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Discussion starter · #1,063 ·
Yeah, the M109 box is only about 12ft long and the 5-ton cargo truck has a 14ft long bed, plus the spare tire rack in front of it. Right now I'm thinking that it might work out really well to set the M109 box on top of the cargo bed (instead of removing it). Could put water tanks, batteries, and a generator up in the front of the bed. Probably going to cut-off the cab-over rack because the 900-series cabs are a lot wider than the old 2.5-ton truck cabs, and it's going to sit way further back. Might rebuild something similar to enclose that storage space. Not sure yet. But am really liking the idea of being able to remove the M109 box and having a flatbed truck. Might even modify the dropsides on the cargo bed so that I can lower them 90-degrees and have a wrap-around patio deck?
 
Yeah, the M109 box is only about 12ft long and the 5-ton cargo truck has a 14ft long bed, plus the spare tire rack in front of it. Right now I'm thinking that it might work out really well to set the M109 box on top of the cargo bed (instead of removing it). Could put water tanks, batteries, and a generator up in the front of the bed. Probably going to cut-off the cab-over rack because the 900-series cabs are a lot wider than the old 2.5-ton truck cabs, and it's going to sit way further back. Might rebuild something similar to enclose that storage space. Not sure yet. But am really liking the idea of being able to remove the M109 box and having a flatbed truck. Might even modify the dropsides on the cargo bed so that I can lower them 90-degrees and have a wrap-around patio deck?
i like the walk around deck idea..are you going to use a dealer plate to drive it back
 
Made an appointment to go pick-up the new 5-ton. Barstow next Monday at noon. If I haven't uploaded pictures by Tuesday, send help!
Yeah, we're gonna try to drive it back. Got a one-day trip permit from the DMV.
A half dozen 5-tons just auctioned off for $3K to $4K each locally... Temptation, temptation, temptation...

I didn't know they'd let you drive them away? I thought I heard somewhere that you had to haul it off? Perhaps it varies by locality?
 
The rules vary a lot depending on where the vehicle up for auction is located. Some you can drive off, some you have haul off the premises, some you have to do by appointment, etc. It can be a real learning experience for the first time buyer, lol.
 
Discussion starter · #1,073 ·
Yeah, it all depends on the location. Barstow will let you drive them out, but they don't want you working on them in the yard. We're taking the cummins and a towbar so we can drag it outside the gates and do some pre-trip maintenance at our leisure. Bought the deuce from a private party (pirate member) and he bought it at auction. Was worth it to me at the time to have an opportunity to look it over, test-drive it, etc. Knowing a little more about what I'm getting into now, feel more comfortable buying direct and taking some of those risks.
 
Discussion starter · #1,076 ·
We had an 12:00 appt to pick-up the truck at Barstow, and we were running a little bit late, but the staff at govliquidation was really helpful. If you're thinking about buying military surplus through them, reading about the nightmares people describe related to dealing with GL might scare you away, but all of our experiences with them so far have been really positive. Dunno whether we've just been lucky, or what, but we're not complaining. Especially this time! After completing all the paperwork, we were escorted out to the truck. The guy in the yard offered to drive over another truck so we could give it a jump.

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The auction listing described this truck as 'not running', but then there was a video of it running and driving and one of the pictures showed the tach needle floating around idle-speed, so we had no idea what to expect. One of the tires was also flat, but otherwise, it looked brand new-ish. We brought a bunch of tools and a towbar, figuring that if we had to, we'd drag it off-base behind the 1-ton dodge we drove down there, then get it running and drive it home. We popped the hood, checked all the fluids and everything else the TM said to look-over before operating.

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Then we hooked-up the slave cables and the truck fired-up as soon as I flipped the switch. I mean, it didn't even hesitate for a second. Sat there idling happily, and we finished the pre-trip inspection. As soon as the air-tanks were filled, the 'flat' tire started inflating and it seemed to be holding pressure.

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There wasn't any moisture or rust or grime or anything in the air tanks.

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In fact, everything seemed to be in tip-top condition.

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Don't plan on using the cargo-top or the troop seats, but it was really cool that this truck came with that stuff.

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Also found this gun cleaning kit, which was an interesting reminder of the role these trucks were built to serve.

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And this was a reminder of how the government is spending (wasting) our tax dollars. Have you heard about how congress is forcing the military to buy a bunch of tanks that the military doesn't want? Watched a video recently that said the government has fifty billion dollars worth of equipment and 35,000 vehicles over in Afghanistan that they don't know what to do with. They're claiming it's too expensive to bring a lot of that stuff back, so most of them are going to get destroyed. There are thousands and thousands and thousands of surplus HMMWV's stockpiled at bases around the country, and those are all getting destroyed too. It's disgusting. Criminal. At least we are able to purchase some of these surplus vehicles, and for pennies on the dollar, but the waste is staggering.

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Discussion starter · #1,077 ·
After completing the pre-trip maintenance check, we peeled-out. Then pulled-over outside the base to give everything a second look over, but we couldn't find a single thing that needed any attention. The fuel tank was even 3/4 full. The driver's side window was cracked, which had happened sometime after the pictures in the listing were taken, but I didn't feel like even raising the issue with GL, considering the overall condition of the vehicle. This was a major score!

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We parted-ways with Travis and Brianna, who had followed us out there to see the truck and help with the recovery, and then started the long slow drive back up to the bay area. At least it started out slow. Was very cautious and respectful of it at first, but it's a goddamn cadillac compared to a deuce and a half! Ran it hard for most of the drive, really putting my foot into it when we hit the hills, just to see how it would pull. Only had to downshift to 3rd once, and was able to carry good speed up/over most of the hills.

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We took a few detours to go explore some dirt roads along the way. The CTIS seemed to be functioning perfectly and aired the tires up/down a lot faster than I was expecting. Tire pressure also makes a huge difference in ride-quality, as the front suspension only has about two inches of bump-travel? The seats are also h-h-h-h-horrible. But damn, this thing mobs pretty hard. Can't wait to see what it can really do off-road.


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It was a pretty uneventful trip, and we made it home about 10pm last night.

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Have to wait about a month to receive my SF97 paperwork so I can go register it. Going to work on getting the M109 box sandblasted and painted. Have to cut-off the cab-over rack and strip all that undercoating shit off the bottom of the box so I can cut-out the rusty sheetmetal. Not looking forward to that....
 
faaaaantastic man :grinpimp:

Cab looks nice inside. Looks like it wont be much work. Tell your brother to hurry up on the duece!

Cant believe something in the CTIS is not leaking like a sieve
 
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