chicagoareafire.com

7 Comments

• #1 by Phil Stenholm on December 14, 2021 - 10:05 AM

  

  It was originally a 1952 Pirsch Senior 85-foot TDA that ran as Truck 22.

  It got a major $20,000 refurbishment in 1969, and continued to run as Truck 22 through 1979.

  It was placed into reserve as Truck 23 at Station # 3 in 1980, replacing the 1951 Pirsch TDA that had originally been Truck 21 and then was Truck 23 1970-79. (Truck 23 was the EFD’s reserve truck until the 1990’s, when Truck 21 was moved from Station # 1 to Station # 3 and became Truck 23).

  So although it was 27 years old when it went into reserve, it had been refurbished in 1969, so at least the trailer and aerial-ladder were still in fairly good shape. However, the EFD wanted to replace the 1952 / 1969 tractor with a newer one that had a diesel.

  A former Evanston F. D. chief had moved to Colorado and kept in touch with the chiefs in Evanston and knew they were looking for a replacement spare tractor, and that’s how Evanston ended up purchasing a used 1969 GMC / Pirsch tractor (ex-Aurora, CO) to pull Truck 23’s trailer.

  It was acquired strictly as a reserve tractor, and it was lettered “Truck 23” (which was the reserve truck at that time) right from the gitgo. The reserve TDA was retired in 1990 and apparently was sold at auction to a private party.

• #2 by crabbymilton on December 14, 2021 - 8:31 AM

  

  I could see that it was a PIRSCH and as you confirmed a repower. Milwaukee did that too with a few PIRSCH tractor drawn ariel’s only with MACK instead. I bet that thing is a pain to drive unless you practice and practice. Then when you get tired of that, you practice some more.

• #3 by Mike L on December 14, 2021 - 8:20 AM

  

  My history may be a little off on my first comment and I would gladly defer to Phil Stenholm to clarify.

• #4 by Mike Hellmuth on December 14, 2021 - 8:19 AM

  

  I like where they put the “Q”

• #5 by Mike L on December 14, 2021 - 8:18 AM

  

  Crabby, it is a diesel with a double clutch transmission. The tractor is a 1969 bought from, I believe, Aurora, Colorado after the original 1954 Pirsch tractor burned up. The trailer is a 1954 85′ Pirsch. Evanston had a total of 4 Pirsch tillers over the years: the 1951 emergency purchase (85′), a 1952, a 1954 (the above rig) and the 1968 canopy cab. The above rig was Truck 22 and became a spare in 1979 when they bought the Seagrave rearmount for Truck 21 with the 68 moving to Truck 22. It received the replacement tractor in 1983 and left in 1990 when they bought the 1st Pierce tiller and the 68 was replaced in 1991.

• #6 by crabbymilton on December 14, 2021 - 5:43 AM

  

  Does that one have a gasoline or diesel engine? I think both were available at the time.

• #7 by Rj on December 13, 2021 - 9:39 PM

  

  Wow! Deep cut, great find. Evanston has such a history of buying unique tillers and used trucks.

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