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<p>Oklahoma combined the dept of trans and the Turnpike authority
under one director who I know. He was a surveyor for years. That
position was held by an engineer for over 70 years. I sat in an
engineering training session before covid where the new director
told us that the mission was to build shoulders on every highway
under their jurisdiction. We have one that leads into the small
town of Piedmont here that kills at least one person a year for
the last 40 years. It is a narrow 2 lane with no shoulder and the
Northbound lane is lined with 100 yr old tree growth. The
pavement is at least 6 inches higher than the natural ground and
if you get off the pavement you are in the trees. The Southbound
side is just a drop off. They have improved all but 6 miles of
that road, but there is a major electric line on the southbound
side and the power company won't move it without a payment....
Sadly this is the case with the majority of Oklahoma's highways.
The main street I have to use getting to the highway west of
here is under the town jurisdiction. They are always broke. They
ground up the asphalt and graded it one time. It is so
washboarded that I came in on it one night with my truck and 30 ft
cattle trailer and had to travel only 10 mph to keep from hitting
my head on the roof... Sure the truck is rough sprung, but the
roads are crap...</p>
<p>Cecil<br>
</p>
<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 5/17/2022 8:03 PM, Aaron Dickinson
wrote:<br>
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<div>When my sister moved to Northeast Texas and asked me to
build a house for her, I brought down my tandem axel tool
trailer. I live in Michigan and have two choices, go straight
south on the east side of the Mississippi and then west, or
jump across into Missouri and down the west side of the
Mississippi, through Oklahoma. I chose poorly. Interstate
highway just about tore my, relatively new, trailer apart. I
had installed a tool crib and tool boxes in there that had
been working fine for over two years, they did not survive
that trip. Between the expansion joints and potholes that
could swallow a car that even the semis where dodging. </div>
<div>Trip had been fine until Oklahoma, I feel for you.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Aaron Dickinson</div>
<div>Mason, Mich <br>
</div>
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face=" 'Calibri', 'Segoe UI', 'Meiryo', 'Microsoft YaHei
UI', 'Microsoft JhengHei UI', 'Malgun Gothic',
'sans-serif'"><b>From:</b> <a
href="mailto:crbearden@copper.net" target="_parent"
moz-do-not-send="true">Cecil Bearden</a><br>
<b>Sent:</b> Tuesday, May 17, 2022 8:51 AM<br>
<b>To:</b> <a href="mailto:at@lists.antique-tractor.com"
target="_parent" moz-do-not-send="true">Antique Tractor
Email Discussion Group</a></font></div>
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<div id="readingPaneBodyContent">This is the panel that is the
entire dash. It holds the ac vents, <br>
instrument panel, ac controls, radio, glove box,
everything. It runs <br>
from door to door... finding somewhere in this state to
have that <br>
fabricated is nearly impossible and would cost a lot more
than the $1300 <br>
for a new one if I could find it.... This would not have
happened if <br>
this stupid town would have taken care of the roads they had
and not <br>
expanded so much the county could not maintain the roads for
them... <br>
I have been surrounded by them and they have allowed the
roads to <br>
deteriorate to worse than cow trails. I have to travel over
them to get <br>
to the other farm where I have equipment and hay. I drive
as slow as <br>
possible, but this truck was sprung stiff, something I will
fix if I can <br>
get it operable again, and since I have not found a bed or
been able to <br>
build one, it bounces a lot. However, the last time I was
hauling <br>
cattle to the sale, I was on US highway 81 north of
Kingfisher and hit a <br>
stretch 3 miles long that the pavement seams were so rough
that the <br>
glove box door fell off after having to shut it at least a
dozen times. <br>
I don't think anyone can appreciate how ridiculously rough
the roads in <br>
Oklahoma are.... This includes state federal and county
roads...<br>
<br>
Cecil.<br>
<br>
On 5/16/2022 10:19 PM, Stuart Harner wrote:<br>
> Would it be possible to replace the factory dash with a
custom made <br>
> metal one? I am thinking about custom made instrument
panels for home <br>
> built aircraft.<br>
><br>
> It might not look "right" but then again, it is a 24
year old <br>
> truck.... :)<br>
><br>
> Just call it a Rat-Rod and charge extra for it when you
do sell it.<br>
><br>
> Just an idea.<br>
><br>
> On 5/16/22 22:11, Cecil Bearden wrote:<br>
>> I have a 98 Chevy C8500 Medium duty I use to pull
my trailers with. <br>
>> I hope to eventually get a winch bed on it, but as
it is it has a <br>
>> Gooseneck hitch with fenders. It was originally a
county dump truck <br>
>> and the bed was removed after a month and the
mechanics bed was <br>
>> installed and it was used as a mechainc truck until
about 2007. It <br>
>> is sprung really stiff, and the rough roads here
have torn up the <br>
>> doors and the dash. I don't dare drive over 20mph
on these roads, <br>
>> but the washboards and potholes are impossible to
miss. The dash <br>
>> panel has literally fell apart. It will not hold
the instrument <br>
>> cluster to operate the gauges. All the press fit
connections get <br>
>> loose in a few miles. When i removed the gauge
cluster, there are <br>
>> massive gaps and no pieces to glue back in. The
wiring harness is <br>
>> over an inch in diameter and stiff as a board. I
tried all day to <br>
>> find a NOS dash panel and have the GM number, but
good old GM has <br>
>> discontinued the part.<br>
>><br>
>> I would have thought there would be a NOS one
around but no luck... <br>
>> This truck has a recently overhauled Cat engine and
a rebuilt Allison <br>
>> transmission. Brakes have been reworked and the
A/c works great <br>
>> too.. It is the nicest truck I have ever had. Now,
it may have to be <br>
>> scrapped due to the plastic parts in the dash. I
have found salvage <br>
>> das parts, but they are broken too.... When I
contact a dealership, <br>
>> they tell me that is a 24 yr old truck.. I guess
they don't think I <br>
>> can do math anymore.. My old 66 Chevrolet still
hauls wheat. My <br>
>> others are built in the 70s, and are most all
steel....<br>
>><br>
>> Cecil<br>
>><br>
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