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Brian Vail's Thiokol "Snow Toaster" restoration

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
I found this website and traded a couple emails, got permission to link to his site and post some photos and thougth you guys might like to see this restoration. He also is restoring a Diamond T truck to haul his snowcat.

http://www.geocities.com/snow_toaster/

There are a lot more photos at his website, but here are a few.

Before bringing it home. This is a 1961 Thiokol Trackmaster.
catcleelum2.jpg


1oct26.JPG


The body and the chassis almost ready to be joined:
0oct27.jpg


Fitting the body one the chassis:
02oct27.jpg


Interior of the operators area after the restoration:
vscontrols.jpg


After the restoration and out in the snow:
jan04catjacob.jpg
 

bkvail

New member
thanks for posting Bob. Brian has worked hard on this thing over the years, and the hard work continues when he has time to work on it. He has taken it up on Mt.Baker several times this year and is getting it dialed in. :) He is never short on people wanting to join him either :thumb:

Karin Vail
 

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
I've traded a couple more emails with Karin and thought I would post Brian's next restoration project. This is the truck he will use to haul the "Snow Toaster" and I hope he posts pictures of his progress in our "car" area he on the forums!

It would be nice to see some more detailed photos of the inside of the Thiokol's cabin, engine, etc.

BTW, take a look at Brian's hat. I'm jealous!
 

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bkvail

New member
the Diamond T is actually my husband's brothers project (the brother with the old Peterbuilt logging truck). He bought it especially with the snowcat in mind though. We have an old Suburban that normally tows a car trailer with the cat on it, and it's just a bit much for a half ton rig.

I have decided that I've gotten so much interest in the Thiokol hats, that I am going to rework the digitizing for the embroidery and offer them for sale. I have an ebay store that I will put them on when I've got it redone. I bought a new embroidery machine (and that hat was done with my old machine), so I have to learn how to do hats on this machine first. I will be able to make them any color by just changing thread, and if there is interest enough in other styles, I could digitize different body style cats too.
 

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
bkvail said:
I have decided that I've gotten so much interest in the Thiokol hats, that I am going to rework the digitizing for the embroidery and offer them for sale. I have an ebay store that I will put them on when I've got it redone. I bought a new embroidery machine (and that hat was done with my old machine), so I have to learn how to do hats on this machine first. I will be able to make them any color by just changing thread, and if there is interest enough in other styles, I could digitize different body style cats too.

Well maybe you could make up some ForumsForums hats that feature different brands and we could sell them here on the Forums? :thumb:

We do occasionally offer merchandise for sale, and we donate a couple dollars from each sale to pay for the 'servers' here to keep the ForumsForums free of advertising. We currently have some thermal travel mugs for sale that feature several brands of snowcats with the profits going to help this Forum grow!
 

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bkvail

New member
nice mug, great idea :)

I worked on the Thiokol digitizing a little this Sunday. I had my grandpa's memorial on Saturday (and had worked Wed-Fri making an urn for him), but now that the urn is done, I should have some time to work on the digitizing. My ebay store is always a bit slower the month after Christmas, so I have a little more time sometimes :)
 

weatherby

Member
bkvail said:
nice mug, great idea :)

I worked on the Thiokol digitizing a little this Sunday. I had my grandpa's memorial on Saturday (and had worked Wed-Fri making an urn for him), but now that the urn is done, I should have some time to work on the digitizing. My ebay store is always a bit slower the month after Christmas, so I have a little more time sometimes :)
I,ll be patiently waiting :cool2: :a1: :applause:
 

mbsieg

awful member
GOLD Site Supporter
Karin can you do other makes with a good pic?? it would be worth some $ to me?
 

bkvail

New member
yes, I would be up to another cat to digitize. What type of cat? I need good sized clear BMP images (or I could use JPG's or GIF's and convert them myself). bkvail@gte.net is my email.
 

mbsieg

awful member
GOLD Site Supporter
Snowcat Operations said:
Aktiv Snow Trac and Master and a Thiokol Swamp Spryte. I will send some pics soon. Thanks.
I would like one with a sno trac or sno master..... let me know the $. Thanks, Mike
 

bkvail

New member
here I am coming back to a thread almost 2 years old - and I'm wondering what a Thiokol Swamp Spryte looks like?

I do plan to take some more interior pics of the Thiokol now that he's added a transfer case to get lower gears - he's still working on finishing up the linkage for that (he was able to use some from the original linkage that went to the power divider that we didn't get with the machine originally). The paint isn't as purdy as it was a few years ago, but she's still a cool machine I think even if she needs some new clothes again, LOL.
 

socal4t12

Member
Default Re: Brian Vail's Thiokol "Snow Toaster" restoration
here I am coming back to a thread almost 2 years old - and I'm wondering what a Thiokol Swamp Spryte looks like?



here is a link to a Thiokol 604 i found out in a cow pasture in central cali. it is an amphibious unit/swamp 604. sorry for the quality of the pics. had to sneak into the farm. ive been trying to find the owner of this for 4 years now,,,none of the ranch hands speak english, and i have no idea if they give the ranch owner my info each time i see it.

http://www.forumsforums.com/3_9/showpost.php?p=134728&postcount=7
 
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