Where's your septic tank?

[Orcas Tow]

Had a call from a little old lady customer who has a pottery here on Orcas saying a BIG truck was stuck in her lawn, I'll be right over, when I got there the truck was buried axle deep on the pass side in the wet yard about 50' from hard ground, first thing I asked the homeowner was "wheres your septic tank & drain field?" She said oh its way over to the right of the truck, great here we go, started pulling got her winched out of the holes the tires had dug & back about 20' then BANG, the drivers front drops into a septic tank.

Had to reposition the truck for a lift on the drivers front & run a line to a little old apple tree for a pull from the rear at the same time, all went as planned the second time, lady says "oh that must be the other septic tank for our apartment next door", yep it was fresh smelling rigging up for the lifthttp://www.tow411.net/images/emoticonunsure.gif
 

 

\\

 

 

 

 

 

 

tator envy said:

Ewwww.looks like poo to me.Shi^^y job!!!!
Nice rigging, you sure get your monies worth out of that truck!!"I would rather be hated for who I am than loved for who I am not"

 

ed barker said:

I bet you could sure "SMELL",,,,*I mean "TELL",,,,that was a bad job,,,,,http://www.tow411.net/images/emoticonpoke.gif ,,,just curious Orcas,,by all the medium and heavy jobs you do wouldn't it be feasible to have a bigger wrecker that was more sized for the jobs,,even a used older heavy??????,,,then you could also get heavy rates$$$$$$$,,,,just curious,,you seem to stay pretty busy on the heavier side??????

 

racerecovery said:

That is some excellent rigging. I have the same truck and the capabilties of that truck are amazing.

 

Orcas Tow Said:

Thanks guys.
Ed, I am on a small island with 4,000 & some year round residents, I have maybe 2 calls a day & have only put 30,000 miles on this (primary) truck in 6 years, I have a flatbed that sits more than the wrecker, these calls are few & far between & I would love to have a true medium duty hydraulic or even a nice old 600 Holmes for these jobs but realistically the tow business here would not support me on its income only & another truck on the insurance/maintenance, etc... doesnt bring anymore calls in, I own a shop with 4 tech's & that is where my bread & butter is.
In this situation I dont know if a bigger truck could have fit where I was without getting stuck or having to cut down a tree due to the lack of working area (the fenders of my truck were wedged between the deck support on the left & a tree on the right, I had to wiggle my way into there), the 550 is small in body size, a 4x4 which I used in this situation, & the 408 has been a great working unit, Orcas Island has many many narrow steep driveways where a bigger truck would get the mirrors ripped off.
I dont mind snatchblocking, I charge by the hour so am paid to rig, this job was about 1 1/2 hrs from start to finish & just under $300, the truck earned its keep todayHello from sunny (when its not raining) Orcas Island

 

1Caleb said:

That truck of yours has earned it keep. Nice job on the rigging. I'm always impressed with the stuff you do.

 

ed barker said:

I appreciate the answer to my question,I guess its just hard for me to realize your surroundings,that is for sure not a lot of locals and I understand your position ,,,I'm kind of a homebody when it comes to traveling,the closest I ever been to an island is when I used to watch "Gilligan",,,,,,,and I do agree the chevron unit is a really stout little unit,I like ours very much,and I notice you use your blocks frequently,thats the way it should be done. Thanks,Ed

 

Stapley Towing said:

You keep impressing me more and more with every post, You could run a wreckmaster cousre "BIG JOBS, LITTLE TRUCK" lol, keep up the amazing work, Sounds like you have found just the right piece of equipment!!!!

 

allenstowing said:

nice rigging that little truck is earning its money

 

twinbulls said:

Nice truck,
Nice rigging
Nice job You are a PRO....
Nice paycheck

Thanks for thr pics....
Tim

 

bigtow00 aka Jason Ray said:

Boy, ain't this some S^^^t. No one really knows where this stuff is unless they put it in.Life is about the journey, not the destination.

 

towingtech said:

I too am glad to see a pro work with a nice unit and what a impresive looking island you are on.

"Use it don't abuse it"

Nice workJust Towing My Part
CK

 

BigWheelRecovery said:

Uzek that's a real pro at work using the tools he has an achieving what he set out to do.Looking at the limited area to work I think that if you had a medium you would have to have two, the second to pull out the first. very nice job, BOB

 

orcas tow said:

Bob,I am the largest wrecker on my little island so if I get stuck theres nobody to recover me, self recovery & staying within the abilitys of my truck is always on my mind.

I really value all your input & the power of this site on a learning aspect.

Most of recovery techniques I use are from Wreck Master, Tow411, hands on & I like to think some mechanical ability to figure things out thrown in the mix.

There is a wealth of information here, I think the light duty drivers can learn from the heavy & maybe even heavy from light sometimes as far as techiniques & rigging.

I find myself really trying to document recoverys to share them here for review, critiquing & to study later on to find anythings that could have been done safer, easier or used a different method.

Thanks for all the compliments & please dont hesitate to critique as there is always more than one way to perform the same recoveryhttp://www.tow411.net/images/emoticonhug.gifHello from sunny (when its not raining) Orcas Island