> ----- Original Message ----- > From: "steve spence" > I know that the unimog can climb a 24" vertical obstruction from a >standing start butted up against said object.
Yes they can, and more besides. A bit of info on Unimogs. I was in Germany as a working forester for ten years. Unimogs were the mainstay of timber extraction and their sister machine the MB Trac. This was a Unimog with the rear axle bolted direct to the chassis, no springs! Working with them, you felt pretty confident in most situations, especially in the full forestry jacket of roll over protection and 10mm thick belly plates plus two Werner drum winches with an 8 ton pull each. I got one really dancing in following the forestry clear up of the 1991 storms there. The Unimog gets it name from Universal Machine fuer Obst- und Gartenbau (universal machine for fruit growers and market gardening).I think the first were built around 1934 and were around the size of a Land Rover with a ~50 HP engine. I was once lucky enough to have a little drive around in an original, still working in a small private forest. Developed unlike the Land Rover, a vehicle that never got past the sentimentality stage (we-cant-make-it-better-its-a-Land-Rover mentality)the Unimogs now get up to 210 hp (U2100) with numerous derivatives and attatchments. The MB Trac stopped production for a while, which was where a British company that did get over the sentimental block on product development produced the JCB Fastrac. It is now a good contender for the Unimog's crown of a real off road machine. I heard recently the MB Trac was back in production. see www.jcb.co.uk Fantastic graphics of some real all-round bits of kit. One of the Unimog derivatives I really liked, (but out of my price range) was the Werner Trac, an MB Trac derivative by the winch manufacturer in Trier. Full forestry spec, hydraulic 10 ton double drum winch, rear winching spade and front blade. Now that was an off roader. One vehicle I never got near though was a French military jeep class vehicle, looking a lot like a G-Wagen with (I think) a Peugot badge. I saw a lot in the French sector of Germany (prior to the Wall coming down of course). The rumour was no civilians could get hold of them for private use as they had some special engine. Any info on what this might be? -- ------------ Recycling - not a chore more a way of life Dave Preskett [EMAIL PROTECTED] The BioComposites Centre University of Wales, Bangor Deiniol Road Bangor Gwynedd LL57 2UW ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> Stop Smoking Now Nicotrol will help http://us.click.yahoo.com/2vN8tD/_pSDAA/ySSFAA/FGYolB/TM ---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Please do NOT send "unsubscribe" messages to the list address. To unsubscribe, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
