From: Kirk Thompson (mosen_temp@mosen.net)
Date: Sat Jul 26 2003 - 11:26:46 PDT
Hi all.
I "won" my M35A2 from a GL auction last November
(http://www.govliquidation.com/auction/view?auctionId=120160), waited until
March for the EUC and went out to CA to get the truck.
This was my first MV/GL auction and I probably will not do what I did
again: Bid on a vehicle I had not even personally inspected. I won the lot
"sight un-seen" and had no idea what I was getting into.
I was very lucky. We had a punctured radiator, messed up front driveshaft,
dead batterys, flat tire, and a disconnected master cylinder. After we got
these items fixed, we took 4 days to drive the truck from Vandenberg CA to
my home in Jemez NM.
After I got it here, we discovered a bad inner seal on front axle and bad
outer seals on the forward-rear axle. Now I am having trouble with one of
those (left) that just won't seal. We'll get it figured out....
But.. the thing runs like a raped-ape and there are no major problems!
It was a great adventure but I am a little wiser now. Like I said, I was
lucky. Most of the vehicles at that DRMO lot were just trashed.
In the future, I will still bid at these auctions but only after I go and
"visit" the candidate. I picked up my deuce for $2,200 + 10% + tax which
ran me about $2,700 but I think it is a great deal considering what I have.
This is the most fun I've had since high school!
Here is the URL to a web page that I have created that details the trip:
<http://www.mosen.net/m35a2/ca%20deuce%20trip.htm>.
-K
At 08:41 PM 7/25/2003 -0400, Bjorn Brandstedt wrote:
>Drove my M49A2C from a DRMO auction at Camp Lejuene, NC to our home in
>Virginia. About 300 miles without problem. The truck needed a jump start
>and brake fluid. One tire was damaged and was removed before the trip
>home. My wife and kids followed in our SUV with tools and other supplies,
>but nothing was needed. We spent several days in the area making sure
>everything worked before leaving, even test drove it on the base to get
>used to the low low gearing.
>The fuel tanker had very low milage and the batteries were only about two
>years old at the time, so the vehicle had been maintained, just not needed
>any longer. It was a USMC truck.
>
>I think that I would take a chance again on an auction...Then again, I
>know nothing about the GL auctions only that they extended the bid
>deadline on one lot that I was watching, when someone made a last minute
>bid to allow the prevoius high bidder to come back. Odd practice!
>
>These vehicles cost Uncle Sam between 50 and 100 thousand back in the
>sixties, so it would seem that anything below $5,000 is a real bargain
>when complete. My deuce with the tanker equipment cost $98,000 in 1968. My
>bid was about $3,000 and that was in 1995.
>
>My next truck will probably be an M813 (5-ton super singles), checked one
>out a few days ago and fell in love with it... but $18,000 is too much
>right now.
>
>Bjorn
>MVPA 19212
>Meadows of Dan, Virginia
>
>
>
>>From: "Nigel Hay MILWEB \(www.milweb.net\)" <Nigel@milweb.net>
>>To: "Military Vehicles Mailing List" <mil-veh@mil-veh.org>
>>Subject: Re: [MV] Are auction vehicles generallydrivable?
>>Date: Fri, 25 Jul 2003 19:28:57 +0200
>>
>>I used to often go to Germany with a friend to drive back M35's straight out
>>of DRMO at Germeshien and Kaiserslauten - we never had a problem and it was
>>about 370 miles to home - often with the trucks seriously laden as well.
>>Nige
>>----- Original Message -----
>>From: "Jason Frisch" <jenjas@cox.net>
>>To: "Military Vehicles Mailing List" <mil-veh@mil-veh.org>
>>Sent: Friday, July 25, 2003 7:17 PM
>>Subject: Re: [MV] Are auction vehicles generallydrivable?
>>
>>
>> > About 6 months ago I drove an M36 from Ft. Hood, TX to New Orleans, LA
>>from
>> > a GL auction. I made sure all fluids were good (including gear oils) and
>> > began my trip home. We had bought 3 trucks and only 2 would fit on my
>> > LOWBOY. So I decided to drive it home.
>> >
>> > Jason
>> >
>> >
>> > ----- Original Message -----
>> > From: <Recovry4x4@aol.com>
>> > To: "Military Vehicles Mailing List" <mil-veh@mil-veh.org>
>> > Sent: Friday, July 25, 2003 12:00 PM
>> > Subject: Re: [MV] Are auction vehicles generallydrivable?
>> >
>> >
>> > > Ronzo once summed up the auction of military vehicles in a way that
>>kinda
>> > > sticks with me and makes sense. In a nutshell he said that we are
>>buying
>> > a
>> > > vehicle that it's owner has deemed too expensive to repair or mantain.
>> > This is all
>> > > well and good until you stop to think that its owner has a multi
>>trillion
>> > > dollar budget, then it all comes to light. If the dude with the trillion
>> > dollar
>> > > budget says scrap it, what are we getting?
>> > >
>> > > Kenneth Engle
>> > > Loxahatchee FL
>> > > 71 A.M. General M35A2
>> > > 73 A.M. General M275A2
>> > > 53 Fruehauf XM105E3
>> > > http://hometown.aol.com/recovry4x4/myhomepage/photo.html
>> > >
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>> > >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > ===Mil-Veh is a member-supported mailing list===
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>> >
>> >
>>
>>
>>===Mil-Veh is a member-supported mailing list===
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>
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