Holmes 1953 W70 ton

Oxbow

Well-known member
Years ago I worked for a fellow that had an 850 - electric over air controls. It was quite a horse, but not as stout as this one evidently.
 

Truck Shop

Well-known member
If you worked around an 850 then you got to use the best tow recovery equipment ever made in my book. It was rated at forty ton but little known
fact, that was on a full drum of cable. The first wrap was around 50 ton. That's the way Holmes rated their units. And an 850 had huge spools.
When I worked for D&M in Ellensburg they damn near bought one form Pete's Towing in Seattle for $44.000. You can't hardly touch one for that
now days. That's top shape though.

Truck Shop
 

Oxbow

Well-known member
I have not tried to scan any old pictures before, but maybe I'll try. I have some pictures of when we built that wrecker.
 

Oxbow

Well-known member
And here are some after we had her working:
850-3.jpg

I helped with the build, mostly by doing all the wiring. The fellow that I worked for hired a friend of his who is a true artist with a cutting torch, and an excellent welder/mechanic. He designed it and built the boom/hydraulics, and the bed.

It is not as fancy as what you see now with rotators and such, but for a homemade wrecker it was pretty nice. It did an awful lot of work!

This was in the early 80's.
 
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Truck Shop

Well-known member
You answered my question, about the boom. I was wondering if it was a Kemp conversion. Nice looking piece of equipment it is.

Truck Shop
 

td25c

Well-known member
Love the photo's of the 850 build project Oxbow . Hey , if you build it customers will use it . Nice work !

That W70 is impressive . One of these day's I'll have to visit the museum ,that would be a cool place to spend a day or two .

Remember an article on the W70 and cant seem to find it . It had full power booms . It could lift and swing each boom with power & load .

Spotted some before & after photos of the restoration .
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.371966212831468.98336.370250746336348&type=3
 
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