Looks great Keith! Nice engineering. You and that truck are lucky to have found each other!... (Sounds like a good plot for a children's book...my wife is a grade school teacher)

 

Thanks Guys!! I'm just glad another major project is done!! I am luck to have one original Patrol salvage cover. They are extremely rare. I got mine from a former patrolman. It has some cool marking on it:

 

Keith,

What gives? are you trying to be like one of those drug dealers? Feeding us little bits and pieces until you get us all hooked or what?

Don't hold out on us. Give up the goods, any updates? having fun with the truck?

Bobby

 

Sorry Bobby ..... but the truck has been sold!!! Just kidding, did I get you for a second!! LOL I've been meaning to give an update. Here goes: I have been trying to promote the truck & book. My webmaster (i.e. brother-in-law) added a picture of the book cover and some info on the book on the first page of my website - History of the Chicago Fire Insurance Patrol I also have been posting about the truck on some firefighter websites and plan on putting an ad in my union newsletter. It has a 2200 + circulation. I will do it next quarter as now is not the best time because we may be laying off 75 firefighters and getting rid of 3 fire trucks. We are 15 million short in our upcoming budget.

I decided I to press forward with trying some other video companies for additional exposure. I haven't heard from Boldrides yet. I found a local company called Car Show Television. They go to all the car shows and interview people about their vehicles. They even broadcast a 9pm Saturday night show on local cable. Its a pretty cool show. Here is a link to their site: Car Show Television - Car Show videos from FloridaCar Show Television | Covering South Florida's Car Culture I am going to give them a call soon.

I made up a to-do-list to complete the truck. Mostly all small stuff but things that still need to be done. I hope to get most of it knocked out next week. Once that is done I have a professional photographer who is going to shoot the truck.

I am still trying to decide what to do with the book. I had a few more people look at it and they found some minor problems which I corrected. I called a buddy who works at a printing company to ask him again about doing a short run of books and he informed me the company has been sold to the Chinese and he can no longer help me out.

I few months back I had gotten some online estimates from some book printing companies so I will look into them again.

I have been taking the boys for weekly rides to keep the truck working properly. Its been raining like crazy the past 6 weeks so most of the shows have been cancelled.

I almost forgot .... 2 weeks ago at the monthly Fire Museum of Greater Chicago's open house someone walked in and donated 3 station log books from the 1933-34 Century of Progress World Fair Fire Dept. Since my grandfather was one of the few officers there, my friends tell me there are quite a few entries made by him in it. They are afraid to send them down to me to make copies so the next time I am up north I will be at the Museum copying my brains out!!

Someone also donated some 8mm home movies of the 39-40 Chicago Thrill shows. My grandfather was usually chosen to represent the Patrol so he may be in them. My buddy is going to send me a CD when it is converted.

Here is a cool picture I bought on eBay a few weeks ago. It shows a Patrolman assisting another injured firefighter at a fire scene . Helmet says Patrol 1
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1948-Press-Photo-Chicago-fireman-Bill-Murphy-treated-for-smoke-inhalation-/121147248429?_trksid=p2047675.l2557&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEWNX%3AIT&nma=true&si=pFJm0EnAVMYBYI2PG%252B7ssptlHlM%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc

By the way, Mom is doing great it almost 7 weeks since her surgery and she is getting stronger day by day!

So that's my long-winded story! LOL

 

Oh wow! you knocked me for a loop!!

good one

I'm glad to hear that mom is doing well. That is great news!

It sounds as if the video and publishing in the normal run-around and BS that you've been dealing with for awhile. Something will fall into place eventually.

Glad to hear that you and the boys are putting some miles on. Don't forget to let them wind that siren up....lol

Bobby

 

Thanks Keith... my heart skipped a beat when you casually mentioned you sold the truck... NICE!!! I had visions (or I guess I should say nightmares) of a Fire Patrol R*T R*D dancing in my head. Don't ever do that again!

 

Keith,

I have had pretty good luck with the following publisher for small-run, color-photo-intensive books. You may want to give them a call:

Grit Commercial Printing, Inc.
80 Choate Circle
Montoursville, PA 17754
Phone: 570-368-8021
Fax: 570-368-4749

Good luck!

Dave Reeves

 

Thanks Dave. I will give them a call!!

 

It's been awhile since I posted anything. I have a few updates.

Last Sunday I went to take the truck for a maintenance ride. I try to drive it at least every 10 days to 2 weeks. I wanted to check out the new NOS Ford fuel gauge that Gerald had put in a few days earlier. He didn't have a key to see if it worked after he had installed it. So the boys and I pulled off the cover, cranked her up and I drove maybe 75 feet when I started to smell an electrical odor. Not 2 seconds later a lot of smoke started coming from under the dash near the instrument cluster where the fuel gauge is located. With my heart racing, I told the boys to hang on while I put her in reverse and went back very fast. Once I was back in the barn, I shut off the ignition and turned off the battery switch. The dash was so hot underneath that I couldn't hold my hand on it for a second. I never saw any flames and was relieved when everything cooled down in about 15 minutes. We checked under the dash today and found that the 6 volt voltage reducer had burnt out. We are not sure if the new fuel gauge caused this. We removed the reducer, started the truck and had no issues.

I haven't really done too much in the past few weeks. Like I said in previous posts, I have a bunch of little things to do. This week I picked up a thick piece of leather and a brass buckle. I need to make a belt to fasten the fire extinguisher. I finally painted one of the front bumper lights green with some glass stain. Once it has dried I will install it.

I have a friend who makes collector cards .... they look just like baseball cards but you can put whatever picture on the front and info on the back. The guys from my fire truck club have made a series on the members rigs. My friend suggested I have some made of my truck and pass them out at shows. I think its a great idea and will have some made in the near future.

As far as the book goes, I think I found a company to do my book. I originally wanted to use the same company that did my first book but their 1000 minimum order is just too many books. The best option is to do 250 copies. The book price will be $30 plus a few dollars for shipping. The only catch is I have to have pre-orders of at least 187 books. Thats what it will take to recoup the money I have to lay out. I have 100 pre-orders so far.
The wife was not happy about spending around 6K on books. So the compromise was to lay out the funds for a short time period and get them back quickly. I plan on putting another ad in the Chicago Fire Museum's quarterly news letter and my own fire departments union newspaper.
Hopefully, It will not be a problem to get another 87 people interested in a copy.

One more thing. I got a call the other day from a Home Depot employee that attended the Fire Department Expo last May where I had the truck on display. She asked if I could bring the truck to my neighborhood Home Depot in early October where they will be hosting a fire prevention show. I gladly accepted her offer. Well, that's enough typing for tonight!!

 

Keith, if it will help, I'll start off the process by telling you I'll buy 2 books. I can always make a gift of the second one to a friend. So add that to your list. Now you have 101! Only 86 to go!

 

Thanks Joe! I knew I could count on you!

 

+1. Now you just need 85.

A happy wife is a happy life.

 

Keith,
Put me down for a second copy also (the countdown is on). I'm sure I can find a decent home for the 2nd copy.

When you get a chance can you please send me the info on your friend that makes the collector cards. One of the buddys I kick around with has business cards of his truck (the wooden cabbed 25 GMC stakebed that turns up in some of my posts). His cards show a before shot on one side and an after shot the other. He hands them out at shows and people love it. He mentioned the other day that he was almost out. The cards you pictured look pretty cool, he might be intersted in having some made for his truck.

I'm glad the "smoke release" didn't turn out to be a major issue...whew

Bobby

 

A fire truck on fire!!! Now that is scary.

I think ya got me down for a book already.
Was going to send ya some funds for it when ya knew the cost.
I can get $30 bucks your way shortly but lost yer addy.
Could ya PM it again Bud?

Guy's it may help Keith to get it printed faster if we was to send the funds
first. But that's up to you all.

 

Keith,

If it will help to have the funds up front, just say the word. I'll gladly send some money.

Bobby