Pat and Wanda's 14th Annual Tailgate Party

September 26 - 28, 2008

 Been there, done that, and here's the "T" Shirt.

  Logo on front of shirt.             Logo on back commemorating the 1970 and 1971 Dodge "DUDE" pickups.

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This year Pat and Wanda's Tailgate Party brought back memories of the early ones.  Unlike recent years, Power Wagons were once again in the majority.  And a majority of the Power Wagons had original power.  Here are the trucks.

Paul Cook's 2005 All original PW   Dwight Bank's Modified WC51 w/360 MOPAR   Dwight Banks' 1949 FARGO w/318 MOPAR

From the left:   Mark McElyea's Bumper and its 1946 WDX transporter w/original 230.

                 Nicholas Bluntzer's M37B1 w/six cylinder Nissan diesel 

                                Tom Parinello's '61 M37B1 "Hot Rod" w/360 MOPAR 

                                                                Aaron Arnold's 1951 M37 "DUDE Mobile" w/318 MOPAR

Greg Littlefield's 1948 PW w/original motor    John Colwell's 1978 W300 crew cab w/318 MOPAR

Missing from the photo lineup were Pat O'Bryan's 1953 M37 w/350 Chevy and George Scotts M1009 CUCV w/Chevrolet 6.2 diesel

Recap:  Four Power Wagons with original engines

             One Power Wagon (FARGO) with engine upgrade 

             Four M37's with engine upgrades 

             One WC51 with modified body and engine upgrade 

             One M1009 CUCV with original 6.2 diesel 

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Dwight's WC51 doing some Extreme 4x4 stuff

Dwight's trail truck is based on a WC51.  The modified cab and some other sheet metal is from a Power Wagon.  It is powered by a MOPAR 360 and appears to be a contender for the spot left vacant by "JETHRO".

This picture was taken right when the TRACTA joint in the right front wheel fractured into pieces.

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Here's what was left.

Left:  Here's the outer end of the "Shaft, Inner, Right, PN 1189 230" showing how the fork type end of the shaft disintegrated. 

Right:  Here's the remains of the fork type end of the shaft and the "Joint, PN 1192 383".  These remains were all in the bell shaped area of the axle housing and had to be removed along with the grease taking care to avoid any sharp pieces of that "shrapnel".  Several of these large chunks of steel jammed and the wheel would not turn until Dwight's truck was dragged backward down the hill and the locking hub could be disengaged. 

I don't know how many axle problems Dwight has had, but it took him only a few minutes to replace the right "Front Axle Universal Drive" and head back out to the trails. 

I understand that Dwight's truck had a pair of Dan Shockley's prototype locking hubs.  Apparently they were stronger than the drive axle since they survived the carnage shown here.  It reminded me of my old TIMEX watch - took the licking and kept on ticking.  

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There always are a few minor adjustments for a "new" truck on its first shakedown trail ride.

Tom Parinello is my grandchildren's other Grandfather.  He has been coming to Texas Power Wagon events since 1998.  Last year he and "Grandma" Diane moved to Texas from western New York to be close to the kids.  Tom has restored several M37's.  He had some fun with a parts truck and build it into the "Hot Rod" with a MOPAR 360 engine.  This was its first time on the trails and the usual minor adjustments had to be done. 

In the left picture, he was tightening a leaking brake line.  That's what he said.  The rest of us think he was getting the New York air out of the tires and putting in some good Texas air. 

In the right picture, he had discovered another problem.  Our oldest grandchild is a pretty 8 year old girl that we call "Sparky."  Well, she is "Sparky" alright, but the Hot Rod's alternator wasn't sparky at all.  This was a minor problem that was solved by battery charges between trail rides.  The "Hot Rod" did well otherwise. 

He and I brought the middle grandchild to the Tailgate Party.  "Scooter" is six and he outnumbered the two us.  As always, it is great to see the "next" generation enjoying our Power Wagons. 

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LAV Wheel Adapters for 3/4 ton WC, PW, and M37

are no longer available from the Kempner Power Wagon Museum