5th Wheel As with the trailer, I spent a good deal of time looking for a suitable tow vehicle to buy. Believing that I could find a better value with a used truck, I finally found one. Actually, friends Sonny and Terry found it. Sonny called me one day and said Terry knew of one in Grand Junction, Colorado, nearly two hundred miles away. I left immediately. When we finally got to the truck, it was fairly unassuming in appearance, having no tailgate and with a fair number of scrapes and small dings in the bed, but nothing which marred its overall lines in any way. The interior was in very good and clean condition. For the price, I just paid cash and drove it away. I have found, in the six months since, that I got one heck of a deal. I want to express my profound thanks to Sonny and Terry for their help. I painted the bed black. Against the white exterior it looks sort of snappy. The black also tends to make the white color of the truck look whiter, if only by its contrast, and seems to make the little dings in the truck, all minor, less noticeable. I outfitted it with a 5th wheel hitch, described on the Fixup page of this site. Although the truck is used, it has proven to be very sound in construction. It has virtually no rattles. For an '86 Ford F-350, that's pretty remarkable. It has a diesel engine, dual tanks, dual wheels and an extra beefy rear end. When I bought it it sported "16,000 LBS GROSS" stickers on each side, which I have left there. I also fitted the truck with an alternator for generating the large amount of power I need to work and live by, when stopped. Stored in high capacity batteries, installed in the bed of the truck, through an inverter, I obtain clean 110 volt power, with no effort and no noise- none. For details on this, see the sections on Power and Charging. The engine, while old and in need of some work, seems very strong. I've come to really like diesel. Frequently, as I'm driving in it, I think what a tough truck it is for its age. So I guess its name will be "Tuffy". Questions or comments are welcome via ve@ecentral.com. Last Update: 2/1/99 ![[VE]](images/ws2-s.gif){kind=small}
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