I have an idea for an adventure.

[John Hubertz]

I live in Fort Wayne, Indiana.  It was the original home of the International Harvester company, a tractor and implement company that once dominated 20% of the world market for farm equipment.  Think "The Dell Computer of Tractors" and you describe their original company profile.

In 1961 they introduced this.  Called the "Scout", they had a tiny 4-cylinder engine that could climb 60 degree grades with the standard dual-range center differential.  The Dana 60 axles they utilized are still legend in the offroad community:



Anyway, I had the idea of buying one like this car, then sleeping in it until I could get it into shape to drive home (about 3000 miles).  They rust like alka-seltzer fizzy tablets in our local climate.



Thoughts?

[adamb]

You have to be from either a rural community or a wealthy urban community to appreciate aggricultural vehicles. In London we have what we call Chelsea Tractors - Range Rovers and G-wagens that the local mums use to take kids 1 mile to school. The vehicle in your picture could be the latest fashion craze 

[John Hubertz]

I know - in trendy communities and at auction you'll see the occasional one of these International Scouts going for serious money - upwards of $20,000.  Only the fact they are relatively rare and spartan as a military jeep keeps them out of Toyota Landcruiser or Rover money.

The neat thing is around here a lot of them were bought and used primarily as farm implements.  I suppose this makes sense as they are not a comfortable drive for more than short distances.

What I love about them is the absolutely state-of-the-art (for 1961) powertrain.  The little four cylinder has legendary durability, and the drivetrain configuration is a hybrid of road and tractor components.

[1960mog]

I know - in trendy communities and at auction you'll see the occasional one of these International Scouts going for serious money - upwards of $20,000.  Only the fact they are relatively rare and spartan as a military jeep keeps them out of Toyota Landcruiser or Rover money.

The neat thing is around here a lot of them were bought and used primarily as farm implements.  I suppose this makes sense as they are not a comfortable drive for more than short distances.

What I love about them is the absolutely state-of-the-art (for 1961) powertrain.  The little four cylinder has legendary durability, and the drivetrain configuration is a hybrid of road and tractor components.

Sounds like the American equivalent of a Unimog.

[gf]

Wow! youd be able to work on that think blind! Interesting to see the amount of flat surfaces in the engine bay. What is that big red beam on the right side of the photo?

[adamb]

... What is that big red beam on the right side of the photo?

Surely that's the steering column. Ready to empail you in a frontal collision 

[John Hubertz]

Indeed that is the steering column.  On this model the steering box sits way in front of the front axle beam - note the placement of the steering link in this photo - the box might as well be bolted to the front bumper!

[John Hubertz]

Here's a nearby candidate I've located - check out that patina.  I'd probably just put a coat of satin clear over it and detail and restore the engine compartment and interior.

[Squiggle Dog]

Yes, they placed their steering boxes directly behind the front bumper, and the column has no collapsibility whatsoever. Their emphasis was NOT on safety. Their brakes were four wheel manual drums with a single line at the master cylinder, and the front shoes were smaller than most compact cars, on a vehicle the size of a bus.

I drove a 1967 International Travelall as a daily driver for a few months, until I had to sell it to pay rent. I loved it because there was no shortage of space, and I had a vintage bicycle hobby; I could open the rear side door and easily fit a full-sized bicycle between the front and second-row seats. I loved the styling as well, and it was great in the Utah snow.




Notice my dog in the background, which I still have (this was in 2004, and the reason I got kicked out of my house):

[Squiggle Dog]

I really missed the 1967 Travelall that I used to own, so after I moved back to Utah and got a job as an apprentice plumber, I located a nearly identical one in California. I had been riding my bicycle 10 or more miles one way to work each day, and it was wearing me out. I had some money set aside, and got a $6,000 loan to pay for the Travelall and a bit of restoration work. That loan ballooned into $12,000 quickly, and I got in over my head, eventually having to get a consolidation loan and pay it off at $200 a month, but that is another story.



I flew down to California and drove the Travelall back to Utah. As I was driving through Nevada in the middle of a moonless night in the middle of nowhere, I hit the high beam switch on the floor and suddenly lost both headlights right before a turn as I was doing 70 miles per hour. I couldn't see a thing and flew off the road and bounced up and down until I stopped. I bounced so hard that my foot punched through the floorboard. As I stepped out of the vehicle, I fell into a ditch that I barely missed. If I didn't have four-wheel-drive, I wouldn't have been able to get back onto the road. The previous owner didn't crimp the wires on the new headlight dimmer switch tightly enough, so they popped off when I pressed on the switch, causing me to lose both headlights at once.


Then, as I was driving the rest of the way the next day, I ran out of gas at the top of a hill. I poured in gas from the fuel can and ran the battery dead trying to start it, so then I tried to start it by letting it roll backwards down the hill and pop it into gear. It broke the rear axle shaft and differential gears. I rolled the rest of the way into a rest stop and had someone jumpstart me. Then I put it in four-wheel-drive and drove the another 100 miles home on the front axle.


I rode my bicycle to the wrecking yard and pulled the differential gears and axle shafts out of another International truck and installed them. After that, it was a pretty reliable vehicle, though I never did get to do any restoration on it. I was living in my sister's flooded, spider-infested basement, and she said she was moving into a double-wide and I couldn't come with, plus I quit my plumbing job because I couldn't handle all of the harrassment, so after spending the winter in a shack made out of pallets, I rented a UHaul and drove back to Washington with the people I used to live. I drove the Travelall for about 2 years total as my daily driver, but it rode SO uncomfortably rough and the body was beat to heck and rusted out, so I sold it.



More of my adventures here: http://www.justinternationals.org/Binder-Bench/showthread.php?t=8003 and here: http://www.justinternationals.org/Binder-Bench/showthread.php?t=8367.

[Squiggle Dog]

Oh yeah, I forgot about the 1968 Travelall that I had, too: http://www.justinternationals.org/Binder-Bench/showthread.php?t=9449.





After owning three of these, my conclusion is that they are great looking vehicles and very, very useful as you can do just about anything with them. The bad? Safety was not built into these; the steering box placement and column design are dangerous, everything is hard and can impale you (rows of metal knobs and handles inside the cab), and the brakes are WAY undersized for the size and weight, let alone anything you would be towing. The suspension is very harsh, and the bodies rattle, rust, and fall apart.