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Another snocat for the Calif crew - my 'new' Tucker 1342

Vance

Member
Greetings all,

I finally got my first snocat!! Woo Hooo!!:cool2:

I picked up this 1971 Tucker 1342 from a snowmobile club in BC Canada. They had been using it to groom trails. It is in operable condition now but could use some cosmetic repairs and TLC. I'll probably do some minor work this year and probably a complete restoration next summer.

I'm excited to get this thing on the snow!!! We NEED storms in CA!!:snow_smi:

Vance

Okay, let me try to add some pics:

1. Tucker in previous life in BC pulling a roller
2. Just home on the trailer
 

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Vance

Member
A couple more pics:
 

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Eric L

Member
Site Supporter
:applause: I like it, congrats.

Restore? well, I cant really tell the condition, But the yella paint has gotta go.:hide:
 

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
So what are your plans for this cat? Hunting vehicle? Cabin access? Scaring the heck out of the neighbors?

Eric L said:
But the yella paint has gotta go.:hide:
Yeah but he has a really cool blue light on top.
:spacecraft:
It probably spins around to confuse the Kristi owners (or at least BigAl) into thinking that an alien space ship has landed to return them to their planet. :tiphat:
 

Eric L

Member
Site Supporter
B_Skurka said:
Yeah but he has a really cool blue light on top.

It probably spins around to confuse the Kristi owners (or at least BigAl) into thinking that an alien space ship has landed to return them to their planet. :tiphat:

Anyone remember the C.W.McCall song about the plow operator that got killed?

".....Flashin' them weird blue lights"


http://lyrics.astraweb.com/display/775/cw_mccall..wilderness..riverside_slide.html

If I was superstitious, I'd change the light to red with a red paint job...but I'm kinda partial to red.
 

Vance

Member
Oh ya - that paint has to go. Not only is it faded yellow :puke1:
but the PO tore off all the old stickers to start getting it ready for paint. If definately needs paint now. As it is late in the year and I don't have a paint booth... I'll probably do a rattle can job in it for this winter and then a real paint job next summer.

I'll use it for cabin access ... oh wait ... I don't have a cabin ... but if I did I could use this to get there!!!!:whistle: Actually, I have property near Soda Springs to access and there will be a cabin there (eventually). I kinda bought the snocat before the cabin but it was an opportunity I couldn't pass up.:thumb:

I'll be sure to have the blue rotating beacon a spinnin' when I'm pulling those Kristi's and Snow Tracs outa the deep stuff!! Hmm, I'm gonna have to add a siren to go along with it!! :hide:

Thanks for the welcome.

Vance

P.S. I also got a manual for this and I'll scan it and provide it for others.
 

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
Vance said:
P.S. I also got a manual for this and I'll scan it and provide it for others.
If you can get me a digital copy then I can include it with the Tucker manuals that we have here on the ForumsForums. We have a complete manual for a Tucker 222 and we have a partial manual for 300 to 900 series Tuckers. It would be nice to get a more complete manual for us to distribute. (if you can't get me a digital copy, but are willing to trust me with your copy I can digitize it and return the original to you)

And just as a reminder, we do give away our TUCKER manuals free of charge so any Forums who needs them just has to send me an email or a P.M.
  • We also have a complete Kristi Snowcat KT2 and KT3 manual that also includes several additional pages of owners notes and diagrams.
  • We also have a very complete collection of Aktiv Snow Trac/Snow Master manuals that include several years worth of Operators Manuals and Parts Manuals.
  • It would be nice if we could get some IMP, Super IMP, and SPRYTE manuals, but so far we've not been able to get a decent copy.
 

BigAl

Gone But Not Forgotten
SUPER Site Supporter
Vance said:
I'll be sure to have the blue rotating beacon a spinnin' when I'm pulling those Snow Tracs outa the deep stuff!! Hmm, I'm gonna have to add a siren to go along with it!! :hide:

Thanks for the welcome.

Vance


Dear Vance ,
I noticed that you had accidently added Kristi in the above sentence , so I went ahead and deleted it to stop any confusion :confused2: .Your Welcome .

Everyone here knows and understands that if a Kristi is'nt pulling those lessor brand snow cats back to the safety of the parking lot then we are breaking a trail so the lessor brand snowcats can pull the lessor brand snowcats back to the parking lot .

Well... It looks like my work here is done . Cheerio !!!

P.S . Soda Springs ???? Holy Cow ! Your'e in my back yard . Where you located ?

P.P.S. Forgot to say welcome aboard !!!

I just noticed your in Auburn . Thats a whopping 26 miles from my place !
 

Vance

Member
Thanks guys!!

On the manuals, I have access to a good scanner so I'll get them in digital form. They are pretty much like the 300-900 manuals (sparse) but there is an exploded diagram of the track carriers (or whatever they are called). The PO also gave me a disc with a bunch of digital photos from maintenance, repair and operation of this cat.

Al, Thanks for the welcome!! I see from your (very cool) ST7 thread that your are up the road in GV. We'll have to get together sometime and talk 'cat'... heck we might have even been neighbors at one time - I spent many years in GV/NC in my younger years around the 80s.

Oh and thanks for the 'correction' but it really wasn't necessary - I'll help ANYONE out when they are helplessly stuck!!! Aw, I just put that in there to rile up the crew a bit. Seems to be the way it is around here....:tiphat:

Vance
 

Vance

Member
Okay a REAL question:

Does anyone on here know the scoop on pontoon vs rubber/steel tracked Tuckers?

From the paperwork that I have I'm thinking that my 1971 Tucker is really a 442 that had 1300 tracks retrofitted on to it. I have the instructions for the retrofit that came in the manual.

What was the first year for belted tracks?
What was the last year for pontoons?

Was there an overlap when Tucker supplied either?

Just trying to understand the history of this cat. I do know that it spent time with Aspen Skiing Company, Blackomb, and 2 snowmobile clubs in BC.

Thanks,

Vance
 

BigAl

Gone But Not Forgotten
SUPER Site Supporter
Vance said:
Okay a REAL question:

Does anyone on here know the scoop on pontoon vs rubber/steel tracked Tuckers?

From the paperwork that I have I'm thinking that my 1971 Tucker is really a 442 that had 1300 tracks retrofitted on to it. I have the instructions for the retrofit that came in the manual.

What was the first year for belted tracks?
What was the last year for pontoons?

Was there an overlap when Tucker supplied either?

Just trying to understand the history of this cat. I do know that it spent time with Aspen Skiing Company, Blackomb, and 2 snowmobile clubs in BC.

Thanks,

Vance

I can't answer any of your questions but did you know that old Tucker actully started bussiness right here in Grass Valley ??
 

Eric L

Member
Site Supporter
Vance said:
Was there an overlap when Tucker supplied either?

I think there was an overlap. your ID tag says 1342... I would have agreed with the 442 identity:confused2:

I've seen newer style 'Cats with the steel tracks...like early 80's i think, but all the older ones like yours (and mine) I think came with steel only.

I'd like info on this subject as well.

A question for you Vance, do you have Spicer axles or Dodge?

Eric
 

Vance

Member
Eric L said:
I think there was an overlap. your ID tag says 1342... I would have agreed with the 442 identity:confused2:

I've seen newer style 'Cats with the steel tracks...like early 80's i think, but all the older ones like yours (and mine) I think came with steel only.

I'd like info on this subject as well.

A question for you Vance, do you have Spicer axles or Dodge?

Eric

I understand the confusion over the nameplate (1342) and body (442) but have an explanation for that - the retrofit instructions end with the replacement of the nameplate. Seems odd but it is there. In the next week or so I'll scan the pages and post.

Mine has the (typical) Dodge 1/2 ton axles. I think somewhere around the 1500/1600 series they switched to the Spicer 60s.

The other intersting thing about this cat is that instead of the usual Chrysler industrial engine, it has a Chevy 283!

Al,

Yes, I do know that Tucker started in Grass Valley. There is a good history story in the Tucker manuals and also posted on the Tucker website. One of my family friends actually spent some time with 'old man Tucker' on Donner Summit when he was testing his early machines. He has some super8 movies that I am pushing him to transfer to DVD (so I can have a copy).

Vance
 

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
Vance said:
On the manuals, I have access to a good scanner so I'll get them in digital form. They are pretty much like the 300-900 manuals (sparse) but there is an exploded diagram of the track carriers (or whatever they are called). The PO also gave me a disc with a bunch of digital photos from maintenance, repair and operation of this cat.
If the ForumsForums could get copies of that material it could be helpful to a lot of people. When you have the information digitized, please contact me.

Also, Doc (our ForumsForums administrator) is working up some new snowcat pages for image storage, by brand, and I think it can be organized in a logical sequence. So we may want to simply post some of those images in the new snowcat area when we figure out how to use it!
 
P

Pigtails

Guest
Vance said:
I'll use it for cabin access ... oh wait ... I don't have a cabin ... but if I did I could use this to get there!!!!:whistle: Actually, I have property near Soda Springs to access and there will be a cabin there (eventually). I kinda bought the snocat before the cabin but it was an opportunity I couldn't pass up.:thumb:

Sounds like my husband, "get the cart before the horse"
 

Vance

Member
Pigtails said:
Sounds like my husband, "get the cart before the horse"

Yep, it's called "OPPORTUNITY" !!!:good:

Sooooooo, where are all the Tucker experts to help me decipher the history on this??? Don't be shy!!!!

Vance

I really can't wait to tear this thing apart but will resist so I can play this winter.

:confused2: Okay another question: Has anyone replaced their plexiglass side windows? Mine are cracked and scratched beyond use. Looks fairly simple but there are aluminum reinforcements on the vertical edges. :confused2:
 

Eric L

Member
Site Supporter
Vance, can you take some photos of the blade mounting on your rig? yours is the first one of its age I've seen with a blade mounted. Looks like the lift is frame mounted and the lower mounts are on the axle? I think the newer ones are completely mounted on the (steel not aluminum) turntable.

Note: check your aluminum turntables and upper supports for cracks, as well as the frame at the mounting points for the turntables and the steering cyl.

Eric
 

mlang2005

Member
on my old tucker I had new glass made for the side windows from a local glass shop Be sure to get temperd glass if you decide to go with glass. What kind of trans does your cat have in it now? auto or manual.
 

tom

Active member
GOLD Site Supporter
It may say 1342 but the track carriers are definitely 1500 series(5 bogie wheels). You can tell by measuring width and length of caririer track. Should be 28" wide by 84" long approx. Also count number of grousers..should be 26 or 27 of them. Nice retrofit.
 

Vance

Member
Replying to some questions:

I'm going to start a new thread on the glass. There are lots of options/questions here.

The trans is a 4 speed manual.

The retrofitted tracks are actually 24in wide. You'll notice that these have only two belts vs the 4 of the 28 wide tracks. I've seen this style on other retrofits and early 1300 series cats. I haven't counted the grousers yet.

On the blade attach. Here is one pic but I'll take some more later. Yes, the blade frame is attached to the axle and the lift is from the frame. At the axle end there are plates attached to the axle perches below the spring pack. There are removeable pins that attach the plow frame to the axle. The lift assembly on my cat is really ugly.:pat: It looks like there used to be a winch plate and then someone added the hydro lift assy. I'm going to re-do this to something cleaner. Maybe even incorporate a winch back into the mix.

I'm still struggling over the best way to attach a blade to these small cats with aluminum turntables. On one hand it seems better to attach everything to the frame so the cats momentum pushes the snow. On the other hand, the tracks provide the bite so attaching to the axle may end up with less stress on the alum pieces. In any event, you don't want to push much with the blade on this small of a cat.

Time for chores... it's a gorgeous sunny day here in CA!!

Vance
 

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Eric L

Member
Site Supporter
Winches have been discussed here before...

a couple of my opinions... If a person atempted to winch a really stuck unit like my 443 with a frame mounted winch, I think he'd leave the axles and tracks behind. There is not much holding the turntables to the frame..a few bolts, through some light brackets, welded to a frame thats 1/8 in thick at best. On these units I think ya wanna pull on the part thas actually stuck.

On a 4x4 truck, a winch has saved my life before (literaly), and I fully believe in them as a necessity. I'm not sure about an the snowcats tho.

A side note: You've probly seen the Thiokol wrecker up in Truckee before. I always thought that thing was :cool2: I used to have a couple older wrecker setups, and thought about putting one of 'em on a Sno-Cat, but decided against it for 2 reasons, ...too much extra weight, and I didn't think the frame was up to it.

Eric
 

Vance

Member
On winches:

Yep, I'm a Jeeper, too and the winch can be very valuable. That's probably why I'm considering one. I am also concerned with the fragile pieces connecting the tracks to the frame on these tuckers (aluminum). I also know that sometimes just a little pull is all that is needed to get off a rock, stump, or icy spot. I'm going to get some seat time in my cat before I decide. I'm also concerned about the weight penalty as I'm going to try to lighten this cat up a bit for better powder performace. I also have the option of a hydraulic winch and have hydro at both the front and rear of this cat. I know there are pros and cons vs. an electric IF I decide to add a winch. First things first... I need to get it out on the snow!!!

Vance
 
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