while sitting in my trailer one day in new mexico. I herd the rore of a mighty detroit diesel. When I opend my door this is what i found. The messed up part was this loader had sat for 5 months and did nothing. I thought it was dead A flowerpot at best. Than low and behold the MEXI-CAN"S had her running. holy crap its alive!!!! These are some picts and their is a video on my myspace page ejoy:beatsme:scool heres the link if it works just click on videos under the pict of me doin wheelie at top left http://www.myspace.com/weasel70
It looks liek one of those tractors with the loader on the wrong end. What is it, other than smoking 6 packs a day? :stirthepot But really what is it?
MICHIGAN not sure what size:beatsme
Sure is an odd looking rig, least to me. always thought the bucket goes in the direction you steer from, and i don't see one there. Did those haev their roots in forklifts or something?
Old Michigan Thats what you call a stiff frame loader, no articulation. Rear wheel steer. Long before articulated loaders came around. Also called suicide loaders, if you look at the last picture, if an operator sticks any part of his body out, and the loader arms come down, good by arm,leg, or life .
Those loader arms coming down around you looked kinda scary to me too. Look where the guys arm is in the last pic
Thanks Northart those are way efore my time. I understand the suicide loader thing wonder why guards weren't put around the arms? Or kind of up the side of the cab rather. I haven't seen them don't know if it would be practical any way. Old bird still starts anyway.
Safety Issues ? Hello Bear, I have survived 38 years in construction and the VietNam War. I have followed my instincts, for survival. I have quit a number of jobs , because of what I thought was unsafe equipment, or when I was put into a position, of what I thought, was too risky . Prone to accident, or death. OSHA and MSHA did not exist back then. It was incumbent upon the individual to accept personal responsibility for their safety. Now somehow we transferred that to the Gov't. ??? The smart ones quit and the dumb ones died. That is my perspective on life. Maybe that may offend some , but that is the way it occurs. Just look at some of the Hoover Dam construction scenes , life was cheap them days.
If I had to make a guess I'd say it's a 75A....from the stickers on the loader arms it looks like those boys got themselves a "bargain" at a Richie Bros. auction.
those open cab loaders were death traps if you didn't know it's limitations. I'm all for safety and ROLL cage frames to protect the operator against being crushed.
They do have mighty balls though, one of my contractors drove one in his youth and he always loved their pushing power. There is on like that in my 'hood with a full cab and it still runs today.
I got a 75A and thats what it looks like to me, you can't take get your arms out the cab to chop them off cause it takes everything you got to operate it! Very tough and powerfull machine, I love my DD.
There is a similar loader close to home thats pretty much the same but its got a cab on it and the air cleaner is mounted above the hood area. I would be a bit timid operating one of them with out some sort of protection. I looked it over pretty good this evening and it seems like you would want to be fairley athletic to actually get in it and operate it. Chris
That is why there is not much in the way of guarding or protection from the loader arms because it would interfere with getting in and out of the seat to run it. Those old loaders have a lever for 4 wheel drive too which needs to be disengaged for roading.Ron G
2 stroke detroits "sit" for long periods of time very well. They fire right back up with minimal effort
This is incredibly true...except when in a Champion D600 and you have a funnel stack that sits open all summer letting rain into the top of the engine. And then when you start it up in december to plow snow bend all the pushrods because of ice. Then they don't start up so well. On a good note though, the pushrods will wear a groove into the block and the engine will run fine afterwards, trust me I know....lol:Banghead
I've got one (a 75A) thats been parked in the shed for 10 years and still in working condition. After my uncle passed away, everyone else I've asked has refused to run it. Actually they just look at me and laugh. I ran it for years moving snow. It was easy machine to run although clumsy. Very light steering but the long stroke non-power brakes would wear you out after stomping on them all night.
The arms are a bit further away than you might think but there is a hazard if the the side covers are taken off and often they have been. The only good way to get in is on the factory installed step pads on the bucket, up on the tire, and do a turn and step into it. Getting in has nothing to do with whether it has a cab or not, they just did'nt usually come with them or they rotted off. It has a high and low range on the steering column and another on the the floor, also forward and reverse on column. Same drivetrain as in old Timberjacks, very tuff I am told by the old loggers. Michigan started making them in 1957 I think. Now is owed by Volvo.
LMAO on that video!!!!!!! Hoeman, you are funny, and just wacthing that guy try to run a loader is even funnier! I would love to see one of them amigos try to run a hoe or a blade!
No ROPS = No thank you. I don't care how long you've been running machines. ANYTHING can happen!!
Hmmm...did anyone notice the Home Depot and the fence in the background? And of course the RB sticker, but no DuPont/RB overhaul? Our friend has one of these models, but it's an hour's drive from here...says it's a good little machine for working in the woods and such. Also likes the fact the cab shows where not to put your hands!
Detroit Diesel engines were fun to work on, very simple. That looked like a 4-71. Which is a dry sleeve engine, very prone to damaged rings from overheating. Liner fitting was a royal pain to get right, lots of honing, to get proper fit to block. The part I liked best was setting the rack. When you got a healthy engine dialed in, they really sounded cool, untill you had to run them all day. There are still a bunch of them out there, if you can get them to turn, they will start. Lots of smoke, and oil leaks.
Had one in the pit behind my house. It had a full cab. What sucks is when it dies with the boom arms up and the bucket on something so you can't drop it down, lol.:Banghead
I ran one for several years when I got out of high school. It was a Hough with a 6 cylinder gas engine (Continental?) with a couple pieces of tin for a cab. Never had brakes, we shifted to reverse or vise versa to stop, even driving it around town. The rear steer took some getting used to but it worked good for loading. Wouldn't bother me to have one if I could find a good one.
I operated a straight frame loader back in 1980. It was an AC TL20. The brakes were a joke, the hydraulics slow, and when roading it you ended up pointed to every place you didn't want to go, whipsawing on the steering wheel all the way. I also had to build ramps to dump into high sided tri-axles. Other than that it was fun to operate.
We always ran ours in reverse if we had to road it. Made for an interesting ride driving backwards, running the steering wheel backwards with no brakes. Had a few close calls, like when it would stall with bucket up and roll backwards toward the edge of the pit (we were in a tiny pit built into the side of a hill). Hydros were slow dropping even with a full bucket. Stopped in time but I was half-way over the drop-off. Scared me to death.
Looks similar to this old Trojan I ran 15 years ago.
Hey Atgreene, funny you mention that. I've talked to some old time operators that used to run them old Michigan's and they said when they had to road them long distances they drove them backwards. What's the reason for that? Something to do with engine cooling or am I thinking of some other story? They used to be real popular in my area before my time. Those Michigans used to be the "big iron" in their time. I live in cottage country and you see them all over here parked down at peoples camps. You can get them for next to nothing and they live forever, so everyones got one for plowing their driveways in the winter.
Paystar, I think they were less jittery in reverse, the steering axle would in theory be moved to the front as most vehicles are. At road speed with the steering in the back, small adjustments can become major in a hurry.
We've got an old Allis TL-12 that is the same kind of thing. (Although a lot smaller). That thing is a great loader, especially visibility is great since you're right there by the bucket. The old rear steers are good machines and having only operated those when I recently ran my first articulated loader it took a lot of getting used to.
We have an old Hough loader like those pictured above. We always roaded it in reverse to. This loader went quite abit faster in reverse, so I think that is the reason for going backwards when roading.
They were faster in reverse, and the camber built into the rear (steering) axle allowed them to be steered much better in reverse. Maybe the reason my neck is screwed up today, well, partly to blame anyway. Roading Hough H's we sat on the front cowling facing the rear with the steering column between our legs and a heel on the thottle. Go like hell you bet!
I don't know what all the fuss is about. Here is my Allis Chalmers TL16DA Tractoloader which I just traded off recently. I used it for 3 years moving dirt, grading and carrying around whatever I could hang from the bucket. Never had a problem, didn't lose any limbs or roll it over either. It was a good and heavy machine. You do feel a bit naked up in it as the operator is the highest point.
Growing up on a small farm and next to small farms I learned on loaders like these. It is always common for Michigans to never have any brakes. As long as it had a loader you could stop, or at least slow down enough.
hough i have an old hough HO model loader made in 1957 got a j model cummins and still runs like a top parts are kindof hard to find though same style as that one open top exposed cab but it will move some dirt trees cars about anything under 10k lbs big tonka toy
I am new to the Heavy equip myself. I just bought a Hought 80.Thanks for the pics
pics of my hough i just thought i would post a pic or two of my old beast like my homemade grapple I use it and abuse it and it comes back for more you definitely dont want to be standing on the ladder when you are playing with the boom
That piece of cast iron and a Scoopmobile were the big guns in 1957. No wonder my back aches.
sweet muffler.......wait what muffler WHAT did you say?
who needs a muffler if you say my exhaust you would see the reason for the lack of a muffler top rotted off where it would attach and broke in two toward one end i found a parts engine but i havent had time to fix it it works how it is its just loud :drinkup
These machines were very tough to steer, my brother has an old Hough what a nightmare it is .
Up here in New Brunswick, these loaders (Michigans) were popular as they had large snowblowers mounted on the front and the motor (seperate) sat on the back. There was a drive shaft with hangers and joints up the arms that put the power to the front.Any slack in the rear steering made it scarey ,so operators ran in reverse so they could get somewhere in a timely fashion.I will see if i can get a picture.
I just picked up a TL 14 Allis Chalmers. Runs sweet, has the full cab. Seems to be a nice little loader for my little pit.
Congrats on the new loader atgreene, I just picked up one a little smaller than yours a TL12. Great loaders they are... We'd love to see a picture if you got one!
i love allis allis fiat chalmers
Theres no way that loader's engine is a two stroke (my understanding of a 2 stroke is an engine used in small applications... weed wacker, leaf blower, small snow blower). So i must be misunderstood because theres no way you could properly lubricate this engine by just mixing oil and gas. Could you enlighten me on what you mean by 2 stroke engine?
It doesn't have to do with lubrication, simply said it's about the intake, charge and exhaust cycle. Just google "2 stroke diesel function"
Sorry, i just phrased the lubrication wrongly- its just that most engines that are two strokes (at least almost all of the gasoline ones) mix the oil with the fuel and thats how they get lubricated. I guess i just left out thinking that two stroke engines could still hold oil in the crankcase like traditional four strokes. I probably should have searched google like you suggested before i raised the question.
I may have used the wrong wording on my initial post regarding the two stroke factor. Yes the 3304 is a very high compression motor and at the time classified it a two stroke. Much like the screamming Jimmy's that detroit manufactured GM 4-71 The 71 series Detroit 2 stroke diesel is a dry liner engine which is 2 cycle. In other words every time the piston goes down it is a power stroke. 71 means 71 cubic inches per cylinder. Link to support my thoughts: http://www.expertdiesel.com/71series.htm
Ahh, thanks for the link to the website, that was a cool link!
Occasionally I’ll run across a good web site that will provide some good answers or data to what I am looking for. :thumbsup