How many times have you wished for a small, fun-to-use vehicle that could haul things around your property? More than a hundred times for me, and yet I still own one of these things. This circa-1980 Heald Hauler trike can be found here on Facebook Marketplace in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and the seller is asking $2,250. Here is the original listing, and thanks to Lothar… of the Hill People for the tip!
We’ve seen three articles on Heald machines here on Barn Finds over the years, and have heard the story of the founder of the company, Carl Heald. As an engineer and tinkerer, he started out making built-it-yourself electronic devices, such as radios, that people could build at home by themselves with simple tools and not much money. As with almost anything, the labor costs are more than the materials, and even on these three-wheelers, buyers could save $1,000 by building them at home. There were a ton of ads in magazines in the 1970s and 80s showing the company’s different vehicles that consumers could buy and build.
Some literature refers to these little trikes, or trykes, as mini trucks, and that isn’t to be confused with the 1990s mini-truckin’ trend. This is a small “truck,” but often it was enough for farmers, ranchers, and regular homeowners to haul a few things around without using a wheelbarrow or carrying it. Plus, it’s just fun to have a powered vehicle to ride around on, no? Yes. This example may or may not have been repainted at some point, as there aren’t the typical stickers on the side of the small dump bed, as seen in this example.
Page 6 of this super fun brochure shows this little rig and some of its features. They mention an 11 hp or 16 hp engine, but this one has a 10-hp engine. I’m not sure if it’s an older model or if that’s a replacement engine. It also comes with a spare engine. Most folks would buy a new engine, I’m guessing. The manual dump bed is a nice feature, and this one has an optional headlight. This “mini truck” looks really nice in the photos and it would be fun to tinker with a cosmetic restoration, or just keep it maintained and use it for hauling up to 500 pounds.
Electric start is nice, and the seller says it has a new battery and all of the lights work. One cool thing is a rare front ski option, which is usually seen on the two-wheeled minibikes, but it should work on these as well. It looks like it could use some work to fasten the mounts back again, but it would be great for a vintage snowmobile show. There aren’t any downloads on this page yet, but it shows some of the Heald models. Would any of you have a use for a small, vintage hauler like this Heald three-wheeler?
Maybe as a way to get down to the 7-11 or the smoke shop. Too bad he didn’t design one you could as an LEV. Here in Florida,
LEVs are exempt from driver’s license requirements so having one of these would make a lot of
sense to me. I could go anywhere I’d like without having
someone take time out of their day to drive me where I wanna go. And since certain LEVs can be ridden on sidewalks, the possibilities would be endless. Just imagine making deliveries on this thing! You could use any
sidewalk in town, and avoid the
traffic jams in the streets. You could get the goods there faster
than a regular car without all the
headaches. Add a canopy to shield your melon, and go out there and make some money!
Good points Ken, but I don’t think I’d want share a sidewalk with rigs like this. It could be a fun toy though.
Ken, somehow I don’t think you meant low emissions vehicle (LEV), but rather low speed vehicle (LSV). When street legal, plated and insured they can be operated in some areas on roads posted 35 mph or less. Operate on sidewalks?
Another great write-up, Scotty.
I could make very good use of this thing just maintaining my garden and property. Amazing how heavy the wheelbarrow can be some days.
And the wheelbarrow gets heavier every time I pick it up, without adding anything to it!
Hauler 👍 SG 👍 Lothar 👍
I have 10 acres in the desert. I ran across a 6 wheel John Deere Gator with a beat up body, 5 flat tires and didn’t run. I offered $100 and they accepted! After dragging it onto a trailer and then dragging it off. I bought 6 new tires, and a new battery. It runs like a deer! Humm that could be a slogan! Oh, right, it already is! (lol) It still looks beat up. But the wife appreciates the easy start 1,400 lb. load carrying capacity, the hydraulic dump bed and seems impossible to get stuck. (When selecting (rear) 4 wheel drive it will climb anything, however it doesn’t steer very well!)
So after a total of $800 invested, it saves me from having to “help the wife” constantly. A small hauler of any kind is a true helper around the property.
Boy you guys must really be hurting for stories if you’re showing something like this on Barn finds
I love this kind of stuff…..
Feel free to send in your tips, Dave.
Dave, to me this looks a LOT like something one would find in a barn.
Also, things like these are often in people’s price ranges more so than a $40,000, 1969 Camaro, for example.
I’m not sure what you’re looking for on BF nor why you’d object to a cool, old hauler like this being posted.
Have a good day.
Cool. I’ve got one of those little dump trailers that hooks on the back of my riding lawnmower that does the same thing. The trailer was a hundred bucks and the mower about eight hundred about ten years ago.so for nine hundred I basically got the same thing but longer. So for me to fork out over two grand doesn’t make sense.
God Bless America
I’d like to have it but it is just too far away.
This would haul the fire wood out in the back 40 nicely. The dump body is a plus.
Maybe I got the terminology wrong, but there is a class of electric vehicles that use the term
LEV or light electric vehicles. And yes, they do make vehicles such as mobility scooters, enclosed mobility scooters, and
electric quadricycles such as Rhoadescars that can be used on
sidewalks and bike paths for the
safety of the rider. Here in Melbourne, some of these devices can be used on sidewalks. I have seen side by side mobility scooters with a pickup box on the rear. They are
small trikes that steered with a tiller so that either passenger could use it. Guess I should’ve
made myself more clear on the
matter.
I assumed. There are just too many acronyms today. Even the vehicles, unless you’re talking GTO, GTX, etc.
I agree.
I’m actually the President of the local NMA Chapter:
NMA: No More Acronyms!
As a montrealer then suburbian in canukstan , i decided to move to the mountains and now have a golf cart, a kubota tractor , a few trailers ,an atv and soon a mowing tractor so, like Wayne my wife can move her stuff around without me
Sounds risky to me Claudio. If you wanna keep the peace in your
Castle, you might wanna help her
out. If you don’t, you’ll find out it’s
hard to kiss the lips at night that
chew your ass out all day long!
Great song by Vince Gil, Rodney Crowell, and The Notorious Cherry Bombs.
Thanks for the reply, she a petite doll and wants all these powered gizmos to get the job done but i do help her when she needs it , she enjoys doing it on her own with mechanical help !
Yolo