OCTOBER 2009 OLD TIME TRUCKS
A RARE BREED - REVISITED
By Old Truck Nuts John & Shirley Sponholtz
No doubt about it, Dodge Bighorns turn heads anywhere they go and this 1975 Bighorn, owned by David and Carole Hull of Monroe, Oregon, is no exception. It is powered by a 400 Cummins Big Cam engine with a 13-speed Roadranger transmission and SQHD rear ends. The Hulls bought their Bighorn ten years ago in Daggett, California, where it had been used to pull a 40-foot fuel tanker. David gave the truck a fresh paint job and new seats, but not much else besides lots of TLC. This truck was one of three Bighorns owned by Whiting Bros. Oil. Lanny Schooler drove the truck for Whiting before purchasing it from the company. While owned by Lanny, this Bighorn was featured on 10-4 Magazine’s cover way back in October 1995. After Lanny passed away, the truck was sold to the Hulls. In 2008, the Hulls converted the Bighorn into a fully functional logging truck in honor of the 70th Annual Oregon Logging Conference, where the truck was displayed in the Crowley Equipment booth. Later, they restored it to its original fifth-wheel configuration and now use the truck to haul their antique Mack logging trucks to shows around the country. Only 261 Bighorns were built by Dodge from 1973 to 1975, and approximately 102 are still known to exist today. Because it was a small-scale production and 35 years have passed since Dodge has built a big truck, Bighorns have become very collectible. According to Bighorn expert Tony Youngblood of Augusta, Georgia, a fully restored Bighorn might sell for as much as $100,000 – not bad for an old Dodge truck!