A few years ago I had an instructor in the academy that told us "San Jose or some department near there" had experimented with "tillered engines" that involved manually dropping the pump drive in place to the trailer. I have never seen anything like this, does anyone know anything about this or is he mistaken.
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Many years ago, there was a concept tried on the west coast by a couple FD's involving tractor-trailer combination rigs. I don't recall all the details, but there were a couple articles I read in trade journals at the time. Both tractor and trailer had a pump, one for attack, the other for supply. There was no "tiller"; no second driver was needed. I'm not sure if this is what you were hearing about or not.
 Quote:Many years ago, there was a concept tried on the west coast by a couple FD's involving tractor-trailer combination rigs. I don't recall all the details, but there were a couple articles I read in trade journals at the time. Both tractor and trailer had a pump, one for attack, the other for supply. There was no "tiller"; no second driver was needed. I'm not sure if this is what you were hearing about or not. That sounds pretty close to what he said. The guy who said it wasn't the type to speak about things without confirmation. I've wondered about this for years and could never find any information. Thanks so much.
As I thought about this longer, I seem to recall reading the articles in either "FIRE COMMAND" or something called the "Western Fire Journal" or "West Coast Fire Journal"....something like that. I still have them, but they are boxed up in storage. I'll see if I can locate the article and find more info, if you'd like.
Quote:As I thought about this longer, I seem to recall reading the articles in either "FIRE COMMAND" or something called the "Western Fire Journal" or "West Coast Fire Journal"....something like that. I still have them, but they are boxed up in storage. I'll see if I can locate the article and find more info, if you'd like. You don't have to go searching for it, but if you ever come across it, feel free to post it up here.  
That's actually pretty cool. Can't say I've seen anything like it .
Quote:Is the rig something like this?No, but that rig is cool anyway.
I found it! The article was in the December, 1974 issue of "FIRE COMMAND". The concept was the idea of Chief Carl Thiele of the Springlake Fire District in Woodland, CA. The District operated two of what they called Articulated Duplex Pumpers. The first was built in 1963, the second in 1974. The article featured the 1974 rig, but also gave limited info on the 1963 rig. The 1963 version had a total pump capacity of 1250 GPM (two pumps) and carried 2000 gallons of water. It also featured a 2500 watt lighting plant. The focus of the article was the 1974 rig. The tractor was a short wheelbase International CO-1910. It had a 750 GPM pump that was powered by it's own engine. A split hosebed (around the fifth wheel) carried 700' of 4" hose, as well as a couple attack lines. The trailer carried another 750 GPM pump and engine, 1550 gallons of water, 1000' of 4", four preconnected attack lines, a deck gun, a booster reel and ground ladders.
The general idea was that the rig could drop the trailer at the fire scene and the tractor could lay out to a water source. They could also drop the trailer at a scene with a nearby hydrant to act as one pumper and then use the tractor as a second pumper. Another scenario could see the rig supplying a scene from draft, using both pumps to supply a 4" line. The Springlake Fire District merged with the City of Woodland in 1982. I don't believe that any more articulated duplex pumpers were built by them, but the concept is interesting. I did manage to find this video: http://woodlandfiredepartmentvolunteersu...ional.html
Fascinating. Really glad I asked now. Thanks for the info. It seems like there were a lot of "off the wall" ideas in the 60s and 70s that never took off but they sure are interesting.
Quote:Fascinating. Really glad I asked now. Thanks for the info. It seems like there were a lot of "off the wall" ideas in the 60s and 70s that never took off but they sure are interesting.Glad I could help out. My wife doesn't even begin to understand why I keep all the stuff I keep. The 60's and 70's were a great time of new technology and new ideas for the Fire Service. Articulating platforms, tower ladders, rearmount aerials, all-wheel steering, large diameter hose, reels for that hose, foam systems on structural rigs, SCBA, Lime-Yellow, light bars, and dozens of other things made their debut in that time. Some were accepted and some were not. Some are still in use, others made great war stories to tell the younger guys. I wouldn't have it any other way!
But a concept tried as early as 1939, when the Cockeysville, MD. VFD purchased a custom Diamond T 3-door tractor with a Heil 1200 gal. trailer.
Utilizing the facilities of the Baltimore Co. Repair shop, Capt. Ed Mays and several other CVFD members customized the combo rig to include: Tractor; 750 gpm pump, 700 ft. 2.5" , 4 suctions, hand tools. Trailer; 500 gpm pump (rear mount), 600 ft. 1.5",2 floodlights, deck gun, 35 and 50 ft. ladders, tools. Usage was same as the Ca. rigs that GA Dave mentioned. Rig stayed in service until 1962. Photos posted in Maryland photos thread... 
Love the back up warning bell.
Somewhere I've seen a similar concept, but instead of a trailer just a large pump mounted on the back that could be dropped at the water source (draft or hydrant). Imagine the forklift carried on the back of some delivery trucks, but a big pump on a skid mount instead of a forklift.
Aaron Woods
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