The “long-nose” or “Western Conventional” GMC and Chevrolet heavy duty (and upper-medium) trucks arrived in 1966 along with the more common short-nosed ones.
Unlike in the past, this was essentially a GMC HD truck with Chevy badges, as that brand expanded to be essentially a badge-engineered GMC in the medium-upper weight classes after the two were consolidated in 1968, and did not share any panels with the pickups and lighter trucks. These long nosed versions were intended to compete against the rapidly growing popularity of the West Coast conventional trucks, as length limitations started to liberalize. They had room for the big 8V-71 DD, typically in 290 or 318 hp variants.
These started as the GMC only MH-9500’s in 1966, powered by the 8V-71 Detroit Diesel. In 1969 the Cummins NTC’s were added to the option list. Chevy dealers didn’t get the long nose conventions until 1970 at which time they also got their own version of the GMC Astro 95 cabover, naming it the Titan 90.
The MH-9500’s were well regarded back in the day and are considered a classic by heavy truck enthusiasts.
Very neat, I like the wide spread tandem axle semi-trailer as much as the tractor. How does it unload? It doesn’t seem to be an end dumper. Some kind of walking floor? A conveyor belt? (like a potato hauler).
From the way the vertical posts are sitting all wonky, I suspect this may be a soft-side trailer and the posts and sides are removable for off-loading with a forklift.
Yes, but it seems to be loaded with grain or some other (loose) bulk product.
Not sure about this truck but we have grain trucks similar in design to this in the mid western US. When they were unloaded at a grain elevator the trucks would be backed onto a dock. The entire truck would be raised and tilted like the dump bed of a dump truck to unload the grain. Quite a sight to watch!
Aha, thanks! A bit like unloading sugar beets, but that’s a sideways-tilting process (photo courtesy of fa. Wassenaar).
These were a delightful truck to work on, once you got the hood opened. Pop the valve covers on the 8V-71, sit on the front tire and start setting the valves, injector heights and adjusting the rack. Springs to stand on. We didn’t see a lot of these, the short nose was more common.
Don’t put your white shirt on yet…
Right after this tune-up we’re going to replace the rear-mounted air compressor. LoL