SMALL BUT MIGHTY!
BY ROVING CORRESPONDENT TROY MILLER
When you go to a truck show, you usually have a very specific idea in regards to what kind of trucks you’re going to see there. Today, most of the “show trucks” are either a Peterbilt 379 or a Kenworth W900 – these two trucks have been the enduring mainstays of the show circuit for quite some time. However, every so often, someone decides to build something totally different – something no one has ever done before. That is exactly what Gary Disher and Bob Ewing of Hi-Plains Leasing in Commerce City, CO recently did (pictured here along with a driver named Randy).
Their unique rig, a Mack MR688S, was named “Gone Postal” due to the fact that it began its life as a postal vehicle, hauling mail back and forth between postal facilities. When Gary originally bought the low-entry cabover, back in 2004, it was intended for use in and around Denver when they needed a short wheelbase truck (it only has a 160” wheelbase) with a tight turning radius for areas that are difficult to maneuver in. And although the truck is small, it has hauled its fair share of large and heavy loads, including moving cranes weighing upwards of 100,000 pounds.
Gary is not one to leave his trucks looking plain (none of the trucks in his fleet are without some level of detailing or customization), and the Mack postal truck was no different. The little Mack, however, presented large problems for Gary because there aren’t aftermarket parts that can just bolt onto the truck, requiring nearly every piece to be either fabricated or modified in some way to fit the truck, and that is where much of the beauty of this truck lies. There was nothing symmetrical on this truck – the air cleaners, the starter, and even the frame rails were asymmetrical – which required Gary and his crew to do some very complex and ingenious engineering throughout.
One of the first changes the guys made to the truck was removing the air starter and replacing it with an electric unit. This starter change then allowed them to install two standard fuel tanks on each side of the truck, balancing out its overall look. Next, they replaced the single air cleaner with dual breathers (mounted between the cab and the headache rack), and then they installed a 1970’s-style side-pipe exhaust system, running along the lower edge of the truck. To further clean up the exterior, they mounted the batteries inside the frame rails. These several major modifications are the central features that took this odd little truck from a lop-sided stepchild to a respectable, good-looking, custom rig, able to join the rest of the fleet with pride.
Nothing on this truck came easy, and installing the front bumper is a good example of that fact. To accommodate and mount the large Texas-style flat bumper (originally intended for a Peterbilt), Gary had to completely re-work the entire front end of the frame rails. Other special pieces on the truck include the drop visor, built by Outlaw Customs, as well as the tool boxes, also made by Outlaw Customs. The truck also has a large, painted headache rack and custom step boxes, which were both built in-house at Hi-Plains Leasing. The final, and one of the most unique features about this cabover Mack, are the full fiberglass rear fenders. At first glance, they look like just another set of fiberglass fenders you’d find on any Peterbilt or Kenworth, but, looking closely, you can see an embossed, rolled edge on the dropped sides. It’s a small detail, but it’s also very unique.
After all this work, the majority of which was done in-house, one of the few out-of-house jobs was handled – the paint. The truck is painted Peterbilt Cherry Red, a color that gives the rig an almost fire engine feel when the sun hits it just right. The interior is still a work in progress, and so far features a Grant steering wheel and copious amounts of diamond-plate on the back wall, the floor, and on the door panels. About the only part of the truck that was not modified greatly was the running gear. Powered by a 350 horsepower E-7 Mack, routed through a 4-speed Allison automatic transmission and 40,000 pound rears with 4.11 gears, the truck certainly won’t win any drag races, but it can easily move loads that most people would never attempt with such a small-sized truck.
The truck has only competed at one truck show so far – the Great American Trucking Show (GATS) in Dallas – but Gary plans to take it to others, including GATS again this year, as well as several local shows and a town fair. Running the company is a full-time job for Gary, so finding the time to pull the truck out of the fleet, clean it up and get it to a show isn’t always easy (or possible).
Hi-Plains Leasing, which specializes in moving heavy and awkward loads, has been in operation since 1976 when Gary’s father started the company. Gary, who has been driving since he was 14 years old, bought the company out in 1989 and has been running it ever since. Gary has hauled some interesting loads, both with the Mack and other trucks, including a 53-foot tall arched pedestrian bridge. He has a passion for doing wild and different things, most of which people will tell him he’s insane for trying, but (thankfully) he usually doesn’t listen. Gary builds what he wants, how he wants it – which is exactly what he did with this “Gone Postal” Mack.
The wheels at Hi-Plains Leasing, however, are not kept turning solely by Gary. His wife, Sandy, and his mother, Evelyn, both work at Hi-Plains, and help keep things running smooth (and it is not uncommon to find one of Gary’s grandkids running around the office, too). Several of his four grown children have also worked at the company over the years. At Hi-Plains, it feels more like a family than a company, which is how Gary likes it (he wants his drivers to have fun and be relaxed, while still making a profit).
When Gary started this project, few people thought he could build a halfway decent truck out of it. But, sometimes you have to put your fingers in your ears and just build what you want, and Gary did just that, creating one of the most unique rigs out there. It may not have a 5,000-watt stereo, a loud paint job or a long wheelbase, but what it has is difference. After all, how many Mack cabovers have you seen that can actually turn heads like this one?