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Doing business with the Swede.

About 1990 I purchased a loading Truck from the Swede. The blokes name was John but because of his nationality he was known by the land from which he came. He was a likeable and humourous fellow and a con. I did help him several times and he treated me with principle, well mostly anyway.
As the rice sowing season approached I decided I needed another truck so I gave Swede a call. Do you want to sell that G.M. loader you have Swede.
What do you reckon it’s worth Gary?
18k John.
No, I reckon it’s worth 20k Gary.
I went to the bank for a 20k cheque and proceeded to Albury to complete the transaction.
On inspecting the loader I said to Swede “that bucket’s smaller than I figured Swede”.
Well we load the Thrust (ag aeroplane with a 400 gallon hopper) with it Gary.
I can’t see that Swede.
Would I lie to you Gary.
Well that put me in a difficult spot didn’t it.
I don’t suppose so Swede. I gave him the cheque and he nearly fell over because he had never had a transaction without a haggle.
Just sign the rego over and you can continue to use it for a while longer.
When I took delivery of the vehicle I found the bucket too small to load my Ag Cat and that had a smaller 280 gallon hopper. It required the hopper extending and I had that done.
When I saw his pilot I asked him how come it used to load the Thrush when it won’t load the Ag Cat with a smaller hopper?
The answer was simple. Two bucket fills every load.
Well did Swede lie to me? No. But he's a clever bugger. And still likeable.

The picture is of a simular loader. Not so the aeroplane.



Tomorrow is part 2 of this tale.