OT: International Flatbed Tow truck question

Mike CA · Jul 2, 2009

This is something I'm trying to talk myself out of by getting my facts straight. A friend of a friend has a '46 (I think) International flatbed truck for sale. I'm in no position to buy it, but it got me to thinking... what a fun way to haul my H around. But then I thought... How would I get the H on the flatbed? Well, I was doing some internet searching and I ran across a picture of a tow truck toy with a car on the flatbed.

How did they get the cars up there? Did they have beds that would tilt down at an angle shallow enough to drive a car on there?

Wardner · Jul 2, 2009

In 1962 (I was 18 yo), I used my 1947 KB-5 IH ton-and-a-half truck (Army Surplus) w/12'stake body to pick up my newly purchased 1932 Ford PU ($125). The owner had a driveway that crossed a brook using buried culverts. I backed into the creek at right angles to the driveway and used some 2"x 8" oak boards to load the '32. It rolled right on without the use of a come-a-long. Nope, I didn't get stuck. Lots of nice memories there.

At home I had dug a hole into a hill whereby I could load or unload stuff.

Prior to ramp trucks, many people in my situation used loading ramps at warehouses or rail sidings. The small IH tractor dealer nearby had an outside car lift. He turned it into a platform and was able to load and unload tractors.

I still have both trucks. Both are converted to diesel.

Wardner · Jul 2, 2009

I should also add that there a several tractor pulling sites in my area that have loading ramps. They are built with railroad ties and filled in with gravel.

I mispoke about the Army surplus. It was actually Navy surplus. The truck was used to haul laundry around the Newport (RI) Naval Hospital.

Wardner · Jul 2, 2009

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It took awhile to find this picture. The casket hoist was used to pick up granite blocks from demoed buildings.

There is no picture of my '32 on my puter. I built an oak and ash ice cream vending body for it immediately after I got out of the USMC. I pedaled ice cream novelties for 10 years with it. It won't photograph well now as it is buried behind a lot of stuff in my barn. It last saw daylight well before I owned a conputer.

Allan in NE · Jul 2, 2009

Whatever is handy; loading dock, ditch bank, sidehill, etc.

Allan

Dan in Ore · Jul 2, 2009

I have a KB5 I think is a 1949 model. It had a dump box on it. I have a flat bed that I want to mount to the hoist and a winch on the flat bed. Tilt the flat bed and winch it on. I also have a loading ramp here at the house.

Anonymous-0 · Jul 2, 2009

Hey mike they didn't have tiultnloads back thne but some guys used to build a beaver tail on the back of their trucks. I had friend who hauled his backhoe on a old firetruck chassis with a flatbed with beavertail.I am in process of building a truck now that will have knuckle boom in the front and tiltnload on the back so I should be able to load almost anything with boom and winch.When its done I will try and post pictures.

Anonymous-0 · Jul 4, 2009

From the 1940's until well into the 1960's, Pappy and Grand-dad used a '44 K-5 with a flatbed and a Tulsa winch as a tractor and implement hauler for their shop. The flatbed had a groove in the channel on the back to hook their 3 loading boards on. The loading boards were either 4-by or 6-by stock [I was a kid, so all I knew is that they were heavy], each about 12-14" wide and about 10 feet long. The hooks on ghe boards were made of 1/2" or 3/4" steel, bent into an "L" at the end where they hooked into the bed, and they made an "H" shape where they bolted [with cariage bolts] onto the boards themselves.

After the tractor was loaded and the load binders ["booms" or "boomers" in some localities] were secure, then a final chain and binder was used to secure the loading boards.

Obviously, you had to load the tractor while on level ground...and NEVER in the rain, since the loading boards had no sides to stop a tractor from sliding. But it was nice if you could back up to--or reasonably close to--a bank, since most folks didn't have loading docks down on the farm in that era.

OT: International Flatbed Tow truck question

Mike CA

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Wardner

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Wardner

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Wardner

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Allan in NE

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Dan in Ore

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Anonymous-0

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Anonymous-0

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