M135/M211 Deuce Truck

The M135 is a 2 1/2 ton truck made by General Motors Corporation (GMC). Also referred to as a "Deuce-and-a-half". While in came in several different variations, the most common was the cargo version. You could hold a dozen troops in the back, or could fill it with equipment/supplies. Other variations included a double wheeled version (M211), a dump truck, crane, shop truck, kitchen truck, tow truck (recovering vehicle), fuel truck, water truck, and many others. The M135 platform was one of the most versatile made, letting the military install pretty much whatever type of equipment on it that they needed.

Powering this truck was a GMC 270 gas engine. While not anywhere as powerful as the engines in the 2 1/2 ton army trucks of today, it did the job. All Canadian models of the truck had a 5 speed hydromatic transmission (2 high gears, 2 low gears and a reverse). Which was one of the very first automatic transmissions available at the time. This made it much easier for just about anyone to jump in and drive it away. Also included on some models was a PTO (power take off) which either powered a winch located on the front bumper, or a large list of different pieces of equipment installed on/in the back of the truck.

As stated before, there is a long list of different variants of the 2 1/2 ton GMC M135 truck. Here is part of that list:

M135 - Standard configuration truck.

M211 - Double rear wheels w/ standard bed box

M216 - Dump truck (CDN version has single rear wheels)

M220 - Shop Truck

M221 - Tractor-trailer Truck

Other notable varients are the M207 (double rear tires) and M133 (single rear tires) trucks which came just as a cab and chassis which the Canadian military installed specialized equipment onto. That equipment includes fuel and water tanks, dental van body, field kitchen and many more.

Most of these trucks were quickly picked up by companies or farmers when put up for auction. They needed service vehicles, or large truck capable of working out in the field, and the M135 was perfectly suited for the job. Many can still be found today in the back of farmers fields or junkyards. Waiting for someone to rescue them before finally being cut up for scrap metal. Most people avoid these trucks as they have been stripped down to their bare frame, or have been so heavy modified by their original owners that restoration is much too costly. Others avoid them due to their size. Big truck aren't for everyone, but they are more special as very few people these days take the time to restore them, especially in Canada.

***More detailed information about this vehicle and others on the site will be added in time***

M135/M211 Manuals

We have added a selection of technical manuals for the M135/M211 line of trucks available for download. These manuals are offered free of charge. Most other places we have found requires that you pay for the manuals. We believe that since these manuals are in the public domain, they should be available for everyone to download for free.

Please only download the manuals you need. Downloading unneeded manuals takes bandwidth which we pay for, yet are allowing you to use for free. If we find that people are taking advantage of us and taking up too much bandwidth downloading all the manuals every time, we will have to remove them from our website, making things difficult for others looking for the same manuals.

All manuals are from the US military, but apply to Canadian military vehicles, as they are basically the same vehicle. Canadian manuals in digital form for the M135/M211 line of trucks is not yet available.

- TM 9-1819AC (Part 1 of 6)
Ordnance Maintenance 2 1/2 Ton 6x6 M135 and M211 Power Train (Part 1 of 6)

92.9MB .pdf file

-TM 9-1819AC (Part 2 of 6)
Ordnance Maintenance 2 1/2 Ton 6x6 M135 and M211 Power Train (Part 2 of 6)

95.9MB .pdf file

- TM 9-1819AC (Part 3 of 6)
Ordnance Maintenance 2 1/2 Ton 6x6 M135 and M211 Power Train (Part 3 of 6)

93.6MB .pdf file

- TM 9-1819AC (Part 4 of 6)
Ordnance Maintenance 2 1/2 Ton 6x6 M135 and M211 Power Train (Part 4 of 6)

95.1MB .pdf file

- TM 9-1819AC (Part 5 of 6)
Ordnance Maintenance 2 1/2 Ton 6x6 M135 and M211 Power Train (Part 5 of 6)

93.6MB .pdf file

- TM 9-1819AC (Part 6 of 6)
Ordnance Maintenance 2 1/2 Ton 6x6 M135 and M211 Power Train (Part 6 of 6)

35.2MB .pdf file

- TM 9-8024 (part 1 of 4)
Operation and Organizational Maintenance 2 1/2 Ton 6x6 M135 and M211 (part 1 of 4)

63.7MB .pdf file

- TM 9-8024 (part 2 of 4)
Operation and Organizational Maintenance 2 1/2 Ton 6x6 M135 and M211 (part 2 of 4)

62.8MB .pdf file

- TM 9-8024 (part 3 of 4)
Operation and Organizational Maintenance 2 1/2 Ton 6x6 M135 and M211 (part 3 of 4)

72.9MB .pdf file

- TM 9-8024 (part 4 of 4)
Operation and Organizational Maintenance 2 1/2 Ton 6x6 M135 and M211 (part 4 of 4)

59.6MB .pdf file

- TM 9-8025-1 (Part 1 of 2)
ORDNANCE FIELD AND DEPOT MAINTENANCE GMC MODEL 302 ENGINE (Part 1 of 2)

93.0MB .pdf file

- TM 9-8025-1 (Part 2 of 2)
ORDNANCE FIELD AND DEPOT MAINTENANCE GMC MODEL 302 ENGINE (Part 2 of 2)

32.0MB .pdf file

- TM 9-8025-2
Ordnance and Field Depot Maintenance 301MG and 303M Hydra-matic Transmission

45.3MB .pdf file

- TB 9-2855-17
INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE INSTALLATION OF HARD-TOP CLOSURE KIT FOR 2 1/2-TON 6X6 CARGO TRUCK M135 (GMC, 24V) (SNL G-749)

13.4MB .pdf file

- TB 9-2855-40
2 1/2-TON 6 X 6 CARGO TRUCKS M135 AND M211 (SNL G-749): INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE INSTALLATION OF PERSONNEL HEATER KIT (HOT WATER) (24V)

10.5MB .pdf file

Other files on the way....

This website is best viewed in 1024x768+ resolution using Firefox 3.0+ or Internet Explorer 7.0+