1965 GMC-Darley Tanker

• 1945 Darley Champion 500 GPM front-mounted pump
• 1,000 gallon tank
• 305 CID GMC V-6 engine
• 2 booster reels
• Retired from Seymour, ILL VFD in 2002

Owned by John Milliman Bolter # 3 Oakville, Maryland

09 June 2008 Update
# 1707

From John :

        This past Memorial Day weekend got off to a great start with the completion of the "Great Tank Project" -- the fabrication of the hose bed. It wasn't as easy as initially envisioned. There was no running over to the lumber yard to pick up the materials. (I was ready to jump at this project 10 days earlier). Because of the odd size of the boards, and our local hardware store wanted to get a complete order before he sent our's out. We had about a week wait for all the wood to come in. But once it did, ah ha ... it was a great job. Kinda like putting a puzzle together ... but you had to make up your own shapes!

        Spring also stared good since we got the pump back from being rebuilt and repainted. We got the new tires (10R22.5 radials) -- that made everything good to go (for the Boss), so we could participate in this year's Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival Firefighters' Parade. The truck made the 300-mile round trip just fine in company with three other fire engines from Southern Maryland.

        After that big adventure, Henry Fowler (one of our BW ATHS Bubbas) LENT us his hose nozzle and some extra hose (complete with some pin holes , but it was fine for a test). Here's a good shot using the nozzle to do some pump n roll to water the Christmas tree seedlings (before our 7" of rain dump ... we actually had two weeks without rain).

        And I guess as part of the update, we should include that she played a big part in escorting in the early Stovebolters for the 1st Stovebolt Homecoming here at Stovebolt HQ. Read the Feature!

Regards,

John

10 March 2008 Update
# 1707

From John :

        We just got the truck back from the paint shop and we are very pleased with how it came out! The rusty fenders are fixed and the paint looks awesome! It's starting to look like a fire truck again!

        I spent a good bit of the weekend putting the pieces back on -- cab lights, mirrors, emblems, the grille, the parking lights, etc. Ray (the body man) had inadvertently filled one of the mounting holes for the side emblems in, but it was a simple matter to drill it back out from the inside.

        All I have to do at this point is finish refinishing the inside of the tank and get the pump back from the pump shop and it will be 100 percent (after I remount the booster reels and the ladder rack, and replumb a new feed line from the tank to the pump).

        The new wheels (the ones I got from Grigg) are still off getting powder coated. They should be back in time so we can go to the big fire equipment parade in Winchester, Virginia on new tires. Here is a higher resolution side shot.

        A little more on this history of the truck:

        We bought this truck in October of 2006 to use on our Christmas Tree farm for irrigation. It has the 306 V-6 motor, a Darley 500 GPM front-mounted pump and a 1,000-gallon tank. When I called the Darley company about the pump, I was amazed to find myself talking to one of the Darleys (still a family-run company, which is nice to know!). They still had all the original paperwork on my pump which they were happy to copy and send me. From the records, I found out that my pump was originally built on a WWII war contract and was still in the warehouse waiting to be delivered to the military when the war ended and the contract was cancelled. Darley eventually sold the pump in 1952 (on the front of a Ford) to the Quincy, IL VFD. Apparently they traded it in and it went back out in 1965 on the front of this truck to the Seymour, IL VFD. They surplused the truck in 2002 to a fellow in Michigan who operates a campground near the Michigan Speedway in Brooklyn. We bought the truck from him.

        There are more pictures on the Photobucket site.

John

30 Octoberrrr 2006
# 1707

        Here is our tanker -- purchased to use on our Christmas Tree farm for irrigation.

        We bought this truck in October of 2006 and are still in the process of researching its history. It has the 306 V-6 motor, a Darley 500 GPM front-mounted pump and a 1,000-gallon tank. We don't know who had the truck originally, but the last fire department that had it in active service was the Seymour, IL VFD. They surplused the truck in 2002 to a fellow in Michigan who operates a campground near the Michigan Speedway in Brooklyn. We bought the truck from him.

        Bringing the truck home from Michigan was a saga -- and you can read about it in the Sagas (still in progress as of this date)!

        It has less than 10,000 miles on it, runs and drives like nearly new and it just an awesome truck! Peggy particularly enjoys the siren!

John Milliman

        This one adds to the fortress: 1949 Chevy 3800 1-ton, and a 1949 Chevy 2-Ton, plus other trucks, tractors, Gators, wagons, horses ... "for use on the farm" ~~ Editor

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