Story on Unimogs (and Tatras) used in fighting wildfires

[BlueFly]

Enjoy!

http://www.hcn.org/issues/40.16/the-mog-squad

 

[dlbrunner]

That is out of the town I went to high school in.

One of my buddies and the Junior high shop teacher had great stories of what the Mogs gould do...

 

[LRNAD90]

Interesting story, thanks for posting the link. It was a little suprising toward the end though, after all the touting the article was doing of the Unimog's 'super capabilities' to hear a long term operator talk about the Mogs as tempotmental, less than reliable machines? But at least the article makes the point that everytime they respond they are pushed beyond the limit..

 

[haven]

It will be interesting to see if the TATRA models will
be more durable than the Unimogs in this role.

Anyone know what secret DARPA machine is referenced
on the last page of the article?

 

[Redline]

I love the picture you linked here to start the thread:

A six-wheel-drive Tatra -- aka, Wildland Ultra XT -- tweaks out in a dry wash near Winnemucca, Nevada.

Enjoy!

http://www.hcn.org/issues/40.16/the-mog-squad

 

[Saline]

The BLM here has one of the Tatras based out of Grand Junction. I've ridden in their rig during a combined training and used them for mutual aid on fires. Holy crap, very impressive machine!! The operators say that they have some reliability issues but overall a great apparatus.

 

[ntsqd]

One of the things that I learned when I was employed working on vintage road race & touring cars is that each nation's vehicles have a unique "Zen" to them. Each country's Engineers have unique design ideas. Sometimes it is each particular brand, but usually there is at least a little commonality between brands from the same country.
To effectively work on vehicles from another country and have those repairs and modifications be long lasting and appropriate you have first figure out that vehicle's zen. Otherwise you might make it work again, only to have some other problem crop up a little later.
When I read about "reliability issues" I can't help but wonder how much if that is self-inflicted and part of the learning curve.

 

[jh504]

Where do I sign up?

 

[762X39]

It was a little suprising toward the end though, after all the touting the article was doing of the Unimog's 'super capabilities' to hear a long term operator talk about the Mogs as tempotmental, less than reliable machines? But at least the article makes the point that everytime they respond they are pushed beyond the limit..

I hear this all the time...they are super machines but...
Mogs are not temperamental, they are precision machines that have specific service requirements (in the factory service manuals)that must be adhered to to maintain the "superhuman" performance they are capable of.Even my old Swiss 404 has a long list of maintanence items that must be performed to keep it running up to par.You can't get uber performance from a precision tool without upkeep.
Just my 2 euros worth.

 

[4Rescue]

I used to be an Engine Boss for a crew out of Portland that used old Mog SWB chasis's for Wildland Engines and we never had an issue with them. Good read.

Cheers

Dave

 

[Spikepretorius]

I used Mogs extensively in the military and never ever had a problem beside having bleeding issues if we ran out of fuel but that's a common diesel thing (and top speed too slow). The ultimate vehicle in my eyes.
Our mine-proof troop carriers were also based on Mog chassis (Buffel) and there were thousands of them in use daily

 

[GlobalMonkey]

Tatra 815

If anyone is interested in Tatra trucks, go to our website:

http://www.tatratrucksusa.com/ATT Tatra Home.html

We can provide completely restored TATRA 815 6x6. The price for a restored truck in Prague, Czech Republic is $105K which does not include shipping or customs fees. We would organize the shipping and the import; the customer would be responsible for the cost. Most of the trucks have dual rear wheels but sometimes we get lucky and find one with single rear wheels. Please PM me with any questions. I have tried to attach some photographs of restored TATRA trucks, but for some reason it is not possible, the server will not let me. If interested, I could e-mail the photos.
Thanks, Tomas

 

[Doin_It]

Hey Tomas, how come almost all the pics. you show of your "competion" are trucks working the wild wild west of the Canadian oil patch, where sometimes the roads you have to haul on they hold you back with Cats, cause you can't brake hard enough to hold your self back. We build equipment for almost every company you show there, www.wellquip.ca

 

[Czechsix]

It will be interesting to see if the TATRA models will
be more durable than the Unimogs in this role.

Anyone know what secret DARPA machine is referenced
on the last page of the article?

I thought at first they might be talking MTVR, but reading that paragraph the only thing that comes to mind is one of Honeggars Scorpions. I know he's working on some contracts for DARPA, on and off, and he's probably not the only one. Why in the world the BLM would want a rock crawler for fire fighting....that's another question entirely.

Back in '96 I lived in Prague, CR and attended some military and vehicle shows, and I had a chance to talk to Tatra reps. I asked them why they weren't pursuing USA sales, and they said there was no interest from their end, they were too small to deal with the federal laws. I talked with them for quite a while and walked away shaking my head, I was so sure they'd do very well in the US. Fast forward to now and they actually are making an impact here...nice trucks, well proven tech. Too damned heavy for my taste though, I like ROSS trucks more.

 

[Gurkha]

Interesting....Tatras have been extensively used by the Indian military establishment and now is also manufactured here in India and is also offered for sale to civilians. It starts at $11000 for the 6x6. Sturdy workhorses and built to last.