1928 REO Speedwagon 3 Ton Heavy Duty

[hattrick4467]

I realize that this may be an open ended question but looking to get a general value on a 1928 REO Speedwagon Heavy Duty. It appears to be a 3 ton model. Relatively complete but not without issues. I am an IH guy and am used to having a lot more resources of information and parts. Any ballpark on what this think would be worth?

[1912Staver]

Value is about the same as most any late 20's larger truck except Mack and Pierce Arrow. The truck looks quite good and may be worth as much as 5,000.00 to the right person. Trouble is there are probably at least as many larger trucks around as people who are in a position to own them.  They have a real personality , but they are big and slow and need someone with a big shop.  Transportation is also quite costly, very few if any of the normal old car transport company's want to move these old girls. 

 

Greg in Canada,   1918 Packard 2 ton.

[WPVT]

Can you post the video link?

[hattrick4467]

Sorry. I have a few more pictures but this is how the photos were given to me. I can see if I can get it.  It seems like a pretty nice truck but I agree with Staver that due to the size buyers will be limited. I did not realize the many benefits of these trucks as they were lower, advertised to go 50 or 55, A 6 cylinder motor, Auto greasing shackles and springs among other things. I would just hate to see this truck go but the guy is looking for $5K which I thought might be a little high since the tires will cost close to $2k to replace with tubes and mounting. If I bought it I would probably just leave it original. The top wood needs a little work. I should also say that I have not seen the truck in person and they are always nicer in the pictures.

[TerryB]

Helps if you are in the trucking world and have the room to work on it.  Prices can be reasonable due to limited audience for this type of vehicle.  His price seems optimistic.

Edited February 6, 2018 by TerryB (see edit history)

[Bloo]

53 minutes ago, hattrick4467 said:

I did not realize the many benefits of these trucks as they were lower, advertised to go 50 or 55

 

WHAT?  Miles per hour?!! 

 

For what it is worth, most passenger cars of the period cant go that fast. I would not count on that unless some owner of a similar truck can verify it. I'll bet it goes about 20mph in high over. How fast will a heavy IH from that period go?

 

I like it though. I like it a lot. Good luck.

[Rusty_OToole]

REO Speed Wagon were given that name for a reason. They were the first, or one of the first large trucks with pneumatic tires rather than solids. This allowed them to build a much faster truck. In their ads they claimed a 1 ton Speed Wagon would do the work of a typical 5 ton truck. They pointed out that their truck being faster and more agile could make more deliveries in an hour and could make 2 or 3 trips while the heavy truck made 1. And that a 5 ton truck was seldom loaded to capacity anyway.

 

They really were capable of 50 to 55 MPH speeds when the typical solid tire truck was limited to 20 or 25MPH. This made them the favorite of bootleggers with a large load to haul.

 

I have never owned or driven one but going by their ads they were a fast truck. They were also popular and stayed in production for many years which suggests their customers were happy with their performance and efficiency.

Edited February 6, 2018 by Rusty_OToole (see edit history)

[Rusty_OToole]

As for speed by 1928 cars were well capable of 50 to 55 MPH speeds. Even the Model A Ford would do that or more. Larger 6 cylinder cars had top speeds of 70 - 80 and so did the luxury models, most of them had 8 cylinder engines by that time. There really was a very large difference in speed and performance between 1920 and 1928. 4 wheel brakes, hydraulic brakes, better suspension, balloon tires, improved engines and oiling systems, lower built chassis and other improvements all contributed to better performance.

[kgreen]

I drove a 1926 Reo firetruck at the Stowe Auto show.  As for a regular car and driver report, I got lots of waves and had a ball driving it.  Speed was not a serious concern though I chose not to drive it on the interstate, but rather back roads.  I did hold up traffic by not going the posted speed, but going faster would have shortened the ride.

[WPVT]

It might be restating the obvious, but two criteria work to determine value. The first is rarity and condition, i.e., how likely are you to see another one soon in similar condition.  The second is whether you or someone else wants it more than the seller, so are willing to pay his asking price. Once restored, most antique trucks sell for less than it cost to restore them. Not a great economic investment. The missing factor is the enjoyment derived from ownership and the adventure of getting an old truck running again. You get to pick that number yourself. 

The fact that you are even considering buying the truck means that you are a prospective owner. I hope you can negotiate a price with the seller that keeps you both happy.    

[R Walling]

 One thing to consider is insuring the truck with an "classic" collector policy.

 When I finished my 56 F750 Ford, my ins. company would not insure it as "it was too big" I also have a 1/2 ton "tow" truck with dual wheels for looks. They would not insure that one either.

[Steve S. in PA]

I collect old trucks. In my opinion $5000. is too high, unless you have a special connection to this truck or model. (did your grandfather have one?) $2500 to $3500 is a more reasonable range, $4000 would be my maximum. There are more old trucks available than there are buyers for them.

[stakeside]

On 2/5/2018 at 2:57 PM, hattrick4467 said:

I realize that this may be an open ended question but looking to get a general value on a 1928 REO Speedwagon Heavy Duty. It appears to be a 3 ton model. Relatively complete but not without issues. I am an IH guy and am used to having a lot more resources of information and parts. Any ballpark on what this think would be worth?

 

TRY THIS SITE: https://www.aths.org/

THERE IS BIG TRUCK INTEREST THERE.

CHECK THIER CALENDER OF EVENTS. THEY MAY HAVE ASHOW IN YOUR AREA.

[Dandy Dave]

I had a 1929 Model GA REO at one time. Very similar model to the one your looking at. Was rough. Bought it at a local farm auction for $25 Bucks.  Ended up swapping it to a fellow that wanted to save it for parts for another project I was working on at the time. The GA had juice brakes. Reo was one of the first Trucks to use Hydraulic brakes  The engine block was high quality as it had Nickel - Chromium cast right in the side of it. If memory serves me correctly,I think the 29 had a different, new and improved engine. 1928 was the last of that series of engine. Dandy Dave!