The Frankenstein Dozer How 4 Wrecked Machines Became 1 Legend at Grand Coulee 1937 скачать в хорошем качестве

The Frankenstein Dozer How 4 Wrecked Machines Became 1 Legend at Grand Coulee 1937

June 14, 1937, 3:47 AM. Grand Coulee Dam, Washington. Chief mechanic Frank Crowe stands in the equipment graveyard staring at 4 destroyed Caterpillar D8 bulldozers. Columbia River Construction is 6 dozers short. Replacement machines won't arrive for 8 weeks. President Roosevelt expects Grand Coulee to power the Pacific Northwest by 1941. Missing that deadline isn't an option. Crowe makes a decision: salvage everything that works from 4 wrecks and build 1 working machine. This is the story of the Frankenstein Dozer—4 years of operation, $127,000 saved, and the legend of Depression-era improvisation. Four dead machines became one unkillable legend. 🔧 THE CRISIS: Date: June 14, 1937 Location: Grand Coulee Dam equipment graveyard Problem: 6 bulldozers short, 8-week wait for replacements Decision: Build 1 from 4 wrecks Deadline: Section C-7 needs dozer in 2 hours Budget pressure: Can't afford $17,000 new machines 🚜 WHAT WENT INTO THE FRANKENSTEIN: Dozer #1 (rolled, upside-down): Transmission (180 lbs, perfect gears) Dozer #2 (connecting rod explosion): Final drives (320 lbs each) Dozer #3 (boulder field impact): Engine (Caterpillar D17000, 130 HP) Dozer #4 (airborne crash): Frame (straight steel skeleton) Plus: D7 blade, Diamond T truck fuel tank, grader seat, Ford pickup steering wheel 👤 THE BUILD TEAM: Frank Crowe (55, chief mechanic) - Built Hoover Dam, refused to accept total losses Walt Hendricks (master welder) - Custom brackets, driveshaft coupling Tom Yost (hydraulics specialist) - Pulled final drives, rigged hydraulics Pete Larson (transmission expert) - 4-hour transmission extraction Carlos Mendez (fabricator) - Built axle housings from scratch, hand-filed piston rings ⚙️ THE BUILD PROCESS: June 14-17: Salvage & fabrication (frame, engine, transmission, final drives) June 17-20: Assembly (tracks, hydraulics, blade, controls, fuel, electrical) Custom work: Mounting brackets, driveshaft coupling, axle housings Mixed parts: Track links from 3 dozers, brass hydraulic fittings from air compressors June 20, 2:15 PM: First successful start Result: 3 paint colors, gibberish serial numbers, lumpy idle—but it worked 📊 PERFORMANCE DATA: Day 1 (June 20): 16 hours, 940 cubic yards (above average) Day 2: 14 hours, 880 yards Day 3: 12 hours, 750 yards (left track threw twice) First month: 287 operating hours, no major failures March 1938: More material moved than any single machine on project Total lifespan: 4 years 2 months (June 1937 - August 1941) Total moved: 47,000 cubic yards Savings: $127,000 in equipment costs + schedule delays 🏗️ GRAND COULEE DAM CONTEXT: Height: 550 feet Length: 5,223 feet Concrete: 12 million cubic yards (more than all US highways combined) Overburden to move: 22 million cubic yards Reservoir: 151 miles long Mission: Power 6 western states by 1941 (FDR promise) Construction: December 1935 - January 1942 (7 years) World's largest concrete structure until 2003 💡 THE LEGEND: Workers treated it as good luck charm If Frankenstein ran, the day went well Factory-fresh Spokane dozers kept breaking Frankenstein kept running through -15°F winters Operator Jim Reeves refused replacement dozers Learned its quirks: 20-min warmup, blade drifts left, left clutch grabs harder 💔 THE END: August 1941: Original transmission finally fails (gear tooth shears) Jim Reeves climbs down, pats hood, walks away Returned to graveyard where it was born Frame: Scrap dealer Engine: Rebuilt, installed in water pump Final drives: Went into replacement D8 Blade: Mounted on different machine Parts probably still working somewhere Perfect for Grand Coulee Dam visitors, Depression-era history fans, welding/fabrication enthusiasts, Caterpillar collectors, and anyone who believes improvisation beats procurement. 🔔 SUBSCRIBE to Bulldozer Geek USA for stories of Depression-era ingenuity and machines that refused to die! 💬 COMMENT: What's the most creative repair you've ever improvised? 👍 LIKE to honor Frank Crowe and the team who proved 4 wrecks = 1 legend! 📱 New docs daily --- SOURCES: Columbia River Construction Company records Grand Coulee Dam historical archives Caterpillar D8 component specifications #FrankensteinDozer #GrandCouleeDam #CaterpillarD8 #1937 #FrankCrowe #Salvage #DepressionEra #Improvisation #WeldingLegend #ScrapMetal #BulldozerGeekUSA #FDR #PacificNorthwest #ColumbiaRiver