Post by KevinTheCynic on Aug 6, 2011 10:16:44 GMT -5
I think this has to be my preferred post-apoc 'getaway' vehicle! Sure it' big and nearly impossible to hide but it's electric and quiet and those trailers will haul 25 ton each so I can carry everything I want!
LeTorneau Land Train
Overland Train Mk II (this one had quarters for a crew of six and a navigation suite including radar)
Photo collection of Overland Train Mk II from Life magazine - click the images for larger views (find the Willys Jeep!)
LeTorneau Snow Train - YouTube link
But seriously, this was one of a number of experimental vehicles built in the 1950s initially to carry supplies for the construction of the Distant Early Warning Line of radar stations in Alaska and Canada. Unfortunately for the vehicle, it was bad for the environment (those big tyres chewed up the plant life pretty bad), the completion of the DEW stations meant it was no longer needed and finally, new technology meant the US military could rely on heavy lift helicopters instead of a massively long land train.
Still, for all those negatives, I love it just for the sheer size and the audacity of LeTorneau to create a monster vehicle driven by electric motors. R.G. LeTorneau, the founder of the company, was a man ahead of his time in regards to electric powered vehicles and for creating unique vehicles to solve particular problems (such as a vehicle for moving a building without dismantling the building, a beach vehicle for recovering grounded landing craft and delivering them back to sea and so on).
For an overview of the Overland Train, the wiki page is quite good
LeTorneau Land Train
Overland Train Mk II (this one had quarters for a crew of six and a navigation suite including radar)
Photo collection of Overland Train Mk II from Life magazine - click the images for larger views (find the Willys Jeep!)
LeTorneau Snow Train - YouTube link
But seriously, this was one of a number of experimental vehicles built in the 1950s initially to carry supplies for the construction of the Distant Early Warning Line of radar stations in Alaska and Canada. Unfortunately for the vehicle, it was bad for the environment (those big tyres chewed up the plant life pretty bad), the completion of the DEW stations meant it was no longer needed and finally, new technology meant the US military could rely on heavy lift helicopters instead of a massively long land train.
Still, for all those negatives, I love it just for the sheer size and the audacity of LeTorneau to create a monster vehicle driven by electric motors. R.G. LeTorneau, the founder of the company, was a man ahead of his time in regards to electric powered vehicles and for creating unique vehicles to solve particular problems (such as a vehicle for moving a building without dismantling the building, a beach vehicle for recovering grounded landing craft and delivering them back to sea and so on).
For an overview of the Overland Train, the wiki page is quite good