's those awful side-view mirrors!

Cheers,
TJ

[rickf]

Maybe, but like I said, he drives it everywhere. Considering the condition it is in and the fact that it was a wreck when he got it that in itself is amazing. You will seldom see it moving without a load of kids all over it. Or old vets. Needless to say, the kids load and unload much faster!

[m3a1]

Ahh, well, some of you are suffering from that temporary demential that comes with suddenly being in close contact with a former military vehicle that has loads of potential and is a very good starting point for (in the language of the politicians) 'Moving Forward'. Except 'Moving Forward' really only means moving in a different direction; a direction often dictated by someone else with entirely different motivations.

If your heart rate is elevated, your blood pressure up and your pupils are dilated, if you are experiencing tunnel vision and you are feeling unusually energized, I can only encourage you to save yourself. Look away! Go somewhere with comfortable seating, maybe a little background music and play 32.6 levels of Simon's Cat Bubble Pop on your smartphone until the symptoms subside.

Mine is a frankentrack and that's all there is to it. One takes what one can get. I don't have the wallet to seek out and purchase a high end half track, nor will I make a superhuman effort to massage this half track back into perfection. To do so would be working for someone else because having it in Per-fec-to condition will not increase my enjoyment of it, though it would certainly enhance the next fella's enjoyment. He can achieve greatness on HIS dime.

Point of fact - I'll never get much more enjoyment out of it than I am getting now (whether it is running, or not running) so investing that kind of time, effort and money would be wasted... Wasted on me, anyway. Yes, I'll keep it going, make some improvements but I don't think I see one smidge of intelligence in dropping $10K in a repro package to correctly reconstruct everything aft of the cab.

In any case, all that tin wouldn't be original, would it? So, no matter what I do, short of finding ANOTHER half track as a donor for all my missing bits, my M2 will never be on par with Carl's track. All these considerations come into play and as I have explained it, it quickly becomes a matter of diminishing returns. But when I sort that engine out (and I will) I could put that in a parade tomorrow and be perfectly happy.

Remaining on one's personal pathway to happiness is really what it's all about. Or, I might just say, "It's all about ME !"

Now, some smart cookie is about to cheerily remind me of my efforts with the back stowage racks and point out that I am making improvements. Well sure, but my reply would be that I got those racks not as 'improvements'. They are camouflage....acquired chiefly for the purpose of disguising the rear panel because it is really the worst bit of this whole machine (stuck valves in the engine notwithstanding). That back panel is just so glaringly, obviously wrong that I can only barely tolerate it. It even occurred to me that removing it altogether, shortening the sides and reassembling it to proper dimensions might be worthwhile.

Everything takes a back seat to getting it running. Whatever happens after that...happens.

As for loads of passengers (which I have had), without the convenience of the third door in the rear (and a M2 has no rear door)... well, you can imagine what trouble the loading and unloading of passengers becomes unless they are nimble enough to climb up and over the sides.

The last time it was paraded it had rained and a small herd of cub scouts tromped through it with muddy feet and continued to play in it afterwards (still with muddy feet); which is really a very small matter, considering my half track is absolutely impervious to mud.... in its present state. In short, there are definite advantages to having a slightly turdy machine. I'm betting Carl, facing all that mud, would have lost his mind entirely.

But hey, let's talk about Goblin for a moment.

I went back down to my favorite haunt and yup, there was a small island of derelict Allis-Chalmers there. These were all military models but very much like mine and of similar vintage. The major difference was, theirs had literally been worked to death. They had some milspec goodies and were 4000# lifts but otherwise, pretty much the same. ACC 40B PS translates AC=Allis-Chalmers, C=Cushion tires (warehouse use), B=probably gasoline engine (because on my machine I have LP=liquid petroleum gas), 40=4000# lift, PS=power steering.

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With permission, I snagged a few gauges from a machine whose sole purpose had been reduced to being a parts donor; a machine that would never run or lift anything ever again. If you are curious, YES, I salvaged old gauges which were obviously unproven and only possibly still serviceable but they were absolutely free (and have you seen what good gauges cost nowadays?! Heavens to BETSY!) If they don't work...no loss there.

I also excavated a discarded gate out of a small mountain of unidentifiable metal bits. That gate is for the top of a forklift carriage. That's the bit that taller loads would rest against. Because it was already off the donor machine (now long gone) I took that as a sign that I should grab it. Far less work involved. Goblin's original gate had been unceremoniously torched off at some point, no doubt due to having been irreparably damaged.

Hunter-Gatherer Badge With Oak Leaf Cluster awarded!

The salvaged gate is bent in the middle from some previous mis-use but those bent horizontals will be cut out and new metal welded in so the gate will be straight once again and with that repair, it will then also have achieved the correct dimensions for my machine. Will I paint it? Probably not.

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Finding good stuff for Goblin is a kind of subroutine in my brain and it pays to have that subroutine going all the time. By way of example, I found something whilst cleaning off my kitchen table which has become unusable chiefly because it is my repository for things that fall in one of three categories -

(1) Having No Immediate Use But Are Nonetheless Too Important To Lose Track Of In The Garage
(2) A Curiosity Or Just Pleasant To Look At
(3) Something I Feel I May Need Immediately...But Probably Won't.


Right there on the kitchen table, I found something that is undeniably correct for Goblin. Well waddya know?!

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Cheers,
TJ

[m3a1]

I thought I'd share a few shots to kind of wrap up the story of the big reshuffle. The tent is scheduled to come down and be put away but we are facing a good chance of rain over the next few days and it seemed foolish to take it down BEFORE it rained, so....

Speaking of jack stands, I have the front tires just barely off the ground. While this was back on gravel and dirt I was quite content to have the weight of the machine on the tires because the ground would give a bit and support the tire across the full width, but on the unyielding pavement, not so much. These are brand new skins and I kinda want to be able to enjoy them while they are still ROUND!

Cheers,
TJ

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