middlecalf
SILVER Star
I don’t suppose anyone has a list or documentation of the Espil 45 fleet from back in the day?
When did the 45 sickness start thread!! (1 Viewer)
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DomSmith
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Would love to see an Espil 45’s thread.
Bear
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Is it known if they all were purchased at the same time in a fleet-buy? The serial numbers might be all clustered in the same range.
Not sure about a fleet buy.
But I’m pretty sure that the 8(?) used trucks purchased by 2 well known LC enthusiasts were both LWB and SWB mixed. Perhaps Steve could “yea or nay” this?
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More of a 40 series yarn, but hey. I grew up in a town of 100k in North Queensland. Lots of farmers and literally one in four trucks was a white HZJ75. When my folks divorced in 1989 when I was nine, my old man could only afford a rusty dune beige 1977 BJ40 on split rims and 31's. And so the love affair began. My first car was a Landcruiser, a 1985 RJ70 which I sold to do up an early 1980 BJ40 w/3B I bought for $1100. Sold that for a white 1982 HJ47 w/H55 and sold that to pay for acting school. I hated petrol powered Landcruisers. Until I was living with this chick in 2010 and life wasn't so crash hot. So I spent a lot of time on the internets. Found Mud via that Dutch couple that do laps of the world in their BJ45, Landcruising Adventure I think they're called. Then found west aussie's FJ28 thread about his Dad's funeral and I was hooked. Bought a BJ74 LX in from Japan. Started stalking the 45 section for ages and then in 2015 pulled the trigger on my current daily, my 1970 FJ45 - a $500 farm special, long before prices went ballistic. Now I'm a bit obsessed. Put a a mate's 45 in a short film, put mine in my feature film, now looking at parabolics, an engine upgrade, some rust repairs, a SWB 45 style bed, air-con.. a locker..
I believe am the latest owner of this truck since 2012. It is still running like a champ.
1982 Reseda, CA.
Purchased truck from Marv Spector.
He found it in Gerlach Nevada a few years before.
It was the second to the nicest one left of about 10 trucks
purchased for use by the John Espil Sheep Ranching Company.
they ran these trucks back and forth over an area from Gerlach
nevada to Susanville, Ca. Look on a Sat Map to see a whole
lot of nothing between these cities!!
Restored over 1 years time.
Owned for 25 years before I sold it!!
It's not a myth. John Espil Sheep Company was built by my grandparents John Sr. and Joyce, my father, and my two uncles. There were at one time between 12 and 16 LC's. The majority of them were used as hearder & camp transportation vehicles. The range of the operation was and is from Lovelock, NV through Gerlach, NV, to the Warner Mountains above Eagleville, CA. They were not all purchased as a fleet. They were purchased as they were found. It didn't matter 40's, 45 swb's, and 45 lwb's they all basically had the same drive train and they were inexpensive and easy to work on. At least one that I know of in the 70's, a 1-ton was purchased through my grandmother's cousin who lived in Canada at the time. The company later made a switch to late 60's- mid 70's Ford 3/4-ton 4x4's due to better parts availability. The one I have belonged to John Sr. who died in 1990. It was gifted to me in 1997 by his wife (my grandmother). My uncles sold most of the remaining fleet to anyone interested, and for cheap. One of them tried to sell mine even after I had it titled in my name.
Sorry, we had a mix of 40's and 45's (short & long).
DomSmith
SILVER Star
Thanks for sharing.
I'll try to post a few photos in the next few days. After 12 years of sitting on the ranch. I brought it to my home in Idaho. It has taken me a year to get it back to road worthy. However, when I went to get it the only thing I needed to get it loaded on the trailer was some fresh gas and battery. Its wheel brake cylinders needed rebuilt, and the e-brake never worked for my aitatxi.
Bear
SILVER Star
Fascinating story. Were you buying new vehicles from various dealers, or used ones from private owners? Did you have a mechanic(s) dedicated to keeping them all operable? How many years did you run them before turning to the Ford trucks?
Looking forward to some photos. And thanks !
Looking forward to some photos. And thanks !
middlecalf
SILVER Star
@Keepinitstock this is very cool! I’m interested simply with the (slim) chance that your grandparents’ ranch might have some history with my early SWB 45 that I picked up in Nevada - prior owner picked it up from a salvage yard not too far from Carson City, so other than that I have no history on it. If by chance someone has documentation on the VINs of those early cruisers and is willing to share that’d be great. Just a long shot, appreciate any help. I’m somewhat local to Boise, out here in Sweet, and we run 800+ cow/calf pairs on ground along the Payette River in Letha as well as along Squaw Creek in Sweet. In the summer around 300 of those pairs are up where I live in the Brownlee area, and that’s what I use my rigs for, ranch tools for hauling fencing, salt, protein, whatever I can’t carry on horseback! And as with your family’s operation “easy“ on-site maintenance and repair of our vehicles is essential. No fru fru mall crawlers here, 
.
(Do you know John Peterson?)
.(Do you know John Peterson?)
tahoe40/45
SILVER Star
I saw my first FJ45 at the Shell gas station in Nyack Ca just off i80 in 1989, it was a tan LWB with a Saginaw steering conversion. I asked about the Saginaw set up, he told me he had it done at a place called Wardens Auto Repair in Placerville.
Saw my second FJ45 a couple months later when i was at school, i was at a gas station again when a trailer went by with a weird looking Land Cruiser on it, it had a FJ40 front end but had four doors and ribs on the side (didn't realize till years later that it was a 45 LV). It was a Caltrans orange wagon that was some kind of work vehicle for Mt Lassen.
Saw my third when i went to Placerville a few months later to take my FJ40 in for a Saginaw conversion at Wardens, there i saw a LWB getting some work done.
I began to feel the sickness only after being exposed three times to 45's, i really wanted one. About the same time i had signed up for Toyota Trails mag, a few years went by and one day in the TT classifieds i found a guy selling 3 Land Cruiser trucks. I ended up with a SWB fixed top, i have had a FJ45 ever since.
Saw my second FJ45 a couple months later when i was at school, i was at a gas station again when a trailer went by with a weird looking Land Cruiser on it, it had a FJ40 front end but had four doors and ribs on the side (didn't realize till years later that it was a 45 LV). It was a Caltrans orange wagon that was some kind of work vehicle for Mt Lassen.
Saw my third when i went to Placerville a few months later to take my FJ40 in for a Saginaw conversion at Wardens, there i saw a LWB getting some work done.
I began to feel the sickness only after being exposed three times to 45's, i really wanted one. About the same time i had signed up for Toyota Trails mag, a few years went by and one day in the TT classifieds i found a guy selling 3 Land Cruiser trucks. I ended up with a SWB fixed top, i have had a FJ45 ever since.
Was in Costa Rica & in Venezuela (drove a US-Jeep ) when we saw them the pick up more often on the road.
Later in Abu Dhabi (´military version/pick up) but they don`t want to sell.
All during trips in the late 80`s and early 90`s.
Forgotten some military 45`s in Australia too... drove a 75 Camper.
Later in Abu Dhabi (´military version/pick up) but they don`t want to sell.
All during trips in the late 80`s and early 90`s.
Forgotten some military 45`s in Australia too... drove a 75 Camper.
Last edited:
whitey45
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- Thread starter
- #35
Antony, that’s interesting info on the cal trans orange 45lv. @orangefj45 bought an orange lv from Danny Warden around 96, wonder if it was the same one ( has to be really, as I have never seen another cal trans orange lv! I wonder if you saw us trailering it home!!! Georg, did you know about it being in my Lassen?
tahoe40/45
SILVER Star
Possible, I was in Quincy Ca when i saw it, the tail gate had Mt Lassen..??, something painted in black on it.
You know this picture posted it on Mud... month..... years ago...
...again the Costa Rica pic here in .
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I doubt there are many, if any written records about the trucks. I can ask my dad. He would know more. Once when I was about 10 years old I helped my dad bring one of the 40's down from the mountain that didn't have any brakes. It was a steep, winding gravel road. I was instructed to stay in front with his 68 Ford in 4-low first gear. He did the same. Further instructions were that if he, for some reason lost the clutch or skipped out of gear, he would use the truck I was driving to slow down. Two hours later we made it down the mountain without incedent. My dad did quite a bit of the mechanical on the trucks when they got to Eagleville (our summer range). If they broke down prior, nearer Gerlach it would generally be repaired at my uncle's Heller ranch. I did find an old SOR catalog in the jockey box with a sticky notes written in it from Mr. Spector about one of the ones that he bought of the fleet. Also, I found a nose brand under the driver seat and the original jack and three handle pieces.@Keepinitstock this is very cool! I’m interested simply with the (slim) chance that your grandparents’ ranch might have some history with my early SWB 45 that I picked up in Nevada - prior owner picked it up from a salvage yard not too far from Carson City, so other than that I have no history on it. If by chance someone has documentation on the VINs of those early cruisers and is willing to share that’d be great. Just a long shot, appreciate any help. I’m somewhat local to Boise, out here in Sweet, and we run 800+ cow/calf pairs on ground along the Payette River in Letha as well as along Squaw Creek in Sweet. In the summer around 300 of those pairs are up where I live in the Brownlee area, and that’s what I use my rigs for, ranch tools for hauling fencing, salt, protein, whatever I can’t carry on horseback! And as with your family’s operation “easy“ on-site maintenance and repair of our vehicles is essential. No fru fru mall crawlers here,
(Do you know John Peterson?)
I believe the majority of them were purchased from private sellers. My uncle's ranch in Gerlach usually had a dedicated mechanic, when they got to Eagleville it was my dad who did the work. As for running the fj's, late 60' to mid- late 90's. The switch to Ford was made during their use.
