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Aside from the ruckus and cage rattling, not sure what the point was there, but for discussion, I think it's fair to say most would know the difference between the older and later model trucks. That said, for commercial purposes, where efficiency, production and safety is high priority, running the older gas fired, hydraulic brake kind of medium class 3 type trucks, would probably make it more difficult on yourself to keep running and keep a competitive edge in the game. They are what they are, but you certainly can get parts for, repair and make one road worthy, those low mileage ones from farms, old fire houses etc., are great candidates for another purpose, put a flatbed dump on them, or what have you, great for a contractor, who needs a truck that size on occasion, or even for consistent to moderate use, a clean, in good working order, one that the brakes have been gone through, electrical system checked out, not been cobbed up over the years, cleaned all the connection points, corrected faulty wiring, good running motor, no major leaks, frame/suspension issues, tie rods, drag links steering system tight etc. Yes, you need to go through them, smart to replace brake lines and hoses etc. The old 2 piece rims, electrical problems, longer stopping distances, single reservoir hydro brakes, are typical from that era, nothing like what you can get that is 20 years old or newer, so what though, this country is loaded with used single axle trucks, and anyone starting out in a variety of venues can still find something inexpensive, and make it roadworthy with some effort. Has to be done right, I mean some people may not realize that, and you see unsafe junk on the road which is wrong, especially fully loaded, the vehicle has to be in operating condition like it came from the factory, there is some work and expense involved, not all that hard, but you have to show up and do the work that it needs. Ironcially, I've had my CDL since before there were CDL's, the state designation was a Class 1 here, and have driven many of the older trucks when they were more common, + some of the late model and new trucks, no doubt it's like night and day, but I'll tell you this old 1964 F-600 with 82,000 miles on it I've had for 2 years and kept road worthy, paid for itself on one job, I'd prefer something newer for everyday use, and for hauling full loads or anything heavy, I just hire out, but for light duty, it's great. I have not had to deal with D.O.T., that is what will make these trucks obsolete, more than anything else, mine passed inspection though. They are what they are, easy to work on, the electrical problems I had with it were all oxidized connections and or contacts, cleaned and or repaired those, everything works, use a little elbow grease, before you know it, and older truck in decent shape can be made very useful in my opinion.
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