My first truck
- Thread starter kwdriver
- Start date
My first was a IH, KB5, with 18 foot livestock rack. Must have been about a 50-52 model. Had a(?) Diamond 6 cyl engine, 5th direct, and 2 speed rear.
2 speed was vacuum shifted, with "choke wire" control cable mounted in the dash. Most of the older drivers and occasional drivers would just leave it in low range, shift out to 5th, the shift into high range.
Drove it in 52-53 for the local livestock auction on Friday afternoons after leaving school at noon.
Worked the sale ring, penned up the buyers buys, the loaded and delivered locally, finish up on Saturday morning.
After a while: and becoming the driver rather than the ring boy, unhooked the cable under the hood, removed from dash, lashed it to the shift lever, ran thru floor mat and up under hood and reconnected.
WA LA... Instant ace on one hand/no waiting , split shifting. Got the proper bracket from some used source and had a neat updated rig.
Was a good ground breaker for a young farm boy.
Edited for spelling..
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Well this old beast was not my first, though who knows but it might be my last! 1974 Loadstar 1700 with a 392cu.in. five speed and the electric 2 speed rear. The transmission is what we call a short fourth and I have to use it when loaded. You shift from fourth low to fifth low then back to fourth high and then fifth high. Not a heck of a lot of difference in ratios but you know it right away when loaded! 
That truck sure is in good shape! I remember that nose being such a common sight, from the school bus I rode to soda trucks, fire trucks and dumps like you've posted.
Re: H63Mack
Well I sure like that idea of rigging a stick split! I never would of thought of such a thing. I had the displeasure of driving an old 52 GMC 5 ton dump with a vacuum split located on the dash which made it difficult when your hands were full. I was hauling ore down out of the mountains hereabouts - six tons per load and 13 switchbacks and the bugger kept popping out of first. A very short job until they replaced it with a 68 GMC 4 ton! No wonder I have grey hair!
H63Mack
"My first was a IH, KB5, with 18 foot livestock rack. Must have been about a 50-52 model. Had a(?) Diamond 6 cyl engine, 5th direct, and 2 speed rear.
2 speed was vacuum shifted, with "choke wire" control cable mounted in the dash. Most of the older drivers and occasional drivers would just leave it in low range, shift out to 5th, the shift into high range.
Drove it in 52-53 for the local livestock auction on Friday afternoons after leaving school at noon.
Worked the sale ring, penned up the buyers buys, the loaded and delivered locally, finish up on Saturday morning.
After a while: and becoming the driver rather than the ring boy, unhooked the cable under the hood, removed from dash, lashed it to the shift lever, ran thru floor mat and up under hood and reconnected.
WA LA... Instant ace on one hand/no waiting , split shifting. Got the proper bracket from some used source and had a neat updated rig.
Was a good ground breaker for a young farm boy."
Well I sure like that idea of rigging a stick split! I never would of thought of such a thing. I had the displeasure of driving an old 52 GMC 5 ton dump with a vacuum split located on the dash which made it difficult when your hands were full. I was hauling ore down out of the mountains hereabouts - six tons per load and 13 switchbacks and the bugger kept popping out of first. A very short job until they replaced it with a 68 GMC 4 ton! No wonder I have grey hair!
H63Mack
"My first was a IH, KB5, with 18 foot livestock rack. Must have been about a 50-52 model. Had a(?) Diamond 6 cyl engine, 5th direct, and 2 speed rear.
2 speed was vacuum shifted, with "choke wire" control cable mounted in the dash. Most of the older drivers and occasional drivers would just leave it in low range, shift out to 5th, the shift into high range.
Drove it in 52-53 for the local livestock auction on Friday afternoons after leaving school at noon.
Worked the sale ring, penned up the buyers buys, the loaded and delivered locally, finish up on Saturday morning.
After a while: and becoming the driver rather than the ring boy, unhooked the cable under the hood, removed from dash, lashed it to the shift lever, ran thru floor mat and up under hood and reconnected.
WA LA... Instant ace on one hand/no waiting , split shifting. Got the proper bracket from some used source and had a neat updated rig.
Was a good ground breaker for a young farm boy."
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