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I delivered the Spokane Daily Chronicle up at EM Kayan Village when all the houses were new.

@@mikebrewington1425 my grandparents were 390 Yellowtail. Moved up there in 1982.

Your Jeep will like the dusty climb up there.

Nice. 👍

Glad you enjoyed it. There is still some old iron around but it’s getting harder to catch working. I almost caught a cat & can working but as I was setting up he pulled into the mechanics. It was an old D9L pulling the can. Then a couple nights later I passed the D9L on a lowboy. Scarey part is I worked on the D9L’s when they were new. Guess I’m getting old.

@@jimmychanbers2424 I spent a few years with the 657E’s and they could move massive yardage. Get a bunch of hands used to hooking up and the 835 had a heck of a time keeping up. The electronics were a bit of a challenge.

Thanks Jim. It was pretty relaxing with the Action 4 just parked on top of the Jeep and pointed up. The stress was flying the drone out to a “safe” spot between barrages.

There are still some of these old treasures around. Hopefully these will be used again and I’ll capture them working.

I've seen a couple. What surprised me was the DD was not the old screaming Jimmie but the 4 stroke diesel to meet CARB Tier 3 or 4 specs.

Thanks for the reply. Like you I cut my teeth on the old iron. I started in 69 after high school graduation so you’ve got 2 years on me as I turn 73 next Tuesday. I chased the old iron all over and it is in my blood. The only time I worked for SJ Groves was at Bonneville Dam. I was with PKS and we had some iron rented out to them so I was up there a lot working on our iron. The equipment supe was an Aussie named Maurice Davies as I recall. One day he called my boss in Portland and had me and a helper come up to put an old D9H swing frames and tracks and dozer back on. His guys had tore it apart in the fall and it was now early spring. He didn’t trust his guys to get the job done right so had them digging the parts we needed out of the wet slushy snow. We were nearly done and the rock guards needed to be welded back on (bolts and threads long gone). My helper said let me so I started loading the truck. Next thing you know he says welder not working right so I crawled under to finish the job. He was right. The old 400 Lincoln had a problem. About that time he starts pulling on my leg telling me he couldn’t load the truck either because it bites. Turns out the armature went to ground about the time he was stowing the 5’ bar and it lit him up good🤪🤪. We borrowed their welder, finished the job and got out of there. I spent long nights on 631’s, 641’s, 651’s and 37’s & 57’s but never around the 660’s & 666’s. It was a good life. Been retired 11 years. Looking back on the best part of being a mechanic was the satisfaction when troubleshooting and making the right guesses paid off. It was always an adventure and we never knew what curve ball they would throw at us next.

Thanks Jim. Takes you back to the dust and mud real fast. I know it did me. For a few moments you forget all the aggravation and problems that always accompanied fleets like this.

Thanks Jeff. I’ll look him up.

@@mikebrewington1425 he is called Jpaydirt on youtube

The truth is if I were to park old iron for an extended period, this area would be my top choice. The climate is very dry and it is definitely out in the middle of nowhere so no visible vandalism and there is always hope they will work again.

You need to come visit the Western US. Yes, it is a long way to move iron but it happens all the time. I just mapped it and it's just over 1000 miles from the last area they worked to where they are now. A buddy used to run lowboy for Kerr and he was busy all the time. In two weeks we'll fire up our old motorhome and head into the Canadian Rockies for a week, then down in to Montana for a week before heading home. We'll clock an easy 1800 miles on the old bus plus 3-400 miles on the Jeep while the old bus is parked. We lived on Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands for two years and I got Rock Fever so bad no one could stand to be around me. We barged a H241 Demag, a 4600 Manitowoc, D9H's and a D9L, 992C Cat Loader and 6 R-85 Euclids plus drills, pickups and support equipment and supplies for the project. Barges went from Vallejo, California and Vancouver, Washington. This was back in 1982. At the same time we were loading barges for Kodiak Island, Alaska for a massive project there. Logistics were unreal.

Gets us old duffers excited doesn't it?

It was always a question of what the kids would break next. I started out on the grease truck but always got drafted when cables got tangled or broke on the cat and cans. I got a shot yesterday of a D9L hooked to a hydraulic can. Now to catch it working instead of static. Were you a dealer mechanic or work for contractors?

90 percent of those scrapers came out of southern california,owned by Ralph Mitzel construction or Aci grading,socal earthmovers has videos on these machines in action.

Mitzel and Madonna are some of the names I saw on the equipment with an occasional Ritchie Brothers sticker so you could be right.

I' had a tough time accepting women on the crews but as the years went by I became more accepting and looking back I've seen more than a couple that can hold their own with the men. Back when the Me Too Movement was in full swing I was asked to give a presentation at NAWIC's (North American Women in Construction) Western Regional Conference in Seattle. I resisted out of fear my past might jump up and bite me in the butt . In the end I did the presentation and it went well. Even had a couple from the past come up and give me a hug. "Can we do that here? " I asked.

Thanks Phil. I’m glad to see I’m not the only one who admires and respects old yellow iron.

@@mikebrewington1425 I'd love a spin one them mate. Been on scrapers but have never seen those 660s here in Australia.

@@philmckrakin6752 I think my back could take a short spin. This was the first time I had seen 660’s so don’t feel bad. I was told they started life at a big mine in Arizona before being moved to California where they moved dirt cheap for many years before going to auction and ending up in Oregon. There is still hope they’ll work again.

@@mikebrewington1425 yeah I agree about the back mate 🤣. Bit of young man's game. I get it pretty easy these days on dozers and graders and occasionally on our 988F. Not too much of a flogging anymore. That would be really great if someone put them to work again. My boss is the sort of bloke that would use them if he had work for them so I know those guys are out there.We have a dirty old 769a watercart I don't think it's ever going to retire 🤣

@@philmckrakin6752 Good old 769's. I can tell you tales about those girls. We used to run 631's and 641's as water tankers and had a couple 777's converted to water pigs. The older iron was much simpler without the computers and electronics causing downtime. In 1998 I inherited a fleet of 657E 5YRs to babysit 100 miles from the nearest dealer. Cat ET (Electronic Technician ) was very new and I was one of the first to receive the customer version or so they thought. Turned out I had dealer version and needed it!

You’ve got that right. Just say Hardtail with a cushion seat and they are out of here. Then again just getting them to show up for work can be challenging. Of course I can’t talk. When I was a young buck just getting started jobs were plentiful and you could quit one in the morning and be on another by mid afternoon.

Message me. It is not a scrap yard or graveyard hopefully. The owner is Kerr out of Woodburn, Oregon and they have more in their yard there.

Yes they do. I wonder what fully loaded on the flat they could do.

@@mikebrewington1425 660 would do 45MPH loaded I was told. but it would be best if you had a good hall road. I think you could get 50 unloaded

@@mog585850mph in one would be like Toads Wild Ride.

Not only did they get moved up to Eastern Oregon from a RB auction in California but then my source says two tire men spent 4 days getting them ready to go to work. I think if the right job came along they would all be in the dirt including the old 641. The stacks are taped and most of the tires are holding air. I babysat a fleet of 657E’s back from 1998 to 2000 right after their warranty expired and they were dirt moving monsters. 5YR serial range.

ralph Mitzel is a California construction co. that don't exist anymore. someone has a collectors bonanza. I want the rough terrain forklift!!

@@rearspeaker6364 You know, I regret not checking it out. I assumed it was a 988B with a fork mast and carriage mounted but I have been wrong before. Next time.

My source tells me Kerr out of Woodburn, Oregon owns them and has more in his yard. He bought the chunk of land they are stored on. I expect he’ll pick up another project and put them back to work. At least I hope that happens. As you can tell I love old iron.

@@mikebrewington1425 I love old iron too!..I would love to have an old D8K even though I have little to no use for one but they are a great old dozer…ran lots of them years ago!..I would love to have one of those old 660’s even without the bowl behind it!..they’re such a unique tractor!..Cat really knew how to build gear back in the day!

@@MrMan5014 I spent the last 39 years of my construction career with PKS (Kiewit) and we bled yellow Caterpillar blood. Back in 1970 (before PKS) I remember the excitement when we got 2 brand new D8's (46A's). Hydraulic dozer and ripper. Thought we had died and gone to Cat Heaven.

I followed my Dad into construction when I turned 18. Chased big yellow all over the Northwest, Alaska, California, Oregon, Washington, Montana, Idaho, Colorado,, Texas & New Jersey for the next 45 years so it's in my blood. like you I was never around the 660's but all the Cats and a few green Weenies. Kerr is a big equipment guy so I'm sure he is looking for opportunities to turn the smoke on again.

Can’t please everyone.

Thanks. Hopefully it stirred a few good memories.

Haha! My hard work ended 11 years ago when I parked my last service truck and retired. Yesterday’s effort was replacing the serpentine belt on my old diesel pusher as we get ready for a run up into the Canadian Rockies and Western Montana in a couple weeks. I’m headed out the door now with drones and cameras shooting progress on HP’s new research center project. Glad you enjoyed the walk back in time. I promise there will be more to come.

My jaw dropped when I spotted them. I had no clue they were out there. With my past in heavy construction going back to 1969 I had to take a closer look. With what I know now, a return trip is in the future. The first contractor I worked for had a ragtag fleet of old iron including Cat & Cans, DW20’s and DW21’s scattered across the landscape, many having parts scavenged to keep others moving. The sad end to that story is 90 days later they were bankrupt and a new contractor with modern equipment and a successful maintenance program.

@@mikebrewington1425 I'll be headed to Fossil in a weeks time, perhaps I'll stop and take a few photos. Hope I don't get trespassed or have to talk to a man with a rifle!

@@roberthumphreys1316 I wouldn’t worry about that. The site is wide open with a farm maybe a quarter mile away. There may be surveillance cameras set up but I wasn’t looking. I was more concerned with rattlers next to warm tires. That part of the Gorge was notorious for rattlers when I-84 was built. I believe if you are respectful all is well. I saw no signs of vandalism at the site. Nor did I see piles of beer cans or other signs the kids were partying out there. Have fun and share some photos.

I’ll check him out. Back in 1998-2000 my crew and I kept a fleet of 657’s moving in North Idaho. A few years ago I crashed one of my big drones filming a pair of 627’s hooking up. I’ll be back on the same site filming a concrete pour and steel erection tomorrow morning with the same drone.

Jay Pay Dirt would like a heads up on this treasure , If you would drop him a text . Thx loved the video

My source says they were bought for a big landfill job in the area that never materialized. Who knows if they will ever be used again. Still be fun to watch them going in big circles moving mountains.

None of us like to be faced with our own mistakes so it went in File 13. (The round file). Only show your best and they’ll think you are good.

I really don't remember. It came from CZcams's Audio Library and fit the duration which back then was all I was concerned with. I dream of reshooting it with my much more advanced equipment some day. Kaslo is such a neat area to visit.

@@mikebrewington1425 No problem!, I forgot you could use an app to identify songs and this one (through the Google app for Android) came up as "Wish You'd Come True - The 126ers", Awhile back I used the song in a video but I lost the name of it back then too. Anyways, I will also have to visit Kaslo one day again as well, look forward to your future shots of it, I subbed so I see it when it comes out. Cheers!.

Perhaps more fun than a boat with a motor?🤑🤑

Easier to paddle back to shore, even!

@@carlstaub6885 for sure🤪🤪

I need to get back up there for another visit. When I was a kid Dad used to take us fishing up there. The beauty is incredible.

Not my thing either but some folks enjoy it. To each their own.

I’m currently at 364,000 miles and still loving it. My original goal when I bought the high mileage Jeep was to do an LS swap when the engine croaked but it just keeps on purring. I bought mine used and know there are more good used kits out there so go for it. I’ve kept this with no lift on KO-2 285’s so it handles and drives good. When the boost comes on you can’t imagine the pleasure it provides plus it is more responsive from low idle up thanks to the oversized injectors that are a part of the kit.

It really is an impressive well-run operation which is more evident from the air. I’ve been around a lot of crusher set-ups and this one stands out on the top of the heap.

Not my cup of tea either but to each his own passion.

Spendy👎🏻👎🏻

Glad you think so!

Yes leaving a few standing would be good but not real conducive with this system of removal. Most of the ground is pretty steep.

I saw that. It’ll be interesting to see how they handle traffic flow. Looking at the site plan for Ridgefield it looks similar to the Keiser location.

I love getting out in the Lewis River country. Yesterday I had the rain chasing me. I should have gone earlier.

I don’t blame you a bit.

Thanks Jim. When I was shooting the opener, my neighbor came over because two drones were in the air. It's challenging shooting Air 2 Air even with drones.

Thanks Jim. It was mostly shot with the 70mm camera with a few. Closeups with the 166mm. It was challenging trying to keep them in frame as they buzzed by. Capturing this with the Inspire 2 would have required an acceptable zoom lens so the Mavic 3 Pro is definitely a useable tool. I’m so glad we seized the day as it’s been solid rain since then.

Is it that crowded there?