Classic Refuse Trucks WESTERN BODY & HOIST

Western Body & Hoist Company

Jet Full-Pak and Wesco Truck Chassis

    Hot on the heels of unitized Gar Wood TX-30 unitized refuse truck, which was unveiled in late 1964 at the APWA Equipment show, Western Body & Hoist announced an all-new refuse truck of their own; the Wesco Jet front loader. This was a joint project with Reo Motors of Lansing, Michigan, which did the development and engineering on a short-wheelbase truck chassis, with an almost perfect weight distribution. Designated as the Reo AF-475, The cab and engine were mounted fully forward of the front axle, so that the truck body would rest directly on both axles. With a wheelbase of 140-inches, the Jet was also highly maneuverable for a vehicle of this size.

    Mated to the Jet chassis was an all-new front loader designed by George W. Morrison, engineer and co-founder of Western Body & Hoist. It was based on the Full-Pak front loader, with a 35-cubic yard capacity and a unique sloped rear floor section to ensure complete ejection. Where the Jet completely departed from the Full-Pak was in its lift arm design, consisting of narrowly-spaced arms operating between the frame rails, instead of the more traditional outboard mounting arrangement. This was a significant advance in safety, while avoiding infringement on Dempster's patent for curved "over-the-cab" arms. To make room for the centrally-mounted arms, the cab was essentially split in two, leaving a pair of small "telephone booth" cabs for driver and helpers. A single booth could also be specified.

    There were two distinct types of lift arms used on the Jet. Both versions rode on a torque tube mounted behind the cab and above the frame rails, operated by vertically stacked cylinders. Early model arms (1965 to about 1968) were hinged about halfway along their length, with a set of tilt cylinders used to flip the container over the body opening. These were similar in concept to the very first Bowles arms dating to 1952. Later versions (about 1968 and up) were built with more conventional rigid arms, the fork pivot points having moved to the ends where the fork carriage mounted.

Early model Jet with split-type lift arms and bottom-type forks

Operation of the split-type lift arms with optional side forks.

A top-hinged hydraulic-powered rear door was fairly rare on the Jet

The body was a standard Western Full-Pak, with an 8-inch, 5-stage packing cylinder. Some models were built with a top-hinged power rear gate, but barn doors seem to have been far more common. Morrison also patented a power-operated hopper cover for the Jet. Buyers got an Allison AT-40 automatic as standard equipment, along with Rockwell axles and power steering, necessitated by the weight placement on the steering axle. A 6-cylinder 200 H.P. gasoline engine was standard, or a Cummins diesel could nest between the booths at extra cost.

The Jet front loader was marginally more successful than the Gar Wood T-100, but never saw much use outside of the western states. In 1967, Both Reo Motors and Diamond T Trucks were merged by their owner, the White Motor Truck Company. Thereafter, Wesco Jets remained mostly unchanged but were badged as Diamond Reo, with the new designation CF-5542. White began selling their own version by 1971, known as the "Alley Cat" with a full-width White cab replacing the twin phone booths.

An early Wesco Jet unloads as the helper checks behind the blade

After 1967, Jet chassis were badged as Diamond Reo, model CF-5542

LATE-MODEL STRAIGHT LIFT ARMS

Dana Gregory took these pictures of a late-model Jet with straight-type lift arms, the only images of this variation known to exist. The change probably occurred around 1968, and used the Harbers-type system common to most front loaders since 1956. The carriage to which the forks are mounted pivots at the end of the lift arms, instead of pivoting at the mid-point of the arm. Shorter-stroke cylinders were now mounted near the ends of the arms. It is unclear why Western didn't adopt this type of arm from the beginning.

Also note the addition of the "indicator rod" sticking out of the hole in the body front wall. This allowed the driver to see the packer blade position without having to turn his head 180-degrees; a quick glance out his right-hand window could quickly determine if it was safe to dump a container.
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Wesco Jet Truck Chassis

The Wesco Jet chassis was marketed in Los Angeles as well as nationally through White Motors and their subsidiaries. In southern California, Wesco Refuse Equipment Sales Co. of Sun Valley sold the special truck chassis packaged with popular rear-load packer bodies. The 25-cubic yard Heil Colectomatic Mark III and Gar Wood Load-Packer 700s were the most common choices, and 20 or 25-cubic yard E-Z Pack Super Hopper rear loaders could be ordered. There was even a Western roll-off available. Post-1967 models wore the Diamond Reo badge, and were joined by the White Alleycat, which used a full-width cab based on the tilt-cab Compact series.

Western Barrel Snatcher

This is probably the original Barrell Snatcher being tested at Western Body & Hoist in 1970

The futuristic-looking Jet ultimately failed to have much of and impact on the industry itself. However, it did serve as the foundation of a prototype vehicle that would have a major impact, and lead to an entirely new class of of refuse vehicle; the automated loader. The idea began with Marc Stragier, Public Works Director for the City of Scottsdale, Arizona, who visualized mechanization of residential collection routes, much like front loaders had already changed commercial collection into a one-man operation. After a late 1966 meeting with George Morrison, Stragier spelled out his vision for an automated residential truck.

Like every other manufacturer, Western Body & Hoist didn't have anything like what Stragier envisioned, but Morrison did have his Jet, and came up with a concept in which a can-grabber arm (with a 12-foot reach) replaced the front loading arms and forks. The idea became a reality in August, 1970 when a Western Barrel Snatcher arrived in Scottsdale, the first factory-built automated side loader in history. It was one of only a handful ever built, and the two remaining trucks were supplied by Maxon, which purchased Western Body & Hoist that same year. As with any new idea, the truck was fraught with technical problems, which required years of refinement by Scottsdale's mechanics. The City bore the brunt of this development task at its own expense, and paved the way for more route-ready automated side loaders designed by Marc Stragier by the end of the decade.

George Morrison came up with the concept for the Barrel Snatcher, based on his Wesco Jet front loader

Dumping a 300-gallon "alley" container

HISTORIC WESTERN BARREL SNATCHER PRESERVED
The first Barrel Snatcher, Truck 254 of the City of Scottsdale, has been preserved and is on display at the Solid Waste division yard in Scottsdale. Not only is this a rare example of a vehicle of important historical significance to the waste industry, it is a living testament to George Morrison's genius, and a vehicle he had most likely had worked on personally while it was being custom-built at Western Body & Hoist in the 1960s.

Historic Truck #254 on display in Scottsdale, designed by George Morrison

REFERENCES

U.S. Patent no. 3351222A, George W. Morrison, August 9, 1965 (Jet front loader)

U.S. Patent no. 3338623A, George W. Morrison, August 9, 1965 (Hopper cover: Jet front loader)

Classic Refuse Trucks: City of Scottsdale

"Revolutionizing an Industry: The Story of Mechanized Residential Refuse Collection in the City of Scottsdale Arizona".
By Rick Pence

9/9/18