Diamond T Charles Thurston

Diamond T Charles Thurston

Originally used for tank transporting, the Diamond T 980 was manufactured by the Diamond T Company based in Chicago. The British Army, in 1940 required a vehicle capable of transporting larger and heavier tanks and approached a number of American truck manufacturers to assess their models.

The Diamond T Company had a long history of building military vehicles and had produced a prototype heavy vehicle for the US Army.

This was modified to meet the British requirements and an initial order for 200 was very quickly filled. Called the Diamond T 980 it was a 12-ton hard-cab 6x4 vehicle which proved to be one of the most successful in its class.

It was powered by either an 895 cu in Hercules DXFE OHV inline six diesel engine developing 185 bhp , or the 1,090 cu in Hall-Scott 440 OHV inline-six gasoline engine at 240 bhp. Gearing was very low allowing it to pull a trailer load of up to 120,000 lb and it was capable of pulling the heaviest tanks then in service.

Many of these Diamond T's, after war service, ended up at fairgrounds and circuses. Our Diamond T is seen here carrying the Charles Thurston livery.