Mighty Tonka Front Loader (Epic Restoration)

[@lccast777]

I just found mine and the dump truck today in my shed. I had hella flashbacks. Loved playing with these when I was a kid

[@Crewsy]

Seeing all the Mighty Tonka restorations reminds me of the “miles” of roads I built with the loader, grader, scraper and dump truck I had.

[@Z-Bart]

Thanks for being a builder. 👍 I love good roads.

[@martinh.9834]

Wonderful restoration 😊😍...I loved TONKA when I was a Child.

[@deniseboldea1624]

Ahh memories, I remember the neighbors kid having one of those in his sandbox. I see you are gaining a reputation in your community as a capable restoration artist. Good for you, it is a title well deserved.

[@johnthomsen8802]

Seeing the dog is awesome! Love GSDs.

[@RustyShepherd]

Yeah, that’s Stryker. He unfortunately crossed over the rainbow bridge early this year. He was 14. He had cancer in his lungs. He was an awesome pup! He’s was cremated, my father has his ashes in an urn next to his chair. Stryker was his buddy. 🐺❤️

[@johnthomsen8802]

@@RustyShepherd I am so sorry. I had two and absolutely loved them. They were brother and sister. My two were cremated and are in their favorite spot on my parents' property.

[@Yankee_Redneck6698]

Great job sir! Wow... The memories just come flooding back.

[@ArmourerOz]

I've got the loader and the dump truck that my parents saved from when I was 10 (37 years ago) and my boy now has finished with them so watching this motivates me to drag them out of the sandpit and restore them.

[@randallnelson.8294]

I'm not going to lie. I mainly watch these videos for the sandblasting. There is something very satisfying about watching the paint and rust disappear seemingly without effort. I like it so much I bought a sandblaster. Don't listen to the naysayers. Keep showing the sandblasting. If they don't want to watch the sandblaster there are thousands of other channels on the web. Keep up the good work and... KEEP ON BLASTING!!!

[@robertmailhos8159]

If I had Tonka toys.back.when I was young I would have been able to keep them from getting in such disrepair for today those are not cheap at all great job on the restoreing of the toys of yesteryear rusty sheapard

[@RustyShepherd]

Robert Mailhos Thank you sir! 🙏🏻

[@robertmailhos8159]

@@RustyShepherd your welcome air,😁😁😄😄🙏🙏

[@gearjammer4779]

Excellent job! Blue Dawn dish soap makes the best lubricant for pushing plastic and rubber parts into holes. We truckers use it for lots of things like sliding tandems on trailers and connecting air lines. It evaporates in a few hours and doesn’t harm any parts.

[@RustyShepherd]

Gearjammer yes sir! I’ve got a pump foam bottle within reach.

[@adamclarke7394]

Beautiful job. I've got a Tonka Scraper sitting in my workshop that's nearly 50 years old. It was one of my childhood toys, and you've inspired me to restore it. Thank you, and good luck with your future restoration work.

[@RustyShepherd]

Sweet! I've been looking for a scraper to restore. I hope you film it and post it on KZbin.

[@adamclarke7394]

@@RustyShepherd I had the Scraper and my brother had the Crane (I'm about to watch your video on that one). My brother was pretty hard on toys, and the Scraper was one of the few toys from my childhood that he failed to destroy. I had over 200 Matchbox cars in their boxes, but he managed to get rid of them. As you can imagine, the Scraper means a lot to me. I'll get hold of a camera if I can and film it for you.

[@RustyShepherd]

Adam Clarke I would love to see it! Good luck with the restoration.

[@slackjaw703]

Excellent job! Way better than new.

[@charleslanier1992]

I had one of those when I was a kid and it was awesome 🤘😎🌹

[@Madlintelf]

Great job, I wish I could see that persons face when you gave it back to them!

[@RustyShepherd]

William Borgeson I’m going to see if he’s ok with that.

[@Madlintelf]

@@RustyShepherd Awesome!

[@stlmopoet]

Great job! As a kid I had a one that was very close to this model. Brings back fond memories.

[@abh3960]

i had this loader as a kid keep it well done

[@josephkerley363]

Very nicely done!

[@iamthegreatpapyrus2905]

Wow.. I had one of those as a kid... I used to have the complete Tonka set

[@justinmcclanahan4745]

I just watched another guy restore his front loader but his video was in high speed all the way through & I told him to slow down & take your time so the viewers can see what he's doing

[@markrobinson8865]

Great job on the front loader and one of my favorite dogs you have there.

[@thijsversteeg9010]

Yes again, it is an excellent restoration. The way you works shows that you are a master. Sorry, I said it before, I would rather use solid head rivets.

[@RustyShepherd]

I didn’t have access to a compression rivet device. I have one now. Some places aren’t big enough for the compression river device to fit. Had to use pop rivets.

[@Matt-kb4wl]

Wow, you sir are amazing !! Brings back may memories !!!

[@travelersdiecastcustoms1511]

Great job looks awesome. 👍👍👍

[@marcaliventialiventi765]

Oh yeah, buzz woody and all the others would love to have this guy fix all their friends that wound up in SIDS yard

[@RustyShepherd]

Marc Aliventi Aliventi To infinity and BEYOND!

[@-SkyCat-]

Real Toys.. not this plastic stuff now a days Real Toys god i miss these... so much fun when i was younger

[@Roberto231973]

Very nice again master!

[@DonnaMSchmid]

Wow! You're a prime example of "practice makes perfect!" With experience and the right tools, you've put out a professional restore! Great work! **pats the GSD on the head**

[@Hoonozit]

Nice work.

[@plumbingstuffinoregon2471]

Now that's a truck that I personally think should have just been left alone. It was still fully functional and playable how it was, it had just the right amount of rust and paint loss to make it look cool, and it even still had all the original stickers in good condition.

[@lovejcdc]

Man did that ever bring back old memories lol great job

[@yeagerxp]

Very good restoration 👍👍👍

[@КошмарКошмар-й2б]

Hi bro 👋👋👋 good to see you 🤝🤝🤝 very good restoration grader 👍👍👍

[@garymucher9590]

I have three old Tonka Toys like that one that I am going to refurbish. And since I do have both a media blaster and powder coating system, I hope they turn out half as nice as yours did.

[@gordbaker896]

I have done many of the Mighty Tonkas. I always use proper rivets and have paint mixed to the correct colour in rattle cans. Easiest way to remove wheels is to cut the axles. I used 1/4" Stainless tubing as replacement axles. The pale green ones were made in Canada.

[@RustyShepherd]

Gord Baker What size compression rivets do you use, and where do you find them? I’ve ordered a few, and so far they don’t fit.

[@gordbaker896]

@@RustyShepherd I got mine at Spaenaur , a great store in Kitchener Ontario Canada. 519-744 3521. I also bought the 'upset tool' there. Where are you located? I have some rivets and the tool and no longer need them. They are Oval Head Tubular Rivet, 3/16" x 9/32 long. 3/8" head dia.zinc plated steel. The setting tool is marked 876-001, 6" long, knurled shaft. Box likely has 75 left of 100. Spaenaur Inc. 1-800-265-8772, Worked for me. You may also be able to get smaller size heads. The big ones above I have, are for installing the plastic front Bumper/Grille assy on an old 2 stack model. The smaller 1/8" x 1/8" I have are 7/32" head diameter and are a very good size match. Spae-Naur # 292-090 Oval Head (as opposed to Flat Head).

[@RustyShepherd]

Gord Baker I’m in Columbus Georgia. If you no longer need the tool and rivets, I’d love to get them from you. What are you asking for them?

[@gordbaker896]

@@RustyShepherd How does 20 U$ plus shipping sound? Put up your mailing address NOW and when I confirm, you can erase it if you wish.

[@gordbaker896]

@@RustyShepherd Got it! I will write you a note first.

[@lebaillidessavoies3889]

This tonka loader probably did a huge amount of work.

[@bonnwolff1890]

Great job on a surprisingly complex project!

[@JCcanU]

My dad ran heavy equipment so being a 3-10 year old I had everything he ran in real life for my sandbox , my understanding a 1960 to 1970 Tonka that has been restored lost all face value . I had the Road grader, Bulldozer, Loader , dump truck, backhoe 4 tires , and the Excavator track hoe , scraper AKA pan , 4 tire Crane scoop dump . I did not have many toys , I got Clothing at Xmas my Birthday I get a Toy .

[@garyholt369]

That is an awesome job

[@billschipper1718]

Good job

[@Theresistance64]

Beautiful!!

[@fynbo1007]

Very beautiful restoration, just love it. But please consider cut down the part of sand blasting, I understand the idea, but for me I find it boring to look at. But the rest of the video is very interesting and amazing. Thank you for sharing your amazing story. God bless you and your family

[@steveh8224]

Beautiful job! 👍

[@kamronhuber8052]

Where did you find the wheels at? My rims are sun rotted and I can’t seem to find replacements

[@RustyShepherd]

Try here first gasolinealleytoys.com. If they don’t have any, I might. I’ll let you know. 🙏🏻

[@jorgenelsonfelix52]

Excellent spectacular. Saludos desde Buenos Aires Argentina. 👍😎

[@aldricracette4813]

Good job on saving that toy

[@MrComposerguy]

Nice Work Well Done Man

[@operationrestoration3280]

ROBERT CROWE hi Robert

[@timsmith1589]

Looks good bro, I think I have that loader in the shop, I will redo it someday too.

[@whitelightning3330]

I should send u all of mine to have u restore them haha I have a bunch

[@tootall5559]

wow nice work, especially considering the mess you started with.You should put in the way you do the lettering on the tires, it's a neat trick that I now use for such things too. Thanks for that idea.

[@RustyShepherd]

Yeah..i forgot to add that. LOL

[@tootall5559]

@Iain Botham I don't know about that, but I'd sure like to know where he finds the replacement parts. I have an older Tonka 4X4 some guy paid the price of the whole thing, but only wanted the hook for the winch.. so I sent him the hook for the winch.. he saved on shipping though, a whole lot. I still have the rest of it if anyone is interested. fair shape, not perfect, but usable as is, or a candidate for a nice restoration. Don't know where you'd find the plastic hook though.

[@tootall5559]

@Iain Botham I'm sure that's doable, by somebody that has the printer and knows how.. of course you would need an original to take the pattern from.

[@RustyShepherd]

@Iain Botham I have in some other resto's. I will try to remember to do that when i buy new parts. RS.

[@RustyShepherd]

There are different hooks for sale at Gasolinealleytoys.com. TKP-061 is the number for the small hook. I dont know if its the replacement form the one u had. Go to that page, then go to the bottom an click WWW.toydecals.com , Then "toy parts", Then "Tonka parts", then scroll down to TKP-061. Let me know if this helps. RS

[@vernabink2865]

Excellent!

[@ButchHolladay]

what size in parts are needed for the top hat hubs and tubular rivets and the pin tat hols on the cab to the frame? ty

[@carlosribeiro1175]

Parabéns pelo seu trabalho 👏👏👏

[@donmaasch559]

Great job

[@simonevans4966]

Top job

[@thejunkman]

Looks great as always!

[@garygraham6020]

Just starting restoration. I have a 1970’s era Turbine Tonka hydraulic dump truck. My only problem is I can’t find a front end for it. Lime green, full plastic, no metal bumper. The front goes all the way up to the windshield. Would really appreciate any suggestion. Just subscribed to your channel going to watch all your projects!

[@RustyShepherd]

Thanks for the sub! Search eBay for the grille.

[@RoboDriller]

Mine is still new and my son is the first to put it in the dirt...

[@LeoAbukar]

I really want one in mint condition. The toys we had back then were made to last. But know its just so cheap plastic.

[@bigcharliesmodelgarage296]

Awesome

[@powderriver2424]

I haven’t seen one of your videos in awhile I think I seen the first one or two when you started. You’ve come along nicely I like the old electric smoker idea as an oven for the powder coat. Well done.

[@RustyShepherd]

I appreciate you stopping by to check on my progress! I learn from every job. I'm looking for some interesting things to do other then the Tonka's. I do enjoy the Tonka's though! LOL

[@herrdeutschmann4602]

Well Done!

[@smpaek]

Wonderful!!!

[@mikematenkosky]

Nice job! I had one of those as a kid, but the bucket was yellow. Going to assume the black buckets are newer.

[@Angandjenschannel]

I have one of each. Otherwise they are identical.

[@luisfernandopiedra7073]

Perfect

[@RustyShepherd]

Luis Fernando Piedra Thank you!

[@foscoe2496]

were u get the yellow paint and the sparyer to

[@RustyShepherd]

The powder system is from harbor freight. The powder paint is from thepowdercoatstore.com

[@foscoe2496]

@@RustyShepherd thank you

[@jlwoz]

Is there a source for new parts like the air cleaners, exhaust pipe and windows for these old Tonkas?

[@RustyShepherd]

jlwoz Toydecals.com. This is where I get most parts. eBay is also where I get parts that toydecals might not have. RS

[@jlwoz]

@@RustyShepherd Thanks for sharing this. I checked the site out and I was amazed there is a source for toy parts. Many parts indeed.

[@NakedDave100]

Hey Russ nice job!! Can you pass along where to get the smoke stack and decals for your project???

[@RustyShepherd]

NakedDave100 some are on eBay. I get most from. Gasolinealleytoys.com. Click on toydecals.com at the bottom of the page.

[@marcaliventialiventi765]

I'm still waiting for the resto on the tonka crane

[@RustyShepherd]

Marc Aliventi Aliventi ? I have already uploaded the crane restoration. Please check it out!

[@danlau3718]

long time no see

[@RustyShepherd]

Waiting for ordered parts to arrive just kills my time line! LOL

[@themanmike1]

Mr. R.S., I also have a vintage loader and dump truck. I would like to have them restored for my soon coming grandson. Would you be interested in restoring another set? Please advise me on availability and pricing. Thanks..

[@RustyShepherd]

mikescharvel Message me at [e-mail].

[@saundrasharts1365]

Where do u get your tonka trucks from i looked up stuff like that on ebay and the prices are UNREAL just thought u might know of a better way to acquire these toys to restore

[@RustyShepherd]

SAUNDRA SHARTS Some from “letgo” app. Some from Facebook market place and some from weekend yard sales. RS

[@tron3entertainment]

Did I see correctly? You powder coated plastic? How is that done?

[@RustyShepherd]

tron3entertainment There wasn’t any plastic on this loader. It’s all metal. Plastic would melt in a 400 degree oven.

[@JoseAugusto-fs8fi]

Like, from Brazil, onde consigo peças para esse Tonka, tenho um mas falta algumas peças: motor, adesivos, escapamento, filtro de óleo, assento da cabine, plástico da traseira é filtro de óleo, onde conseguir. Abraços.

[@RustyShepherd]

Jose Augusto gasolinealleytoys.com. Encontrei alguns no eBay. Não consigo encontrar a grade traseira de plástico ou o assento em qualquer lugar.

[@JoseAugusto-fs8fi]

@@RustyShepherd obrigado, abraços.

[@stevesmith8107]

Heck yeah. I had couple of those. Have you done any of the large orange bulldozers I had 1 of those wish I could have kept them all

[@sunestuds]

Hi. Did you use regular rivets to mount the parts together? 🤔

[@RustyShepherd]

I did use regular pop rivets. I hadn’t found a tool to use compression rivets yet. I eventually found one. I used the correct compression rivets on some builds after this when, when I could get the tool to fit. Some places it wouldn’t fit, so I had to use pop rivets a few other times.

[@johnboy6247]

Is this mainly a hobby for you or are you in it for the money? Excellent job and I enjoy your videos

[@RustyShepherd]

johnboy6247 Hi johnboy! I restore things as a hobby. I haven’t had enough views to be in it for the money! Lol. I make just enough to buy more projects and equipment. Thanks for being a loyal viewer! ❤️

[@johnboy6247]

@@RustyShepherd I want to get into it. I buy storage lockers and I know I will find some Tonka toys sooner or later. Just watching your vids will help me to do a good job.

[@RustyShepherd]

@@johnboy6247 I hope my videos help. RS

[@bergydermeister5616]

Kool beans m8

[@RaginEagle]

Nice

[@dominicmenapace2261]

I have two scrapers one is missing A blade . That's tough to find.

[@Guust_Flater]

In my memory the yellow was a bit darker.....or could it be, I remember wrong and the yellow was already darkenend through time ? Do you know the RAL color number for the yellow tonka toys? 👍

[@RustyShepherd]

#7747 sun burst yellow is a near perfect match. Rust-oleum.

[@M3reviewsDJD]

perfect

[@garyholt369]

I had that exact one when I was a kid but that one's missing the rubber smokestack

[@RustyShepherd]

Yes it was...Thank god for eBay! LOL

[@martinh.9834]

Did you make the labels by your own?

[@RustyShepherd]

Yes. I made the ones on each side. The front and rear decals I bought. I actually bought the side decals as well, but they fell apart when I tried to apply them.

[@danor6812]

Why did you paint the handle? It's was chrome plated on the originals.

[@RustyShepherd]

It was broken at the bottom, so i welded it. I painted it to cover the discolored metals from the welding.

[@carlosalbertodemario8964]

👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

[@Drinksalotobeer]

👍👍

[@davydigger708]

I think this is a 1975 model if I am not mistaken.

[@hubertjudeaux7749]

HI I OWN THE SAME ONE TIME WHEN I WAS KID MADE SAME RESTORATION

[@zebunker]

THANKS FOR YELLING

[@EnlightnMe48]

OMG

[@MADVILLAIN-vt3zu]

I have the same truck. How much do these things go for? I would like to sell it anyone to restore

[@НиколайВасилев-у7и]

Prodavat li se

[@RustyShepherd]

предният товарач се продава. Имам VW бръмбар и черен и червен фургон ERTL за продажба. моля, гледайте техните реставрации. Благодаря ти.

[@MartinSessions]

Hi, I have 2 old tonka toys, would you be interested in them?

[@RustyShepherd]

Maybe. What models are they?

[@MartinSessions]

One is the Tonka front loader and the other one is a backhoe / front loader

[@JamesRandom]

You should throw some low-fi mysic on the back track.

[@MrStabby19812]

Still have mine not too bad condition for the amount of abuse it took and being over 30 years old.

[@pennsyltuckyden9823]

Awesome restoration, I have a Tonka Jeep on my channel you might like to check out.

[@ZaanQa]

Your Sandblasting Chamber is too Dark mate..

[@RustyShepherd]

Zaan Q It has 4 bright lights in it, but the film on the glass got worn from the media and darkened the view. I replaced it today. It will be much clearer next time. RA.

[@ZaanQa]

@@RustyShepherd looking forward to it also the Camera in the Chbamber got Doggy do you have like an Exhaust for the Chamber where it sucks up all the Flying Debrief?? That would make it even Better

[@walkstall8390]

We dont need to watch every piece being sand blasted... also why are you so rough??

[@stephaniehamilton6217]

If you don't like it, don't watch it and you won't have to complain, simple!

[@walkstall8390]

@@stephaniehamilton6217 lol

[@ryanmckinty4457]

I have 1 of them its realy old tho

[@ap4709pk]

Why do people complain about every little thing?

[@restorationpassion3920]

lucks nicer old

[@RustyShepherd]

Maybe, but the rust would have consumed it in a few years.

[@restorationpassion3920]

@@RustyShepherd true