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early tucker photos

DAVENET

Bronze Member
GOLD Site Supporter

"The Tucker Sno-Cat, purchased in 1959 for $8,000 was used to take skiers to the summit at Whitefish Mountain Resort prior to the installation of Chair 1. It cost $4.50 for a ride inside, or a quarter to be towed behind."
Photo: Marion Lacy
 

Track Addict

Bronze Member
GOLD Site Supporter
All profit after about 1,777 riders or 32,000 tow behinds! With inflation looks like I'm going to start having to charge the kids $36.83 and $2.05 respectively per trip up the hill this year. (If we get sno!)

Best way I know to fund a unicorn hunting expedition!
 

Pontoon Princess

Cattitute
GOLD Site Supporter
she is a 1949 Tucker Sno-Cat, model 423

original owner was the Colorado State Police, it was their first Tucker Sno-cat, CSP, would go on to buy another half dozen or so more Tucker Sno-Cats in the following years, it has been owned by the same Colorado family since it was sold by the state patrol in the early 50's.

and yes, they still can be found in the WILD...


and thank you Nikson for all your help...
 

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loggah

Active member
SUPER Site Supporter
Nice save !!:clap::clap:No Dodge style nose??? Jinn is the serial number higher then my 1949 422? no.58? Thanks, Don
 

Pontoon Princess

Cattitute
GOLD Site Supporter
mr loggah, I have serial numbers 14855, 14856, and 14957 and you have 14958 and 14959 and as for the colorado state patrol Tucker Sno-Cat, serial number is, 149110.

the dodge nose was used on both the 420 and 422, while the 423s used the Tucker built nose.
 

jask

Member
WOW!! that looks great. I assume you have the skis as well? and don't worry- that hood will buff right out! :)
Congratulation on another successful hunt.
 

aksnocat

Member
mr loggah, I have serial numbers 14855, 14856, and 14957 and you have 14958 and 14959 and as for the colorado state patrol Tucker Sno-Cat, serial number is, 149110.

the dodge nose was used on both the 420 and 422, while the 423s used the Tucker built nose.

I believe I have the model 423 built just before the Colorado State Patrol one, serial number 149109.

Someday I'm going to bring it back.

aksnocat
 

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Pontoon Princess

Cattitute
GOLD Site Supporter
Fabulous, 149109, was sold new to: L.L. Penny, Snow Survey, Haines, Alaska, good luck!!!

amazing it has survived Alaska .......
 

aksnocat

Member
It doesn't have many miles on it. The story from the guy I got it from was that Tucker had brought it to Fairbanks/Nenana in 1950 to demo it for the Air Force. He was a kid who lived in Nenana at the time. Apparently the thing was driven out into the flats south of Nenana and had some ski/steering failure and was abandoned. He said he drove his dogsled past it through his childhood and vowed someday he'd bring it back to town. Once he was old enough to borrow a bulldozer he brought it back to Nenana where it sat until just a few years before I got it.

He said the tracks and pontoons were stolen off of it not long after he got it back to town, he thinks by someone in town who wanted to buy it from him. It had no skis when I got it.

The odo shows, after dividing by 2.33, that it has 118 miles on it.
 

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Pontoon Princess

Cattitute
GOLD Site Supporter
Great story, and do hope you are able to restore some day soon,

FYI, L.L. Penny, I believe was a dealer for Tucker Sno-cat, as he was sold quite a few Tuckers over the years.
 

Cidertom

Chionophile
GOLD Site Supporter
When I was helping restore a antique fire engine, it had a required lubricant. Perhaps "sno-cat" wax was similar: Melt X.Y pounds bear tallow, z pints kerosene, and L Lbs powered graphite until smooth and apply liberally on drive chains each time used... I wish I still had the book, it gave exact directions. and substitutions should bear tallow not be available.
 

Pontoon Princess

Cattitute
GOLD Site Supporter
4 th one went to Norway, and yes the other three are in captivity and living the good life

well, truth is, they were not the only ones with steel bodies, from 1944 through 1946, all the bodies were steel,

then, the 1947 & 48's, 423's with Mercury Flathead V-8's, 11 built, steel lower bodies with alum upper body, doors, roof, and Ford pickup steel hoods. and from there on, with only a couple exceptions, Tucker sno-cats with pontoons, where alum skinned bodies.

photo is of the Norway machine, it is still in the wild......... where is my passport?
 

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Track Addict

Bronze Member
GOLD Site Supporter
Those look to be off a large Tucker. Nothing the princess of pontoons cant fix!

Now where is the machine that goes with it?
 

Pontoon Princess

Cattitute
GOLD Site Supporter
Timberline Lodge, Mt Hood, Oregon, early 1950's, Tucker Sno-cat, model 743
 

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Pontoon Princess

Cattitute
GOLD Site Supporter
1948 Tucker Sno-cat, powered by a Mercury Flathead V-8, last one of the V-8's built, originally sold to Luckens Motor Garage, Steamboat Springs, winter sports club, and then in '51, it was sold to the Colorado State Patrol.
 

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vintagebike

Well-known member
Little Red Tucker

I hear that the beautiful red skier sweater was recently found under the seat and might be at McCallin' 2017.
 

DAVENET

Bronze Member
GOLD Site Supporter
Timberline Lodge, Mt Hood, Oregon, early 1950's, Tucker Sno-cat, model 743

A question from the far back corner of the classroom-

"Excuse me, Professor Davis, excuse me . . ." :biggrin:

At what point did the 643's stop and 743's start? I ask because I was under the impression the 643's had the longer engine side sheet panels (like the original 443's), then the 743's started the straight lower body lines?
 

Pontoon Princess

Cattitute
GOLD Site Supporter
mr net, sir, 1951 was the last year of the 643 and 1953 was the first year of the 743, with NO freighters being built in 1952

and correction on the mt hood photo of a freighter, it is a 643, NOT 743
 
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