Not all trash trucks are born alike. The one you see here is from Crane Carrier Co., better known as Crane and badged “CCC.” It was built in New Philadelphia, in eastern Ohio, and is a model LET2 CC, meaning low-entry tilt, second generation, crew cab. It’s rather roomy in a world where most refuse trucks seat two, or three in a pinch.

Crane now belongs to Hines Corp., a holding company that also owns Kimble Mixer, which serves the concrete industry. Following Hines’ acquisition of Crane a couple of years ago, Kimble’s plant in New Philly made room for CCC production formerly done in Tulsa, Okla. In a way, this grass-green truck is returning to its ancestral roots, for the buyer is the sanitation department in Ponca City, Okla.

The cab is exceptionally roomy because about half of it sits ahead of the engine. This leaves room for a full-width floor and two-man seat in the center, plus individual seats for the driver and a third helper. This is the configuration for operators that employ manpower to “tip” customers’ trash cans into the body’s bin, eliminating complex automated loading apparatus. While on the way to a route or the landfill, the entire crew can be safely seated.

I sampled this vehicle during a visit to the plant where staffers briefed me on it. Soon I fired up its Cummins ISL9 diesel, punched the Allison automatic into D and headed out to the gate and onto nearby streets. The truck was easy to drive, though without a body it accelerated quicker than normal and its ride was a little stiff.  

I did some Y-turns and complete circles and found the turning radius was short enough for easy maneuvering on tight city streets, where the truck will spend much of its life. Turning was smooth, too, because the chassis had a single drive axle with a lifted tag axle. Visibility in all directions was excellent. It was a kick to drive, and all I needed were some companions in the cab and a packer body behind, and I’d have gone to work.