Interesting timing on this post coming up! Last month I had to load a 1954 M-245,thats a 35,000 pound 5 ton 6X6 aircraft recovery truck, I tried to use the yard truck to pull it out of the hole it had been sitting in for the last 20 years,but those old 7.50-20's just couldn't get any traction in my soft sand,I even tried a snatch block and the winch to get it moving and it just slid the whole truck,so as usual out came the half-track,it had no problem dragging it out,then came the fun part,loading it onto the flat bed,the outside wheels were the same width as the bed so it had to be lined up perfectly,but these trucks came with power steering,and like all vehicles with power steering when it isn't running it's much harder to turn,we used the CCKW to run the truck up the onto the bed but it was about 6 inches off kilter,I tried to use the cckw to slide it over but again it just slid in the sand,so I tried to use the half-track and just dug huge trenches,so I turned the half-track around and hooked up a snatch block to the bed side and the hook to the truck, no problem she slid far enough to make the load legal and get that monster out of my yard!
I check my welded links afterward and could see on signs of cracking or fatigue, when I welded them I ground then out to a deep V and used my arc welder to weld them closed,since that was the biggest piece of equipment in my yard I shouldn't ever have to move anything bigger!
