  City of Clifton, New Jersey, bulk loading brush with a Gar Wood T-140 in 1968 UPDATE FOR WINTER 2007 The big news for January is the latest feature article/photo album contributed by Michel Ferro of the Netherlands, who gives us his second installment in the history of the famous German refuse truck builder KUKA. This fascinating look covers the period of time beginning in the late 1960's and the beloved 215 Shark, right up to the early early 1980's when they were absorbed by FAUN. During this time, there were a great many interesting refuse bodies, some of which are still with us today (The Rotopress and 211 Variopress), as well as some rare and short-lived rear loaders. One of which, the 209 Variopress, is probably completely unknown to most readers. As usual, Michel has accompanied the the story with a wealth of rare and vivid photographs. Better still, he has provided a complete 30 minute 1968 factory film on the KUKA Shark to really bring this classic to life. For those of us who have never witnessed these machines in action, there is one scene in the film showing a scale model with a clear drum, which gives an excellent visual demonstration of the KUKA loading method. The video has been on CRT's You Tube Video page since last week, and is linked directly to the article. The new article has been incorporated into Michel's existing KUKA album here at CRT, with the latest chapters identified with a NEW icon for your convenience. 1948 GAR WOOD LOAD PACKER FOR SALE I have recently received news of the existence of a restored 1948 Gar Wood Load-Packer, which may be the oldest working refuse packer in North America. Complete details were not available at press time, but the owner has indicated that the truck will be offered for sale ! Therefore, I am reserving a page here at CRT for a late update as details are confirmed: 1948 Gar Wood Update CRT MEMBERS AREA Our interactive CRT Members Area at MSN groups continues to enjoy continued growth, and I hereby welcome all of our new members on board. I think it is safe to say that there is nowhere on earth where one can find nearly 2000 pictures of refuse trucks, scale models and even artwork all at one site, free of charge. Many, many thanks to everyone who has contributed to make this happen. And thanks to all of you who added your comments to the discussion How I Got Into Garbage Trucks which was held on the message board. I thought it was an excellent topic, and it was good to hear your stories and where everybody is coming from. The discussion is still open, so feel free to add your two cents at any time. That having been said, there have been some nagging technical issues with the site, beyond my personal control, which have caused some frustration. Many of you who tried to post messages or pictures received a message saying Hmmm, we can't find that page..... According to MSN, this was due to a server problem which they were aware of working on. The Members Area was effectively locked-up as a result for three days around Christmas, and again for two days near the end of the year. I have no plans to change hosts for the Members Area at this time. We have too much invested here to leave unless things get much worse. However, I remain open to suggestions if anyone has had better luck with another provider. A future switch is not out of the question. For those considering joining the Members Area, there is of course no charge. However, you must apply to join and, that application must include a brief explanation of your interest in our group. This is to weed out the e-mail collector/spammers who try to gain access to lists such as this. You need only write something as simple as I'm interested in refuse trucks to let us know you are legitimate. Also, if you sign up and choose an industry-related username (such as LeachFanatic221) that in itself will suffice. CRT VIDEOS AT YOU TUBE The explosive growth of our new video department has been a most welcome addition in the last year. New and completely unlimited services such as You Tube, coupled with our members' generous video contributions have made all of this possible. At this time, I think perhaps and explanation may be in order of just how this works. First, those wishing to participate should first establish a personal username/account with You Tube . This is free, and is done independently of CRT. At this point you may upload your videos to your personal You Tube page for the world to see. Next, if you have refuse-related videos, I strongly encourage you to join the CRT Video Group at You Tube, called appropriately Classic Refuse Trucks. As a member, you can then transfer your refuse-related videos to the group pool where the entire collected work of the group may be seen at this one convenient site. Transfering your videos to the CRT Video Group does not require uploading them a second time. We are all aware that the upload process is very time consuming, but once your videos are uploaded on your personal page, it takes only a mouse click to to add them to the group. Your videos actually remain on your page, but an alias is effectively created at the CRT Video Group so that all members videos are available at that location. Your personal You Tube page may contain videos related to any subject you wish to post. However, please only add those videos to the CRT Video Group which are refuse truck related. As of this writing, The CRT Video group currently contains 178 refuse truck videos, including recently-filmed trucks still working the streets, to classic reels from the past, many of which are linked to articles here at the main site. There are also toys and replicas, so modelers are welcome to show off your latest creations if you feel inspired. If things continue at the present rate, we may all look forward to a very good year for video in 2007, and a nice reference library to compliment the site. REFUSE TRUCKS ON FILM For the first time since its inception, the CRT Films Page receives a complete overhaul this month. The films page is a reference listing motion pictures and television programs that feature refuse trucks, either exclusively or in certain scenes. Previously, the titles had been listed chronologically. The new version now lists them alphabetically, which should make the page easier to browse. Also, promotional and educational films are now listed separately at the bottom of the page. 'Still' pictures or video clips from titles (when available) are now accessed by clicking the IMAGE or VIDEO icon above the particular listing. You will have to use your browsers back button to return to the page, but this has allowed the use of larger size images, most of which have now been upgraded. As before, new additions to the list will feature a NEW icon preceding the title. Among the new titles in this edition, a movie has been submitted by the actual owner of the truck featured. Random Hearts features a Leach 2-R Packmaster owned by Jack at D & D Carting, a third generation hauler serving the New York area since 1931. Jack also identified some other trucks on the list, including the Leach 2R-II in Goodfellas. That movie has aired recently on AMC, and watching it again I noticed a gaffe of sorts; The 2R-II was introduced to the market in about 1985, years after the scene was supposed to have occurred in 1978. Movies are generally accurate with their use of classic cars, but I guess a 1970's Leach was too much trouble to line up! Ralph Driscoll sent word of a documentary on Los Angeles County's Puente Hills landfill, currently airing in the United States on National Geographic TV. Though the scheduled January 3rd airing didn't happen, we can hope that it will eventually air in its next scheduled spot. One of our west coast CRT Members (westerwaste) actually appears in the film, or at least his dark blue Amrep front loader does. For further information and air dates, click here to go to the NATG-TV website. BULK LOADER HISTORY Among other goodies, the online Enthusiasts Club Magazine at Brian Carpenter's Unofficial Shelvoke & Drewry Website features part five of the continuing series A Short History of Refuse Collection Vehicles. This latest installment takes a look at the early years of bulk loading, popularized in the giant circular Palladin bins which preceded Dempster's dumspter system by at least a decade. INDUSTRY NEWS The new owners of Kentucky-based E-Z Pack wasted no time in getting word out they are Here To Stay, running full page national ads last month for a new 24 hour truck program. The firm was taken over by Republic Financial Services, and builds front and rear load refuse bodies. Still no website has been noted as of this writing. Peter Wilczek wrote with news of another manufacturer in trouble.Wayne Engineering of Cedar Falls, Iowa, has been purchased in U.S. Bankruptcy Court. The new owners have promised continued production and eventual expansion, with planned new front and side loader models. Founded in 1962, the company carved out a nice slice of the market for small packer bodies in the ten cubic yard range, but in recent years has also done well with their full-size Curbtender ASL series. The company also builds a full size, swing-link rear loader, the Power Lynx which was designed by the prolific Fred Smith, creator of the famous Gar Wood LP-900. I found it noteworthy that one of the unsuccessful bidders for Wayne was a group led by Republic Financial, the new owners of E-Z pack. For more details, see the full story at the Wayne website under Latest News 
I plan to create a page here at the website for upcoming equipment shows here at the main CRT website, perhaps by the next edition. Meanwhile, Ronnie Keshishian e-mailed with a reminder that North America's premier event, Waste Expo, will take place May 7 through May 10, 2007 at Atlanta Georgia. For those interested in attending the exhibition portion, the admission price is actually quite reasonable, and gets better if you register early. For details and registration, visit the Waste Expo 2007 website. If you know of any upcoming industry trade shows or events (worldwide), CRT will gladly list them for the benefit of the membership. COLLECTORS CORNER Once again, the CRT Collectors Corner. proudly features some new creations from Pierre Collette who sent some photos of some new E-Z Pack replicas, as well as a model of the new Leach 2-RIII Packmaster done up beautifully in 1/24 scale. In was only in last months edition that I mentioned how nice it would be to see First Gear add the 2R-III to their lineup, but Pierre has beat them to the punch. He even visited the factory last June to take accurate measurements prior to creating the model. This one is not for sale, but we certainly thank Pierre for once again sharing his work with CRT. 2R fanatics will not be disappointed.  And speaking of First Gear, their latest creation, a Heil Automated Side Loader (ASL) has been getting generally favorable reviews from the membership. Previous releases (Wittke FL and McNeilus RL) had been critized for lacking some functional details, but First Gear is one of the few mass-production model makers offering anything close to realistic replicas of refuse equipment, and are to be commended for that. Where FG falls short, many of you have simply taken to modifying their models to create the working features. A whole slew of creatively modified trucks and custom dumpsters have appeared at the CRT Members area recently, and are worth a look.
THE SAGA OF THE T-100 The truck of the month, as well as the photo atop this page, offer some rare looks at the Gar Wood T-100 series unitized refuse truck, which 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. As for the LP-800, it also was to become a sad footnote in Gar Wood history, rumored to have been plagued by mechanical problems. Or perhaps electrical issues? Dana Gregory recently wrote in with his first-hand recollections of the LP-800: The word I heard through the grapevine in the Boston area was that the electro-hydraulics were undependable. I know of one city adjacent to Boston who purchased two 25 yd 800 bodies on GMC cabover chassis. Nice, nice trucks. One worked great. The hydraulics were trouble free and it packed a huge load. The other was just the opposite: problems with the hydraulics caused the packer to cycle slower than normal and ejection was also very slow. I saw this with my own eyes. What a shame. I always liked the 800. The thing with the 800 was you either got a good one or a bad one. No in between. Gar Wood did back their product, and took the bad ones back. I think that if they stuck to manual hydraulics with two levers, the 800 would have been a very worthy competitor to the 2R. 
Indeed, electric controls have been a problem for many manufacturers, especially in the early days. It would be a shame that such a minor flaw (in that it has nothing to do with the mechanical principals of the basic design) may have killed off an otherwise good packer. Confirming Dana's observations, it is noteworthy that later LP-800 brochures indeed show manual packer valve control, via two levers, supplementing the electric pushbutton system. Early literature showed only the electric control. It was perhaps an attempt to the solve the problem mentioned above. By 1972 though, Gar Wood was under new ownership, with an all new design on the way (LP-900) which would turn their fortunes around considerably. The T-100 and LP-800 have been long forgotten, though they were the predecessors of successful swing-link models eventually fielded by Dempster and E-Z Pack. Unitized construction and front wheel drive have also been successfully used on Lodal's EVO side loader for decades.
As for the T-100, 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 at the top of this page (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. Eric Voytko, January 7, 2007 Click here to return to the CRT Archives All Rights Reserved Logos shown are the trademarks of respective manufacturers Photos from factory brochures/trade advertisements except as noted |