"I wanted a truck with a very large capacity so I wouldn't have to unload as often," says Jarvie, Alta., grain framer Dale Beamish.

So, Beamish started watching for a bargain on a suitable truck for the project.

He eventually found a 1990 Autocar "tandem-tandem," as he likes to call it. Often called a "twin steer" because of the twin steering axles, it's a type of truck found in the oilfields where it carries a large telescopic boom.

"New ones are very expensive, so you don't see many on grain farms," Beamish says.

He purchased the grain box at a local company and had them put it on. It's 28 ft. long with 68-in. sides, and it is fitted with a 45-ton, 5-staged telescopic hoist that's normally used on gravel trailers. Hoisting any load is never an issue, Beamish says. The box will hold about 1,150 bu. of wheat.

It has a four-piece endgate and the center endgate is two-piece, so you can clean the corners out more easily by opening the top door. The box also has a roll-top on it.

"This truck has good highway gears in it, so it'll do 75 mph down the highway if you want it to," Beamish says.

The unit weighs in at about 32,600 lbs.