 
T-100 Unitized Refuse Truck 
As mentioned above, the T-100 had telescopic ejection, and was dual capable with the addition of a front load loader option. A trailerized version, the S-100, was also offered. Though the tailgate of T-100 is outwardly very similar to the LP800, a close examination shows it to be completely different from the 800 or any other rear loader: PACKING CYCLE:
THE SAGA OF THE T-100 The Gar Wood T-100 series unitized refuse truck seemed to vanish almost as quickly as it arrived. By my best estimate, the T-100 was produced only between 1965 and 1969, a very short run for a project into which Gar Wood seemingly poured everything they had. By the mid sixties, Leach's 2-R Packmaster had established itself as the most advanced, rugged and efficient bulk loader in the world, and was finding new customers all the time. With solid patents in hand, Leach was in a position of power while the rest of the industry scrambled to catch up. Over the years, the competition answered the the 2-R challenge with everything from close copies (Loadmaster 100) to innovative original ideas (Heil Mark V), and oddball creations such as the T-100 
It must have been somewhat discouraging for Gar Wood to have been one-upped by Leach. After all, Gar Wood personally had been the driving force behind the hydraulic revolution of American truck equipment, building his vast fortune on the success of his hoists. And even though his company had come somewhat late to the refuse truck business, they had virtually dominated the American market ever since the arrival of the first Load-Packer in 1938. But the second generation Leach Packmaster of 1955 had pointed the way to future, and by mid 1960's, just as demand for bigger bulk packers was beginning to grow, Gar Wood was now lagging behind the boys from Oshkosh, who had everyone beat with their latest creation, the unstoppable 2-R. Thus, the stage was set for Gar Wood's most ambitious project yet, and one one the most sophisticated refuse packers built up until that time. As we all know, Gar Wood's T-100 was not the hero that conquered fortress Leach. Though there remains the possibility that defects or workmanship may have been a factor, it is most likely that the truck was just engineering overkill, a case of too much technology and complexity to suit cost-conscious refuse haulers. For instance, the use of an automatic transmission was not new to refuse duty, but no one had ever coupled one solely to a front wheel drive axle. For that matter, Leach and Heil weren't even building the truck chassis, being content to leave that choice to the buyer through proprietary manufacturers such as Ford, General Motors, International Harvester and White. And the reason the T-100 had front wheel drive was due to its unitized, or frame-less construction. Once again, Gar Wood had a good idea, but one that was not necessarily practical on a vehicle of this size (Even U.S. automobile makers, with the exception of Lincoln, were reluctant to build large cars using this method). By going unitized, they had achieved the laudable goal of eliminating some dead weight and wasted space, but one has to wonder what happened to these vehicles once time had taken its toll. Unlike body-on-frame construction, unitized bodies can be rendered useless very quickly if severe corrosion sets in. However, what really distinguished the T-100, and what is perhaps of greatest interests to enthusiasts, was its attempt to merge front and rear loading features into a single package. Actually, the T-100 was offered in three configurations: front loader only, available up to 50 cubic yard capacity; a rear loader only, or combination front and rear loader, the last two available up to 40 yards capacity. The front loader mechanism is a strange affair, using a straight telescopic lift (much like a fork-lift truck), then sliding the container on rails over the cab and tilting into the hopper. Not a bad idea, but how well this complex mechanism actually performed is unknown. Though early literature suggests that bottom fork hookup was the preferred method (including Gar Wood's own oddball tongue system) , this months truck shows what appear to be standard side-pickup forks installed, perhaps a special order for someone with Dempster boxes on their route. Like the front loader lift, the rear packer mechanism was a bizarre device exclusive to Gar Wood, and is covered in greater detail elsewhere on this site. However, this may have been the silver lining in this black cloud, as it it seems to have been the genesis for the LP-800, which utilized this new swing-link design to much greater advantage. In either case, Gar Wood had developed a bulk packer method competitive with the 2-R Leach (at least theoretically, even if not in actual practice) which would not infringe on any existing patent. In fact, the LP-800 version turned out to have many advantages over track and roller systems, though it would be Dempster who fully exploited the technology with their 1970 Route King.  City of Clifton, New Jersey, bulk loading brush with a Gar Wood T-140 in 1968 How and when the project finally died is not known for sure, and very little trace of its existence remains today. In fact, the picture above (from the City of Clifton, New Jersey) is the only example I have ever found of a T-100 actually in regular service. All other examples have been from factory photos and published literature. The Clifton truck is shown loading shredded leaves from the city yard, for transfer to a disposal point out of town. The city reported being quite pleased with their T-140 at that time, and also mentioned that it performed quite well picking up bulk items (appliances, etc.) during the city's annual clean-up. Patent research has also failed to shed much light on the T-100. A truck of this complexity should have dozens of patents assigned, yet only two have been found, for a tailgate lock and chassis layout respectively. The chassis patent was filed in late 1965, by Angus J. O'Brien and John McCarthy for Gar Wood Industries. McCarthy was also on the design team for the LP-600 and LP-700. Information on who designed the rear packer and front end loader remain uncertain. Similarly, no patents for the LP-800 have ever been located. This could have something to do with the sale of Gar Wood to Sargent Industries, which occurred during that era. Or perhaps the T-100 was already a sales flop before the patents were approved, and Gar Wood merely withdrew their applications! So other than a handful of pictures and factory literature, the T-100 remains an enigma in many ways. Hopefully, more information will surface eventually, and one could even hold out hope that one of these monsters might still reside in a junkyard somewhere in America. 
8/8/04 (revised 1/7/07) © 2007 Eric Voytko All rights reserved Photos from factory brochures/advertisements except as noted Logos shown are the trademarks of respective manufacturers |
