This photo is an excellent high quality new 8” x 10” black & white glossy photo reproduction of a P.I.E./PACIFIC INTERMOUNTAIN EXPRESS 1950’s GMC MODEL 950+ DIESEL TANDEM TRACTOR Fleet #3199 pulling a 35’ ALUMINUM SEMI-TRAILER Fleet #4286.
”SAMPLE” will not appear on your photo, it is only on the scanned image.
DESCRIPTION: This P.I.E. GMC Diesel was one of three special orders by P.I.E. using the Detroit Diesel 6-110 truck engine introduced in midyear 1950, rated at 275-hp, very large for 1950. Built on a Model 950 chassis, this special model had a seven bar grill instead of the normal six, and had an extended hood to accommodate the longer engine. The 6-110 truck engine featured a gear-driven centrifugal blower with aluminum impeller. The 6-110 was a very efficient stationary engine, and successfully was used in some construction equipment, but was not successful in this highway application. The first of these 3-axle tractors were sold to P.I.E.. It was probably used as a road tractor between Oakland and Denver, where the freight was rehandled, broken down, and reloaded into smaller trailers to continue on to Chicago. The trailer is most likely a 35 footer, and might be a Brown, as they ran a lot of lightweight Brown aluminum trailers in the late 1940s/early 1950s.
HISTORY OF P.I.E.: As you may already know, P.I.E./PACIFIC INTERMOUNTAIN EXPRESS became the largest trucking company in the world in 1956. The story starts in 1927 when Ray V. Lilenquest joined his brothers Bill and Les to run two Model A Fords providing service from Pocatello, ID, to Idaho Falls. Many changes occurred over the early years, with P.I.E. finally taking shape from three consolidated companies in 1940. By 1946 P.I.E. had 535 employees and was growing rapidly through many acquisitions in the late 1940s and 1950s. By 1954 P.I.E. covered 15,000 route miles and employed 3,600 people, with service extending from the west coast to St. Louis and Chicago. P.I.E. employed virtually every type of available road equipment, and also designed some of their own dromedary tractors. By the mid 1960s P.I.E. extended service to the east coast through more acquisitions, having 67 terminals in 29 states. In 1973 the company was purchased by IU International, and in 1983 merged with Ryder Truck Lines, forming Ryder/P.I.E Nationwide. In 1985 the company was sold again, with the name shortened to P.I.E. Nationwide. By 1989 loses were staggering, and the company was sold again, absorbing Transcon Lines. Loses continued, and in 1990 P.I.E. filed Chapter XI bankruptcy. An attempt to scale back operations failed, with one of America’s most famous common carriers from the “GOLDEN DAYS OF TRUCKING” closing their doors forever, gone from the highways but not from the memories of many.
CONDITION: This outstanding black & white glossy photo is a newly reproduced photo from a photo in my personal lifetime collection. This photo has been printed on archival quality HP Premium Plus Glossy Photo Paper using HP 02 Vivera Inks, producing a professional quality photo that resists fading over 100 years ... the best money can buy. This 8x10 photo has a white border around the photo. For your information, the description and documentation of this photo will be loosely taped to the back side of this photo. I try to ad some “added value” to my photos by researching each one, adding some history and information that you may not know. If I get something incorrect, please let me know … thanks!
SHIPPING & HANDLING: This item will be shipped via USPS FIRST CLASS MAIL - PACKAGE RATE (non-machinable) within the USA, including FREE USPS Tracking from USPS from my door to your mailbox. For WORLD WIDE INTERNATIONAL/GLOBAL mailings to eligible countries, I will mail to the US Shipping Center in Kentucky for reshipment to you … expect additional postal charges from the reshipment center. Your item will be mailed FLAT, carefully packed in a large 9x12 double envelope with a cardboard stiffener in the inner envelope ... the cardboard stiffener assures you it will arrive in excellent condition.
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Now that I have begun to sell on after a few years off, I will be adding a number of vintage truck and construction equipment photos/ads, listing an additional item or two almost daily. I still have several file boxes and shelves full of items to sell. Please check my sales and store frequently to see what new items I have added.
Please check the comments in my “responses” to verify that I pack very well, ship promptly, describe my items fairly, and that my customers like the quality of my items. Rest assured, you get what is represented. It may be ‘old school’, but I treat my customers like I would like to be treated myself. Trucking and construction have been my life, and now in retirement I do this with a labor of love and enjoyment.
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