Yes, there is a power take-off up front, these (not track-converted) was used to power sickle-bars (correct translation?) or power tillers for example. These was popular in Norway due to it’s hilly farmlands. They made this track conversion to use them as small scale forwarders.
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Awesome find. Really neat. Yes more pics please
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I want one of those! Perfect for my mountainside property.
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Looks like a snow storm recue vehicle-me like that rig too-looks heavy duty. maybe you could charco power it, charco is light you could carry nice load of charco if or when-needed.OR is charco not on the project list.?
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Some more pic’s of the “Forest Bear”
Have been outside all day tinkering with it, mostly ignition trouble, and bad fuel, but finally it runs 
Extremely fun to drive this little beast, ill have to control myself to not drive it on the lawn, those tracks makes nice “grooves” when turning.
No intention to convert it to wood or charcoalgas as long as gasoline are available, but i wont hesitate if gasoline prices go much higher, or there becomes a fuel shortage.
A woodgas conversion probably includes a bigger engine, electrical start should also be nice then.
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@woodrunner I have heard that this forum loves pictures, and videos even more (I know I sure do). Is there a way to make DOW satisfied somehow? 
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It likes higher compression and dryer fuel, Johan. Occasionally a little praise and a clean intake manifold and it will purr like one of Tones machines.
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I see the misunderstanding now, I meant the dow forum, not actually driving on wood, sorry for me not making it clear
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I knew what you meant Johan. Just a little foolishness on a nice day. Just a hint in the air that winter may be loosening it’s grip just a little.
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Its just after midnight here, i guess my head doesn’t get hints right now, lost my grip hours ago
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Winter still talks here. This morning. Again new snow:
She has switch over from her newer Ford All-Wheel-Drive “primary-axle-must-spin-until-it-will-engage-the other-axle” vehicle to her older, much better Command-lock 4 wheel system vehicle.
Command and control. This is actually my ethnic. What drives me to be called&thought by many of you, to name me; Disaster-Steve.
Here read the text descriptions and look at the picture sets of when I was 10 years old:
have to scroll sideways for the pictures on the second one.
Where I lived we were over 30 days without Grid power.
My wife (where we’ve live the last 26 years) was farther out, up into the mountains foothills and so they were without Grid power for over 6 weeks.
We were both lucky that in that it was an early October event so we did not need much of any heat. Lucky that within 1/2 mile of us someone still had a long-rope dip bucket-able hand dug water well for clean water.
Me the 10 y.o. boy got to carry the daily needed buckets of water for that 1/2 mile home. The girls got to use the toilet, bucket flushed. This boy was told to go outside. The girls got to do all of the hand clothes washing. Even more buckets needed carried for me. The cow and the hog they got to drink what they needed.
Cooking was gone on gasoline hand pumped Colman camping stoves. The canned white-gasoline ran out after a week. Then it was use the regular leaded gasoline. It clogs. Any Lamp oil got all used up. Candles all got used up.
Virtually no-one in our areas had personal gasoline electric generators. We’d been spoiled by 25 years of pole-to-pole cheap, clean Public Utilites electric power. The Grand-elder’s convinced they would just revert back to their old ways, if ever the need. Out parents from WWII in-denial that the conditions in war-torn Europe and Asia could ever be allowed to happen to us.
Anybody with personal food freezers lost it all. The rental freezers “Lockers” houses went to scheduled once a week access to try and save themselves stretching out until the Grid power was restored. Anybody doing contract egg-layers long-houses raising and roaster-chicken contract raising lost them all when we went post storm October warm again not having the electric ventilation fans for those long shed-barns. Most cow dairies lost percentages of their cows with no power for the electric-vacuum milking machines. Mastitis. Milk-fever.
My area you could smell the dead stock. Until the Caterpillar tractors were diverted from roads clearing to animals burying.
So; the two oil-shock era’s early-70’s and 1980 was to me just pain-in-the-ass inconveniences. May 18th 1980 Mt Saint Helens certainly interesting, even shocking, but not a true disaster either.
I am glad most of you can live in States of Denial, where unicorn fairies fart rainbows of Gov’Mints subsidized energies.
DIY costs for me is never the issue. I’ll pay the pumps for my vehicle traveling. 'Cause just like in the oil shocks era’s, I can, and did control that.
My own command and control over our heats, lights, refrigeration’s and water pressure delivered is what is the most important to me.
Of course, I use Grid. Use Grid as my most cost-effective base. Use the money saved to set up for the true INEVITIBLES when there is just no Grid possible.
And this is not, and never has been a hobby; an ooh-wow look at me, stunting for me. But a Damn dead serious pursuit.
Because ask any who has day after day experienced it: and the repetitive dead makes you very, very sad-sad. And the smell cannot be un-remembered.
Unapologetic Steve Unruh
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It’s always been amazing to me, the kinds of emotion being a prepper seems to stir up in people. It’s as if planning for contingencies is somehow going to evoke all the bad things that could happen, but ignoring possibilities will somehow keep life on an even keel.
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That’s a great post Steve. Hurricane Freda caused a lot of damage in the area I was born and raised just an hour North of Vancouver BC. I was an infant then and have no memory other than stories I’ve heard. In 1972 we had the Silver thaw which wiped out power for a week in late January and we had no heat or power for days other than a fireplace that we slept in front of. Not very efficient but better than outside.
That event and the fuel shortages left an impression on me as a 10 year old to make sure we never left ourselves vulnerable and put a woodstove into my first house and always had one since. Also made sure we have a reliable water source for us ,garden and animals. The encouraging news to me is the amount of younger people around here that think the way you do and a community has developed with that mindset.
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Great post, Steve!
What worries me personally the most, in case of a long term shtf situation, is actually food supply. Heat - no problem, electricity - doable, but food is a different story. Stuck on the same latitude as Anchorage Alaska makes it hard to be self-sufficient. Even if we somehow manage - what about others? A hungry stomach can make even the most honest man a thief. I wouldn’t expect our root cellar to be left alone for long.
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Amen Steve, I feel like Chicken Little sometimes when I’m trying to explain to my mom how we must have backup power contingencies. After years of trying to wear her down I’m decided I’ll just build the contingency myself. Permission and forgiveness and whatnot.
“Why did you spend all that money for a Generator” etc
“Why are you so obsessed with backing up the power to the house, it won’t even power the AC Units or the well pump!”
Personally I think the reason to blame for the AC units not being generator friendly is because she bought Commercial sized Trane units. Two of them. Grandpa designed the house with big windows, we can just crack them open in the summer for a good cross breeze.
I am enticed by the idea of running a generator just once per day to charge a battery bank instead. I also like the idea of running a generator, or even direct engine powered well pump fueled by woodgas, to fill a water tower. But that requires buying a water tower or above ground cistern. Not exactly in my budget.
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JO_
I think at your latitude you are blessed with long summer hours to grow potatoes and other root vegetables and oats and other grains. Potatoes are easy to store in a clamp made of soil and straw if you have no root house.
The best defense against thieves is to be inconspicuous but at the same time trying to educate family and friends to do what they can to give themselves enough supply to get by for 3 months or more.
I saw a few years ago that Sweden was educating and preparing their citizens which is far more than our government is doing
Om krisen eller kriget kommer
Paul
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Long time no see Paul. I remember a Norwegian 
You’re right, and I do grow most of our potatoes. No need for store bought apples, berries and mushrooms either, but that’s about it. Oh, and peas - suddenly I’m close to a full time farmer
I never tried grain though. I guess I would have to trade - firewood maybe?
Yeah, the “survival folder”. Unfortunately the content was more aimed at kindergarten and “take away people” in apartments. It suggested a 72 hour supply 
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Uffda! 
Something easy for most to do is buy a good 30 gallon galvanised garbage can and fill it with four 22kg bags of wheat from a feed store. I did that a few years ago and the cost was then $12 per bag. We keep chickens so the worst case scenario is good and peaceful times so we give it to the hens and they give us eggs.
It at least gives us a buffer in a crisis.
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This topic is way into my wheelhouse but I am always reluctant to overamp a subject here unless it’s actually WG related. People have to think about food and their bodies like they would a machine. A diet designed for maximum nutrition. Highest quality fuel and a well maintained body to burn it in. I will start a thread about various means of food production for all climates and circumstances. Anyone of us can walk out our doors and look at more than enough space to make big inroads in self sufficient food production. I’m not pretending that you will grow everything you need. I put a lot of effort into it and have never gotten more than half way up that hill, but regardless is it all worth the effort and an enjoyable way to spend time.
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J.O. add the root crops of beets (yellow are my favorite) and parsnips (whitloaf?) to your stored potatoes and cabbages and long storable squashes in our cool difficult climates.
Ha! You need experienced specialty cooks to truly see the variety of benefits of these.
And I want to duplicate the non-leavened baking flour made from dried cauliflower I’ve enjoyed in some pizza crusts.
S.U.
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