Boom Truck Lifts Up To 8,000 Lbs.

Boom Truck Lifts Up To 8,000 Lbs. TRUCKS Conversions 28-4-10 Cross a Jeep truck with a tracked tractor and add a boom made from 14 ft. of 2 7/8-in. well casing, and you can come close to Link Kline's eye-catching crane truck. "The only problem is people driving by slam on the brakes when they see it, throw the car into reverse, and back up for a second look," says Kline. "I am afraid it will cause an accident." Kline uses the rig to lift engines, vehicles or anything else under 8,000 lbs. He recently lifted a 1979 Peterbuilt cab-over-truck (only missing an engine and transmission) off a trailer. The base for the hybrid truck was a wrecked 1975 CJ5 Jeep. The front end was busted up, so he cut it off and replaced it with the front end off a 1969 Willy's 1-ton pickup. He also removed the rear axle from the CJ5, and replaced it with an old set of tracks from a Cletrak tracked tractor. The undercarriage of the tracks is mounted to machined plates welded solid to the axle and the frame of the old CJ5. Kline hoisted the body over the tracks, lined it all up and made templates for the plates with transfer paper. "The plates were cut to wrap around the axle part of the tracks," explains Kline. "I didn't worry about suspension. I wanted it as sturdy and solid as possible." Kline had to adapt the wheels on the front axle to match the height of the tracks. He cut the center bolt patterns out of the original wheels, turned them down on a lathe and welded them into the centers of a set of 22 1/2-in. semi tractor wheels. The lift boom consists of two 14-ft. poles made from oil well casing. An electric winch mounts at the back of the cab. "I was lucky to have some people nice enough to let me use machines to do what I wanted to do," says Link. "It is just awesome for picking up things." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Link Kline, 3008 Glenn Ave, Gillette, Wyo. 82716.

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