KENWORTH (Paccar) SUED TO STOP BUILDING THIS RARE 36” AERO 1 BUNK!!!!!

#kenworth #flintcreektransport #rarefind
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[@jamesfeeney7903]

I love this story. Kenworth should have talked to this guy. Then hired him. They screwed up. Thank you, Randy!!!

[@flintcreektransport]

Agreed !!

[@duanehanson8842]

Waiting for more on your build. Sure it will be cool. How bout "Undercover Brother". Be a cool name. Peace!

[@billjames3030]

@@flintcreektransport Cool project. Very uncool they sued him for his design. Have a happy new year. 👍

[@michealshelton2133]

They didn't screw up. They made money hand over fist in foreign markets and never had to pay a dime. CEOs play chess not checkers

[@thekingsilverado3266]

I had seen the original video when he found the truck with that sleeper and said it was not a factory made truck that it was in fact a conversion of a Day Cab. I met that guy that made those 36 sleepers some time ago at a salvage yard. He does other work even heavy equipment too. The guy from my area here where I live.

[@stansdds]

So it was a custom, hand built version! Way cool and that is the one I remember in Overdrive Magazine! It's a shame that PACCAR basically screwed over Mr. Whitmer. I always wondered about the usefulness of such a short Aerodyne sleeper, but the hinged bunk would make it totally useful on the road. Given the rarity, I vote that you restore it as close to original as possible.

[@northern1937]

100% Absolutely Its 1 of 3 in the world. Copied by Pacar but this is real..

[@timcanizares5240]

He needs to drop that cab and sleeper on a newer rolling chassis and keep it as close as original as possible

[@Carolinastrucks]

Agreed. The best they did was the short bunk aerodyne k100, and the standard aerodyne w900

[@lenpellerin]

This is absolutely great content. The fact that you actually found the guy who built it and got him up to tell the true story of the trials and tribulations of his vision are phenomenal. Not only do you have the sleeper, but you have the inner workings with the sink, water tank, and heater. If you restore it, please get him back to your shop and use his ideas including paint schemes. This is truly a part of American history and how a single idea can get phased out by corporate America. Thanks Flint Creek...

[@flintcreektransport]

👍🏽

[@michaeltoney2938]

Wow. To have the actual guy there, that actually built that sleeper was amazing.

[@markdanielczyk944]

A man ahead of his time! Typical corporate America screwing the little guy. Thanks for sharing this story.

[@trinidadzendejas1461]

Sad to hear kenworth would do a hard working man like that and not reward him

[@MyPromixdirt]

e-mail paccar and tell those jerk-offs they owe mr whitmer a bunch of tens of thousnds of dollars

[@vintagethrifter2114]

Should have started his business of right and checked with Kenworth first.

[@BandBconcrete]

@@vintagethrifter2114 I'm pretty sure in the video he did state that he contacted Kenworth and they had no intention on doing a 36". The real shame is the fact that the gentleman was correct when say whether you're right or wrong usually the person with more money usually wins. And I'm sure the person that Kenworth that made the decision to Sue this man knew that.

[@vintagethrifter2114]

@@BandBconcrete When he asked if they were going to make a 36" sleeper and they said "no", did he ask them if he could copy their design?

[@christopherness71]

@Vintage Thrifter , you’re being way too technical and not listening thoroughly, go back to 1:29 in the video, and listen as he tells about asking Kenworth, doing inquiries about patents and saying as long as a product doesn’t fit in another company’s mold, he wouldn’t be infringing on their designs or patents. Clearly , PACCAR saw an opportunity to take advantage of one man’s hard work and capitalize off of it without paying for it. Also, Clearly… his design was created in building something feasible for the semi truck length laws of the time, not for greed, Unlike PACCAR. So, not insulting you by any means, but you’re wrong, sir.

[@west1002]

This guy is a legend. Very cool to have him tell the story.

[@pinkladybikermamma3603]

THE CORPS ALWAYS SQUASH THE CREATIVE LITTLE GUY

[@rogerevans936]

Here in Australia the Aerodyne version of KWs 36 inch sleeper was released in early 1984 as part of the "Gold Nugget" package limited edition W900s and SAR s. Then in 1985 it was offered as an option on any W or SAR that was ordered. It did not have to be a "Gold Nugget " package. The 36 inch Aerodyne was also available on the C500R at the time. Price difference in 1985 was about A$3,500. The 36 inch Aero 1 bunks were hugely popular on Australian built KWs up until the introduction of the Aero 2

[@rogerevans936]

Price difference refers to the Aerodyne sleeper vs the standard lowline sleeper

[@darenramgolam3043]

Even more sad that this guy didn't see a cent of his design.

[@Plowguitarist]

Aussie’s drive on the wrong side of the road anyway!! 🤣😂

[@kangaroo505]

Thanks Justin. Great background story of the 36" high-rise bunk. Very popular here in Australia.

[@turbo6598]

👏🏾👏🏾 Great great fascinating story. You can tell Randy wants a part in the rebuild please give him a chance to work on this truck And put it back to its original look and working equipment . put Randy's autograph on this trunk it will be worth alot to him

[@shakes7333]

Would be awesome if you could find the other two. Love hearing to the history of how the bunk came to be. Thanks for posting! Should make a KZbin video about trying to find one or both other bunks that we can share and a Facebook etc. (if you have FB or other social media outlets) that we can share. Start spreading the word with the help of your awesome subscribers and followers. Hey, its worth a shot, never know.

[@flintcreektransport]

True !!!

[@sheepdog1102]

Makes me sick that such a large company is so greedy and deceitful!

[@guruoo]

It's just part of the game that's becoming all too common.

[@matthewcaughey8898]

@@guruoo too bad you can’t take a contract out on a corpo rat

[@patricke3848]

The usual for large companies, unfortunately.

[@randallcarney1216]

Top level dishonest sobs!

[@Hard_Right]

he literally stole their product design that they spent millions on r&d and was selling it out of his garage , he would've lost in court even if he had the money to fight them because he was wrong !

[@jeffreycoon9634]

This is an awesome story and I could tell that Randy was just waiting for you to ask for his help in the restoration of that bunk. You’re doing yourself a disservice by not getting him to help you. He knows where everything goes and what it’s supposed to look like. You would make his day if you asked him to help you.

[@EDBZ28]

Awesome video. Who’d think such history would be here in WNY?! Thanks for all your work of getting the OG BUILDER to make his way to Geneva, NY and a great interview and history. A good example of BIG business squelching innovation. The one with most $ usually wins in our society.

[@flintcreektransport]

Thankyou. Yea crazy right !!

[@macho4x4warlock98]

It’s too bad he got taken to the cleaners. This gentleman still has a great attitude for all the crap happened to him!

[@ben6119]

Such an interesting story. I am glad you were able to track down the builder!

[@joshuajesch7154]

I absolutely love the aerodyne 1 sleepers. Never seen or heard of these hand-built 36 inchers. Very cool story.

[@mowerjeff8990]

Great story. Thanks for putting in your time. Thank you to Randy for his time.

[@brianlalonde9704]

Thanks for creating a great video. That was an awesome custom sleeper. I can’t wait to see you restore it and get it back in service. Randy is awesome man for traveling to your shop and being part of this👍

[@pvp64]

What a great behind the scenes story, thanks to you and Randy.

[@simonjamel2]

Absolutely love the story. I’d love to see what you’re gonna do with the actual cab of the truck. That’ll be a good show piece to I kind of feel a little bitter towards KENWORTH, but what they did to him, and now that they realize that they do manufacture the 36 inch aerodyne in Australia. I kind of feel like they screwed him over a little bit.

[@MyPromixdirt]

e-mail paccar and tell those jerk-offs they owe mr whitmer a bunch of tens of thousnds of dollars

[@413.45]

Wow! Cool Story. Somebody needs to get this guy a good lawyer, seems he’s due a million in royalties alone. Minimum he should sell his story to some filmmakers. Would be a awesome documentary!

[@darenramgolam3043]

Sir, you are a legend. How do we make this guy famous ? SUCH a good invention they pulled all the tricks to get him to stop and then sell in another part of the world hoping he wouldn't find out.. so much rage for this guy and yet he's so calm ...

[@Hitman-ds1ei]

Yep the 36" bunk was the gold standard here for decades and the aerodyne version was grafted onto just about every truck make that was possible

[@xrider3732]

A fascinating story! Amazing that you could connect with the builder. A great for him I'm sure that he could see that his work was still around after all these years. A little background on Randy's business would have been helpful. Obviously more than just a backyard hacker to accomplish that.

[@rwitmer688]

I started driving truck in 1975 and in 1976 but my first truck. A 1972 conventional Kenworth with a 30 inch bunk, 350 small Kim commons, two stick 4 x 4, and no power steering. After six months I bought a 1977 KW VIT. A year later I bought a 78 aerodyne, and then the 1976 bicentennial to start the process with a 36 inch aerodyne. after Pack car

[@rwitmer688]

I started driving truck in 1975 and in 1976 bought my first truck. A 1972 conventional Kenworth with a 30 inch bunk, 350 small Cam Cummins , two stick 4 x 4, and no power steering. After six months I bought a 1977 KW VIT. A year later I bought a 78 aerodyne, and then the 1976 bicentennial to start the process with a 36 inch aerodyne. after Paccar put me out of business, I went back to driving until April 1984. In 1986 I became a commercial pilot and flew a business jet until 2008. Then I drove motorcoach for 4 1/2 years. Then as fate would have it I found myself back in the Trucking business as an independent driver for the last 10 years. When I’m not driving truck I am an Uber driver to keep busy. I’ve had an interesting life to say the least.

[@villainjohnnoel8075]

Hi from France, yeah i grew up in Australia, i live in France now, but yeah if you had a three-foot sleeper (36" bunk) you were a pretty hot driver.They had two openings,a key-hole entry (that was the top of the top) or a coffin entry (they just took out the back window,and you just crawled in).Back then in Australia 5 foot (60") bunks never existed. Very interesting story.

[@SVRANDGLD]

An amazing story, nice work guys. It's so rare to view something that's truly authentic, thank you.

[@nelsonmartin9719]

Wow! That's amazing! I remember Randy from the 80s and the truck he was running at the time. I talked to him on the phone a couple years ago, and I'll be calling him again.

[@wayneosgood3367]

What a great story on the 36 inch bunk ,we down under in Australia and new Zealand have had the 36 inch sleeper bunks back in the 70s ,I have just rebuilt one off a1979 W900 as a restoration project, I did not realize they were not part of Kenworth new truck orders, cheers 👍

[@chrismayer3919]

Is it me or does that 30” sleeper look kinda tiny?

[@jerrykinnin7941]

@@chrismayer3919 it's got a twin mattress in it. Get the sit down version it's better than the rear window pass thru. Like Snowman's KW in Smokey and the Bandit.

[@gerrymcardle9319]

Out here in Australia ,Kenworth threaten to sue a smash repairer who dared to fit an aerodyne top to an older truck with a flat top that was damaged in an accident. They saw that the mould was destroyed with only one built. My friend bought this truck later , it was now fitted with a cat engine , he checked Out the chassis number and found it was built with a GM 892 from new , he bought a new GM 892 computer controlled ex US army excess stock that he intends to fit to the truck. I will get some photos and post them .

[@flintcreektransport]

Please do !!

[@truckerrespect7797]

This is really cool, just goes to show how money moves the world and how the little guy always gets crushed in the move. Nice to see the man that built it

[@toddrabideau5576]

Very cool video Justin. Thanks for sharing. Randy’s story was quite interesting. This kinda content is what I like most about KZbin👍

[@204Diesels]

What a cool video and interview. Thanks!

[@keytonstrutzenberg552]

That’s some real history right there. I can’t wait to watch the progress and the build. Keep the videos coming

[@lonnieblackwell9215]

That was a very interesting video. I remember that picture in Over Drive Mag. I feel bad for the guy that made those. Glad you got to have him tell his story.

[@ThomasLShope]

Man this brings back great memories. Randy made Smoketown Pa famous. I have a picture of an A model Aerodyne parked at Randy's shop. It was painted a solid color. I remember the lawsuit but never heard the whole story. Excellent video.

[@flintcreektransport]

Thanks for sharing

[@chestergerber7125]

Thanks for sharing this.

[@user-ow1rt9hs9v]

That is right what you're saying there I am from Australia I seen one on a Superliner Mack and we have a few run around the country here am I a good cat and I have seen on the old SR Kenworth what you're saying about the length you are right using more turning with your trailer I feel sorry for what you went through then big boys might think I know idea they go after the little battler then big firms but now I put my mates on the this site so they can have a look what you made the first bloke who did it so thank you for explaining how you did it you need a metal from Tamworth thank you Ray from the land down under Australia❤❤❤

[@everrolmalcolm2933]

Randy is the man, if he had the money 💰 in the eighties to stand up to paccar he would of still been in the sleepers/ bunk business. Very interesting story ❤..

[@bojanglesthewizard8875]

Whats ironic is paccar did end up making 36 inch sleepers in the US without the aerodyne

[@dustindooley3155]

Great story! It's already so rare, being 1 of 3 and all, but it's even MORE rare that it's the ONLY one that was decked out like that. I personally think the story could only get better if you hired this original builder to return it to it's prior glory! I for one would watch every video in a build series with this man rebuilding this sleeper to its original shape! Right down to the original sink, bed, closet, and even the diamond pleat panels! Please consider it.

[@carhaulingwithjuice2466]

Love how he designed it with the sink and table and seat love that man that’s awsome hate how paccar ain’t do this smfh

[@Plowguitarist]

Nice fleet boss. I personally would have to restore the A model. Also I have a trucking friend from Brisbane Australia, I will see if he can find out what the interiors of their 36” Aerodyne 1’s look like and let you know. Also KENWORTH still builds cabovers in Australia. The K200, and those interiors are sick. Equipped better than our 86” studios with a lot more diamond tuck than the U.S. trucks ever had except those with the Seattle Package options.

[@ultimatem9178]

What an interesting video. This type of information should go to a Trucking museum.

[@roystoltzfus8919]

That's a really cool story! However shame on Kenworth for suing their customers, that's not very bright 😳

[@Plutopusher]

Can't help but imagine this on a new model flatglass W900 glider powered by an E model or 6NZ Cat. Keep the old school flare with the seminole paint job, tapered bumper with foglights, but throw some new school sauce on it (air ride front end, bow tie visor, half fenders) Doesn't even need to have a lot of wheelbase..255-265 inches would do the trick. Man..that would be a looker!!

[@haulingfuel4759]

I’ll take the 6NZ, a nice sound system, lights inside and a few on the back, maybe some hand pinstriping, and we’re good. 👍🏼👍🏼💯💯💯

[@jerrykinnin7941]

W900 B short hood this bunk 240" wb Set up to pull tankers dumps and flats so keep the tare weight as close to 18000 lb as practical.. ISX 13 speed 11r225 3:90s on Alcoas with disc brakes Dual stacks and air cleaners dual 120 gal fuel tanks. hide DEF tank under bunk. 3door head rack with wet kit tank inside. Blockable 48" kingpin heigh Holland 5th wheel with a 60" slide. Keep it old school interior big white steering wheel chrome knob on shifter old school wing window doors(all W series have the same door just got to relocate the striker) old school cowl mounted west coast mirrors With Spots top and bottom. (Useful for end dump work.)

[@matthewheinze1231]

What a story!!!!!!!! Thanks for sharing! What a great guy that got taken advantage of by a large company.....

[@bobbarker3781]

This guy just described the problem with our legal system

[@thystaff742]

The legal system has been screwed up ever since the bankers got control of the monetary system.

[@nomadih2252]

Love the Aero1 bunks. Always wanted to build a 74" Aero1 "studio".

[@ghostrider9978]

Awesome story guys,, bit of history worth sharing so thanks so much. Hope to see you down here in Oz. Thanks again for sharing,,, super interesting 👍👍👍

[@jonjeans8011]

They should pay that man a cut for everyone they made with interest back from the 80’s. Good job man.

[@slodsl]

Man is a legend

[@frednewman2162]

That's such a cool story and how ironic that you found that guy that built it! Great Video and story!

[@flintcreektransport]

Thanks for watching!

[@girardhunt4508]

Thanks Justin. Interesting. Great content, as always. Happy New Year.

[@charlesferebee263]

Great video. OUTSTANDING interview. ! Unbelievable that kenworth did not want to build a 36 inch aerodyne 1. I kinda know why. I had at least 8 trucks that were built between 1970 to 1982 that had 30 to 36 inch sleepers. All had that crawl through the back window. A real pain in the ass. Finally got a 42 inch sleeper with a big hole. Then I got a 94 T 800 with a Aerodyne 2 on a 50 inch sleeper. A aerodyne 1 style with about a 42 or 50 inch sleeper would have been perfect with a big opening to get into. 🤔 l wonder if you could build an aerodyne 1 style roof now. Seeing that they hardly build any flattop KWs. Keep Up the Great Videos. Stay Safe out There. HAPPY NEW YEAR. ! 🙏🇺🇸👍🎈🎈

[@flintcreektransport]

Thankyou !!!!

[@DavidC-wt9uk]

Interesting find, interesting story. Amazing how the “little guy” can get attention and then easily stopped by the “giant” and the “legend” is still available for the story. So cool. I’m from central NY and currently living in PA. I feel like you’re both my neighbors.

[@flintcreektransport]

Good point!

[@gwstonemason]

Yeah as other Aussie stated very popular on W900AR and SAR Kenworth's in Australia. Seems like Bentz stole your fold down table / bunk idea too.

[@hp1966-]

Randy was his time steps ahead, realy cool 👍

[@cloudaround]

That was a really cool story and interview. Nice work!

[@swampyankee72]

To think of how many times fate interceded that prevented this sleeper from being crushed or destroyed.

[@mikenatale5269]

Great story. Can't wait to see it complete. Great that you hooked Randy up with some good stuff. Happy New Year!

[@cesargarcia2746]

Hey buddy those sleepers are in Mexico also on Mexican kenworth trucks made by kenworth Kmex.

[@peterrobinson-gu1rq]

they were a standard box in Australia, aero 1, 36inch factory direct from Kenworth available on all conventionals from about '82 onwards,

[@lanceewalt2431]

That is so awesome , I’m sure it meant a lot to Randy seeing and now knowing some of his work is going to live on ..

[@justonemorepan1082]

I'm a tyre fitter in Australia, and I do a lot of work for our local KW dealer. Look up the legend series of trucks re-released in Australia. Some of the bunks resemble that bunk. KW Australia made integrated cab and bunks, high and low roof, but the legend series went back to old school Aerodyne style bunks. Legend 900, and Legend SAR. (SAR stands for, Short chassis Australian Right hand drive.)

[@benmurray8689]

Some of the legend t950s had the bunks converted to aero 1. Klos built Ballingers T950 as an aero 1 roof and Dawsons have the aero 1 roof modification. I read that the original moulds were destroyed and remade for the legend t900 and now the legend sar. The wife of Dane Ballinger had a the only T909 factory built with a 50 inch aero 1 built as a tribute.

[@andydelany8717]

@@benmurray8689 none of which were 36 ibch though

[@benmurray8689]

@@andydelany8717 I’m not sure if you are familiar with the legend series built by kenworth Australia. I was just stating how kenworth brought back the aero 1 roof for the legend T900 and SAR series and it was available in 36 and 50 inch. Kenworth did build a 909 with a factory 50 inch aero 1 that was really cool

[@benmurray8689]

@@andydelany8717 but yes the Ballinger and Dawson T950 legends had a 50 instead of the 36 inch

[@tylerswallie2653]

I feel so bad for that man paccar played dirty in my opinion. You should put that bunk back together with everything it had from the beginning in his "honor". To bad he didn't have extra money for a good attorney back in the day.

[@ashleywallis4138]

Hi Justin great history, surely the chassis cab it came off would be the ideal candidate for it to go back on its a really rare truck with all that documention regards Ashley

[@Junior-xb8zg]

Insane to hear how the greed of a huge company can stop someone from creating their craft just because they're jealous.

[@thomaskraemer6583]

The background nice killed me. Such an amazing story. I'll never understand why big corporations would rather crush us instead of work with us.

[@nfprojectshop]

Looking forward to seeing the progress on this build!

[@truckingwithwim8039]

this is so cool, i would restore it 100% like it was, its a shame this guy got screwed over by paccar, it least he is the guy that probably made paccar consider to make 36 inch sleepers in australia and he can be proud of that, this is such a spacial sleeper to have for you in the US

[@flintcreektransport]

👍🏽 for sure !!

[@michaelsorrentino9279]

@@flintcreektransport Corporate pigs !!!!

[@scottycollins1829]

Gr8 Content of an FANTASTIC PIECE of HISTORY!!!!!!!😎💎🔊👍🏾

[@flintcreektransport]

Thankyou !!!!

[@kevinrice7635]

Private enterprise U rolled the dice....God bless America 🇺🇸

[@kowski9477]

I thought if one took a Peterbilt flattop and dropped the floor in-between frame rails of sleeper so you could stand up would've been a cool idea.

[@ernestbrothers1298]

Sad story of one man being run over by corporation.

[@rudyjon38]

Love the story it sucks that Paccard screwed in on his new design but if I’m not mistaken when I was a kid I remember seeing them also in Mexico

[@haulingfuel4759]

Great interview.

[@charlie2b-d335]

The reporter looking annoyed when the tire guy sound bombed the interview hehehe! I really thought he has going to say something but chose not to so the guy kept doing it 😂

[@flintcreektransport]

🤣🤣🤦🏽‍♂️

[@glindabeaven6805]

You guys need to put this sleeper on the type Kenworth truck you mentioned and make it a show truck that you can take to shows like Mid American in Louisville and other shows

[@jopete681]

Great video and thanks for keeping the sleeper alive!

[@javieraviles6314]

Awesome. A unique peace of art .

[@eliverstonadams4]

That's awsome u found the guy who built it

[@jbanuelos7388]

Wow! That’s an awesome story!! You should fixed it and put it on a special kenworth

[@flintcreektransport]

Gonna try !

[@Skwisgar2322]

Maybe even pull a fresh mold off the top.

[@robpeters5204]

Big companies have huge law firms on 24 hour retainer. You can’t fight them. It’s sad this guy got fk’d deep by Kenworth. Just goes to show how ruthless companies can be. This guy was ahead of his time. Copyright infringement rights can be a nightmare. To be honest, all he had to do was to modify the top just a little and they couldn’t touch him. Once it does NOT fit into their original designs, you can do it. I’ve done it in the past. Let’s be honest, places like China, Taiwan, Japan, Vietnam, etc has been doing it for decades. My friend bought a kit of a Lamborghini countach from a company in Florida and it was next to impossible to detect it was a kit. They were later sued and had to destroy the moulds. He still has the car. It’s fun to drive. Thanks for sharing his story. I remember seeing the magazine with the truck. I might have that copy in my storage unit.

[@7viewerlogic670]

Great story, I never Knew! I assumed it was one of those meant for Australia. Length laws went away at that time so guys could get 60" and bigger.

[@twitafftwitaff7029]

What an amazing story. 👍

[@moosc]

That bunk is so cool. There's not a factory bunk that comes close. If I had the money I'd add those features like the sink n closet etc.

[@mikep1085]

Great story... with some neat history! Good luck with the build!

[@flintcreektransport]

Fingers crossed!

[@tombeer9]

Whish you kept the background quiet for this interesting interview, there are some parts that can't here the conversation.

[@thekingsilverado3266]

I remember that well. I stated in my original comments the thing appeared in over drive magazine as a converted day cab truck. The fact is I am a devoted Kenworth guy only got one but I got a good one. 77 cab over areodyne. I love her.

[@aussiebigbangers]

Very interesting ,very popular bunk here in Australia at the time

[@peanut_trucker]

That's awesome 👍great video Justin happy new year bud.

[@bigyellowjimmy]

Great story, great video!

[@xkzmxbeastx1]

Awesome videos and content. I just realized you are in upstate NY. I'm in Ontario NY myself, seen some of your rigs around and they are beautiful! Crazy KZbin recommend this to me and your local!! Keep it up and stay safe and happy new year

[@flintcreektransport]

That’s awesome !!! Thanks for watching !!!

[@mackenziesibley7025]

That's awesome true pioneer! You should try and get his story in the wheels of time magazine!

[@allencupsie6560]

Great video very interesting I only started watching your videos very recently you got some nice equipment have a happy New Year

[@flintcreektransport]

Thankyou

[@Dirthauler65]

Terpening used to have some 36in sleepers with some sort of an aerodynamic top on them, but it wasn't the the original "Aero" style like this. You can see them online, just type in Terpening trucking, then go to images.

[@johnperun232]

Thanx Justin and Randy for sharing your experience with your build Have a Great Day 👍 God Bless America 🇺🇸🙏🇺🇸 Just like the Big Guys always want to squash the little Guys 😒

[@craigstreetzel7743]

What a wonderful addition to your project