Peter Behrens's Blog, page 555
November 19, 2012
1976 GMC
My favourite season in Maine is what everyone else calls Mud Season: April. Which is muddy, to be sure. I call it Bare Season. Or Light Season. Because the daylight is coming on strong, and there are no leaves in the trees to suck the light. Luminous northern spring. Sure it rains. Even snows, sometimes. But it is a hopeful time. Speaking of hopeful: I have decided to think of November as a sort early of pre-spring. Which it is. Life cycle, etc. Anyway, all this a long warm-up or perhaps excuse just to post another photo of my favorite truck, in Blue Hill Maine, last April.
November 18, 2012
Land Rovers, part VI
Another serious LR, from Germany, here in very urbane Wassenaar, NL.
and from France:
"I first saw the newly manufactured SUV 4 door passenger Defender in the French Alps in 2010. This 2012 pick-up is the first 4-door pick-up I've seen. I read about the defender pick-up on the English land rover website. The truck has a 6 cylinder Diesel engine it's geared for off road and tops out at 80 miles per hour. I've never seen one of these in the US."--VB
and from France:
"I first saw the newly manufactured SUV 4 door passenger Defender in the French Alps in 2010. This 2012 pick-up is the first 4-door pick-up I've seen. I read about the defender pick-up on the English land rover website. The truck has a 6 cylinder Diesel engine it's geared for off road and tops out at 80 miles per hour. I've never seen one of these in the US."--VB
November 17, 2012
1945 Chevrolet
November 16, 2012
November 15, 2012
UAZ 452
from Guido Goluk: 'this photo was taken by my friend and cycling pal Djoen Tong Liem. It's a ferry across the River Irtish at Tobolsk, a fort founded by conqueror Yermak in the late 16th century to keep the Tatars out, and for a long time the capital of Siberia. The little truck on the right is the ubiquitous UAZ452, a model that has not been modified for the last 50 years. The Russians call it bukhanka (loaf of bread). The orange tanker truck, a Kamaz, was backed up onto the ferry straight from the river bank, no ramps, no quay, just directions yelled through a bull horn by the skipper'--GG
November 14, 2012
home on the range: Texas ranch trucks
this from our man in West Texas, Don Culbertson:'Fashion comes and goes, form and function follow. Soon after the innovation of the automobile, a truck format was quickly introduced to replace the cargo carrier of the day, the buckboard wagon. American auto makers have included a truck in the line up every year since then. Autoliterate among many things showcases examples of truck innovations in engines, drive trains, body styles, that vary over the decades and from manufacturer to manufacturer. Last spring I sent a perfect example of a ranch truck that was a late 70s model converted to a flat bed type truck.
"Since that time I've snapped a few more photos of the flat bed ranch truck that has become more the standard with West Texas cattlemen...
"The flat bed configuration allows for conversion and switching from goose neck trailer pull to rear bumper pull depending on the need. Likewise the flat bed can accommodate a welder, a box or mechanical feeder, or an open platform for hauling. This summer I saw a flatbed configured for fencing, there were two different reals, a large reel for 5 foot mesh wire and a smaller reel for single strand barbed wire. Here are a few examples of the flat bed type configuration mostly early model with a couple of young'uns thrown in."--DC
November 13, 2012
Land Rovers, part V
Land Rovers as personal vehicles are very expensive in the NL because of the road tax. Around 1500-2000 euros/year. They are cheaper to run as commercial vehicles. It's all about numbers of windows and seats.
