[Keith True]

GM trucks still used the column shift up into the 80's,but I don't know just how far up.I was the the JD dealer going over the parts book making up a list to do an engine in an old 1010 dozer.The owners son(soon to be the owner)came up and asked if I could move my Toyota truck,they were changing the display in front of the store.We knew each other well,(I used to work there)and I told him the keys were in it,put it where he wanted.He was back in a minute,kind of hovering around,I thought maybe he had backed into something with it.He said he couldn't move it,I said,won't it start?He said,no,it's a standard.I couldn't believe a guy that grew up in a tractor dealership couldn't drive a stick.His dad grew up in the same place,his first job there was driving the old Mack with a triplex in it.His grandfather started the boys in the lowest,nastiest jobs in the place.They had to know every job in the business.Years ago I has some Saab 96's with four speeds on the column,those were pretty slick.I also had an International cabover truck with a four on the column.It was cable operated,and I got it because the cables were too stiff to shift fast.They had grease fittings on them and had been pumped with too much grease over the years.I put some gasoline in a grease gun and started pumping.It broke up the old hard grease and cleaned it up nicely.I changed the gun over to oil,and while it shifted nice in the summer,when it was cold it took a strong right arm to shift it.My dad had a 46 Ford that he drove out the roll pin in the shift column,flipped the lever over to the other side,and drove the pin back in.Now that was confusing,the shift lever on the left side.