Walter Snow Fighter Roto Wing

There is no sound or narration to this video. Yes, your speakers are working fine!

[@BillStecik]

I RAN 1 OF THOSE FOR A COUPLE OF DAYS!!!!!!! They are the most awesome FWD 220 cummins in front ,6-71 jimmy in back

[@bebo5558]

Boy, that's a lot of torque going out at a 90 degree angle from the drive train, quite an invention!

[@ericl2969]

90 degrees of alignment change in a drive line is easy to do with a gearbox. The ring and pinion set for a typical drive axle does this, so it's a super-common thing. BUT, that's not what's going on here. The impeller at the end of the wing plow is driven by an auxiliary engine on the rear of the truck, right behind the cab. That engine is positioned at an angle so that its output is facing the end of the wing plow and so there's not any extreme angle changes in the drive line. The angle changes are all accomplished with U-joints, I believe.

[@bebo5558]

@@ericl2969 A separate motor would make way more sense, it's hard to see how it might have be done!

[@BillStecik]

I RAN 1 OF THOSE FOR A COUPLE OF DAYS!!!!!! In the 70s FWD 220 in front 6-71 gm in back

[@Thetruckhunter]

I know they didn't last too long. And when you look at the footage here, the propeller really didn't move a lot of snow. A neat idea, but a good ole Sno-Go works so much better. I wonder how many of these Walter videos from the late 30s are still around that we haven't seen??!!

[@KraytonMC1980]

Not a Snogo for sure but pretty effective just the same! Perhaps it was a health and safety issue for anyone within 100ft of the throw range of the roto wing. Have seen pics of this plow but never in operation. Excellent footage and thanks for posting!

[@BillStecik]

Sorry sir . These things were awesome . You could clear snow drifts out of ditches like nothing else . When you were in a real bind , bring out the FWD

[@mattywho8485]

eats rusty mailboxes for breakfast

[@LinnTractorNut]

I once talked with a Onondaga County Highway Dept. employee who told me that he got to operate one of these as wingman, and the first thing they found out was that brush and tree branches made an awful mess, as did low hanging telephone wires, so really had to pay attention and plowing at night made it more difficult.

[@gbond893]

Hey Chaser, I have a Walter 16mm movie I just picked up from eBay a few weeks ago but haven' seen it yet or had a chance to convert it. I was also outbid on 2 others back in the spring from the 20's of Walter mining trucks. Seems like Walter liked making movies.

[@Thetruckhunter]

We must have bought from the same guy. He had a few others that I too lost out on. Make sure you get yours converted so we can see them!!! Such incredible videos Walter made so long ago.

[@todlindley8101]

Takes Power and Grip to push that depth of snow over on one side of the V Plough

[@OldSoulMillennial]

really great footage, Thanks for taking the time to upload!!

[@Smittyschannel]

Ingenious invention for the time period; they needed that to flail the last bit of snow away from the road so it wouldn't fall back in

[@greenmtnman7714]

Great footage! Thank you for sharing this with your fellow plow nuts. I wonder if any exist today?

[@Thetruckhunter]

GreenMtnMan there was one at the Herkimer County yard. I haven't been back there in a while

[@OlivierBEAU1]

I love snow !!

[@stevemino142]

Awesome snow plowing history there I wonder what kind of plow truck that is? Autocar

[@gdmurphey]

OMG RYAN --- This is amazing!!! Todays plows, could they do this? I just put up a pic on FB of this epic 1940 storm -- on the Brockway group---

[@z978ady]

Could have been broken windows that forced the root wing into extinction

[@Max-mn8so]

nice

[@LinnTractorNut]

I'm thinking now they actually started developement before WW2, I have a couple of still pics someplace with it raised to show clearance for a Greyhound bus, I almost think with 1941 plates?

[@watchthe1369]

I wonder how that would work with a hydraulic motor out there turning the blower instead of a heavy PTO shaft.

[@toodjackson4438]

I'm sure it would work I'm surprised they don't still make them it would be a lot cheaper than a self contained power unit snowblower on a loader

[@miketrudeau6619]

A snow go or a larue would move a lot more snow than the roto wing

[@watchthe1369]

Too bad they did not have good hydraulics back then. A good Hydraulic motor run impeller and you could probably shelf that off nicely.

[@N2NDF]

watchthe1369 I do believe those were shaft driven....

[@watchthe1369]

Mechanical PTO's, yes. A lot less efficient.

[@ericl2969]

@@watchthe1369 Mechanical drive, yes, but not a PTO. The rotor was powered by a different engine than the one that drove the truck.

[@floodedcar123]

How is it blowing snow?