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A piece of Muskeg history

pixie

pixie

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Mr. Bombardier was a very inventive man and must have always been trying to improve things. This is an early Muskeg. I have no guess on the date. Does anyone know ? The differential is the normal angular case, not round.
The track side rails are welded on this... something that needed improvement. It has small axles.

Most interesting to me is the suspension. The front walking beam has a fore/aft pivot behind the mounting point and a heavy spring to maintain downward pressure. There is also a spring-in-a-can between the two walking beams.

Check out the wear on the rear axle.....
 

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Nice pics Pixie ! This machine reminds me of a parts donor I posted on here as the '' The ugliest Muskeg'', small axles, light gauge hull, flat bar side rails welded onto a removable angle iron. I believe that front knee action spring is the same as ''the spring in the can'' , at least on the one I posted,good for a spare. A little shimming of the grease adjuster to make sure in the retracted position the tires don't rub the axle might be a good idea,too late for this one !
Is this going to be your next project Pixie? Doing up one of these machines is like rebuilding 3 J5's :hammer:
J5 Bombardier
 
Thanks, J5B ! Oh ya, your Land Rover cab machine... that one had the rounded diff housing.
I didn't realize the angle iron at the top of the side rails was supposed to be removable. This one the side decks have been cut out/replaced... kind of.

No, I'm not going to fix it up. It has some good parts on it, though. Wheels are sold. Ford 300/6 engine looks rebuilt recently and mated to the 4 speed trans: a good combo. Previous owners said the engine turned the wrong way and was a boat engine but I can't find any reference to the Ford inline engines being used as a marine engine; the V8s, yes, but not the straight 6. Engine turns the same way as the one in my Skidozer.

The roll cage part of it is heavy and seems useful. The machine came from a ski area at one time and was probably used for snowmaking construction hauling pipe. I see a few Muskegs around here with similar setups.
 
According to the Documentary on Bombardier on the show INVENTION, W/LUCKY SEVERSON "...Next he developed his Now Famous Muskeg tractor....." this was the mid to late 50's. My Muskeg, that I got from Golden Valley Electric (Fairbanks Alaska Power Co.) was a '59. They went on to say that Joseph Armond Bombardier held in excess of 160 patents at his death, making him possibly the single most prolific inventor in Canada.
Great Pic's, great piece of history.
 
Here is a better picture of the knee-action walking beam. I've been told that this spring is different from the ones in the cans.
 

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Very neat Pixie!

A friend of my dad's had one like that he used on his Homstead down towards Anchor Point, Alaska in the late 50's and early 60's. He had put a boom on the front and weights on the back and used it to lift the logs to build his home. It sits now gathering moss and rust off to the corner of his yard. I don't make it that direction often (about 500 miles to the South) but if I get down that way, I will stop and get some photos of it.

Thanks for refreshing my memories!
 
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