SEPTEMBER 2009 OLD TIME TRUCKS
FRED CRAIG’S “FAT CAB” GMC
By Old Truck Nuts John & Shirley Sponholtz
In 1901, Max Grabowsky established the Rapid Motor Vehicle Company, which developed some of the earliest commercial trucks ever designed. In 1909, the company, along with another manufacturer called Reliance Motor Car Company, was purchased by General Motors. In 1912, Rapid and Reliance were merged and “GMC Truck” was born. The 1955 GMC Model 930 pictured here was called a “fat cab” because previous models had narrow cabs and hoods. This particular GMC was originally used to pull a tanker for Standard Oil, and then it was used to haul equipment for a construction company. Later, it was sold to Preston Motor Lines and converted into a wrecker. After that, Mike Brandburg acquired the truck, converted it back to a tractor, and used it to haul scrap out of Baltimore, MD. Richard Crawford, the truck’s next owner, started to restore it but did not get very far. As a result, the truck sat in a warehouse in Annapolis, MD awaiting restoration for quite some time. Fred Craig found out about this truck through a friend and went to see it. When he told Mr. Crawford that he wanted to restore the truck back to its original configuration, Mr. Crawford simply gave the truck to Fred. The truck had obvious problems, but the first order of business was to find out if it ran. After changing all of the liquids and replacing the batteries, the engine turned over immediately and ran perfectly. Fred spent several years completing the full restoration.