RE: '59 BC-150 Info Wanted

[Jim Grammer <jimg@domain.elided>]

>What I would like from this group of experts is any information about this
>truck.  Have looked at a lot of IHC books, but can't find much about it.
>It has a rated GVW of 9,000 pounds but looks much more heavy duty than
>that.  Saw several posts about line tickets.  Did that on my S1900 - are
>they available on something this old?

>Jim Shepherd

Well, I'm far from an expert in anything, but some cocktail hour perusal of 
Crismon's International Trucks reveals the following:

The BC comes from the AC, which was introduced in 1957 as a completely new 
type of truck. The AC was a cross between a cabover and conventional, with 
the goal of providing the operator comfort of a conventional while reducing 
the BBC(bumper to back of cab)dimension significantly. The A series 
conventional had a BBC of 105", while the AC reduced that to 89.75". The 
cab from the A series(and later B series) was used, mounted on a medium 
duty truck chassis where it rode about 3" higher than in the light line. A  
 new 'doghouse' style hood was added to this cab with a square grill and 
low mounted seperate fenders. Because of the size of some of the available 
engines and the short hood line, the engine protruded into the cab further 
than on the light line. The AC and BC were the direct predecessors of the 
Loadstar, and proved the concept so well that the Loadstar went on to 
become one of IH's most famous and durable designs.

As an sidebar, this was a confusing time for truck operators and 
manufacturers due to the wide variety of size/weight/length regulations 
that varied from state to state. Before standardization of the reg's by 
federal agencies, manufacturers focussed on the BBC dimensions rather 
closely. In this way an operator could know if a specific model would be 
suitable for the trailer(s) or mounted bodies/equipment in light of the 
regulations for their operating arena. For example, some operators had long 
haul semi-trailer rigs that could only be operated in 4-5 adjoining western 
states! Because of the general confusion, it made sense for operators to 
try for the shortest BBC possible to give them the widest range of possible 
legal rolling stock. Cabovers like the DCO and ACO series had the shortest 
BBC's, but cabovers from those days were probably not very comfortable on 
long hauls and tended to have cramped cabs compared to conventionals. That 
explains the motivation for IH to keep the conventional cab while 
shortening the BBC as much as practical.

Some GVW's:

AC-150 9,000#
AC-152 12,500#
AC-154 15,000#

AC-160 through 164 16-19,000#
AC-170 through 174 18-20,000#
AC-180 through 184 19-22,000#

And some heavy duty diesel versions usually seen as straight trucks:

AC-1890 21,000#
AC-1892 25,500#

The AC changed to the BC in 1959 when the light line went from A series to 
B series. GVW's in the BC series were comparable, as were the model 
offerings. The only change in appearance I can identify between the AC and 
BC is the use of dual headlights on the BC(very trendy in '59, but not 
legal yet in all states, including CA). In 1960, even heavier rigs were 
offered on the BC platform. One example is the BC-225-D, with a 34,000# GVW 
and a Cummins NH-180 diesel.

The BC series was superceded entirely by the Loadstar, introduced in 1962. 
The only BC's that did not have comparable models in Loadstars were the 
lightest(BC-150) and the heaviest non-diesel(BC-180). The Loadstar, in 
addition to featuring the styling we know so well, had a slightly longer 
engine compartment which got some of the engine out of the cab compared to 
the BC. By this time, operators were less concerned about BBC dimensions, 
so this additional length didn't hurt the Loadstar a bit and made for a 
cooler, quieter cab.

So, Jim, I'd have to say that your lightweight BC-150 is probably a pretty 
rare truck. It covered a GVW very close to the light line, but must have 
cost more new. They were only made for 2-3 years, and the lack of a 
Loadstar replacement at that GVW tells me they probably didn't sell many of 
them. It'll ride a lot better than most medium duty trucks 'cause of the 
lighter springs, and you can do a lot worse than the A/B series cab for 
comfort. I suspect an LST is not available for light line trucks this 
early, but I don't know for sure. Anybody??

Jim