Classic Refuse Trucks E-Z PACK

FL80 Series 'Hercules' Front Loaders

The ground-breaking E-Z Pack Hercules

    With a modern new rear loader in the fold, E-Z Pack next introduced an all-new front loader in 1986. The old model front loader had done stalwart service for twenty-four years, and successfully challenged rival Dempster for supremacy in the eastern markets. The old front loader, while being a reliable and powerful packer, was however burdened by somewhat excessive weight. To withstand packing pressures that delivered up to 850 pounds per cubic yard, the body (as was somewhat typical industry practice) was heavily reinforced with heavy steel braces. Increasingly strict enforcement of road weight limits, coupled with spiraling expenses was beginning to squeeze haulers.

    The E-Z Pack solution was the all new FL80 HerculesHalf-Pack , which resurrected a trade name not seen since the 1960s. As the name states, Hercules was a partial packer with tilt-to-dump unloading. This tried-and-true method was used by the very first front loaders that emerged out of southern California in the 1950s, and the weight-conscious west had never abandoned the principle. But the half-pack adherents, micro-builders such as Bowles, Bemars/Maxon, AMREP and Able Body had never been able to tap into the broader national market in any great way. E-Z Pack, well established in the eastern states, was in a perfect position to capitalize, and wisely jumped on the opportunity.

    But it wasn't the half-pack method that truly made Hercules unique, rather it was its radical new body shell, which featured gently curved walls with no side supports. The high strength, pre-stressed sides yielded incredible strength with far less weight than box-braced flat wall designs. They were also more resistant to punctures, and the lack of external bracing left few spaces in which corrosion could form. The curved shell was not really new, having been first employed by Fred T. Smith on the ill-fated Gar Wood Ten Hundred rear loader in 1977. But it was on the E-Z Pack Hercules that the curved shell finally gained prominence, and has since become the world-standard; it is used on virtually every modern refuse truck. In this respect, the Hercules Half-Pack was truly a landmark design in the refuse industry.

Despite new style arms, Hercules could lift up to 8000 pounds

    The new front loader used solid, curved lift arms similar those already in use on E-Z Pack front loaders since 1984. The packer was actuated by two 6-inch diameter single-stage rams, cross-mounted horizontally in the base of the angled packer blade. Container dump cycle time was 20 seconds, with 25 seconds needed for a complete pack cycle.

    Body sizes were 32, 38 and 40 cubic yards. Tilt cylinders were multiple stage telescopic, and an underbody stabilizer helped keep it in-line while hoisted. The transition from the curved body to the flat hopper floor created a sump, capable of holding 100 gallons of liquid to minimize spilling. The automatic tailgate locks were carried over from Goliath, allowing the operator to remain at the front of the truck when discharging the load.

    The Hercules was a triumph for E-Z Pack; the right product at the right time. It had a profound influence on the entire industry, proving to be a worthy successor to the original 1962 front loader. Packing in the 800 lbs/cubic yard range, it could deliver payloads equal or better than its predecessor, yet its empty weight was over 4000 pounds less. And for those die-hards, E-Z Pack wisely kept the old model around for a few more years until a full-pack Hercules eventually replaced it.

At left, the stabilizer arm supports the raised body and provides a channel in which to run the plumbing. Right-hand picture shows curved shell and natural sump formed by body transition.

The E-Z Pack tailgate lock: As double-acting cylinder extends to lift tailgate, it forces clamp downward releasing lock. As cylinder finishes retracting to close gate, it pullls clamp upward to secure the lock

Like Goliath, the Hercules visually stood out from the crowd

Though virtually identical to the Hercules half-pack from the outside, an inside look at the full-pack version reveals a pair of full-length blade guide rails along the bottom of the body

This Hercules has been modified with compartments for three-stream recycling. The lift arm was adapted to handle either individual 80-gallon bins, or segmented containers. This may have been a factory custom, or have been modified by an independent shop

SELECTED PATENTS

Patent #	Description	Inventor	Assignee	Date
US4909564A	Front loading refuse truck body	Pfeifer, et.al.	Peabody Intl.	April 29, 1988

10/4/09