The mack truck

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Princess Valiant

Princess Valiant

A.K.A. Rainy Day Auto
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The mack truck, one of the most distinctive looking big trucks. I have been intrigued with the look of this truck since I first saw one decades ago. Only recently I came to know this distinctive truck was produced from 1965 to 2005.

As I look at internet pics of them, I'm really convinced these trucks did not belong in the 60s, because they were ahead of their time.

Have you noticed these around, whether as a concrete truck, dump truck, or any other move they could build?

1200px-1965_-_Mack_R_Model_Equipment_Hauler_-_1976_Commemerative_Card_-_Allentown_PA.jpg


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This is the Mack I know and love. I had a local friend who owned one about as nice as this one. Somebody came down from Canada and gave him a WAD of cash for it. lol
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Princess Valiant said:
The mack truck, one of the most distinctive looking big trucks. I have been intrigued with the look of this truck since it first saw one decades ago. Only recently I came to know this distinctive truck was produced from 1965 to 2005.

As I look at internet pics of them, I'm really convinced these truck did not belong in the 60s, because they were ahead of their time.

Have you noticed these around, whether as a concrete truck, dump truck, or any other move they could build?

View attachment 1716069323

View attachment 1716069324
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My dad delivered roof trusses from the mid 90’s to around 2011 and majority of the trucks they had were these Mack’s because of rigid/durable they were built. If I remember, I’ll have to see if I can find some old pics in mom and dads photo albums.
 
Fleets of "rock trucks" in FL for the sand and gravel industry.
Usually very heavy and with questionable brakes.
I don't see as many as I used to though.
99.99% of them were/are white no matter who owns them.
I did see one in the early 90's that was black and had hardcore/punk band stickers on it IE Misfits.
PunkRockTruckDriver.

I'm a B-61 fan as well. There's still one around here in revenue service.
 
RustyRatRod said:
This is the Mack I know and love. I had a local friend who owned one about as nice as this one. Somebody came down from Canada and gave him a WAD of cash for it. lol
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Place I use to haul fence posts to has one of these sitting beside the driveway. The old man backed it in, shut it off and let it sit. His son told me that once his dad passes on that truck, along with 20+ acres of other miscellaneous vehicles and equipment, (old man never sold a thing, just parked it in the field) will be for sale.

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I always thought the mack truck looks similar to the tata 1210 which is seen all over India and other small countries in South Asia.

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1210SD.jpg


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The old Mack trucks were pretty much bullet proof. About twenty years ago a friend of mine was give an early 50's B61 Thermodyne Mack. He had it brought to his shop where he power washed it, drained the old fuel from it, flushed the lines, changed the filters and fired it up. It had been sitting for about thirty years before he took possession of it. He took his time and restored the old "BULL DOG" and is still hauling stuff around the Canyon Lake area of Texas.
 
They even sold their cabs for the OP style and another company built trucks around them- Brockway.

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Princess Valiant said:
The mack truck, one of the most distinctive looking big trucks. I have been intrigued with the look of this truck since it first saw one decades ago. Only recently I came to know this distinctive truck was produced from 1965 to 2005.

As I look at internet pics of them, I'm really convinced these truck did not belong in the 60s, because they were ahead of their time.

Have you noticed these around, whether as a concrete truck, dump truck, or any other move they could build?

View attachment 1716069323

View attachment 1716069324
Click to expand...
Mack trucks are very popular here. Lots of logging trucks, dump trucks etc.
 
YY1 said:
I did see one in the early 90's that was black and had hardcore/punk band stickers on it IE Misfits.
PunkRockTruckDriver.
Click to expand...
I remember one time in the late 90s, being at a festival where "the exploited" was playing
If I remember correctly, they were playing the main tent (and there must have been half a dozen different sized tents with different sized podiums)

I was standing outside arguing with just about anyone who went in to see them, that me standing outside was much more punk then they going in to see them


Those were fun days

HPIM0293.JPG
 
Then there were the offset cabs.

Never really understood the benefit, but there must be some as they sure made quite a few of them.

16788977221_9f3afba7dd_b.jpg
 
diymirage said:
I remember one time in the late 90s, being at a festival where "the exploited" was playing
If I remember correctly, they were playing the main tent (and there must have been half a dozen different sized tents with different sized podiums)

I was standing outside arguing with just about anyone who went in to see them, that me standing outside was much more punk then they going in to see them


Those were fun days

View attachment 1716069356
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Brutha from anutha mutha

Pelletier II.jpg
 
YY1 said:
Then there were the offset cabs.

Never really understood the benefit, but there must be some as they sure made quite a few of them.

View attachment 1716069357
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That big FAT air cleaner and exhaust didn't stick out the side waitin on somethin to knock um off.
 
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YY1 said:
They even sold their cabs for the OP style and another company built trucks around them- Brockway.

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Mack owned Brockway for their 20 or so years of production before shutting them down in 1977. I still see them operated mostly as plow and farm trucks, not often road going.

There's a farm that has 30 or so Brockways. Many are work trucks. Some are restored. They are active in a Brockway historical association. Once I took a picture of them all in a row with a 90° bend. It was on a work phone and I lost the picture when I turned in the phone. The picture is of one of their trucks at one of my old oil customer's shop.

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RustyRatRod said:
That big FAT air cleaner and exhaust didn't stick out the side waintin on somethin to knock um off.
Click to expand...

IDK if I buy that they would move the cab on the frame to accommodate that intake vs "just" modifying the hood.
 
RustyRatRod said:
This is the Mack I know and love. I had a local friend who owned one about as nice as this one. Somebody came down from Canada and gave him a WAD of cash for it. lol
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A good friend of mine his brother restores and works those trucks.
Its a shame he works them, because they are beautiful when he finishes them.
But he said it is cheaper to work them than buy a new truck. He has about a 1/2 dozen of them in working condition.
 
When I was laid off from my job as a turret lathe operator at Landis Tool Company, I applied to Mack Trucks in Hagerstown MD. IiRC, They built engines. I didn't even get called for an interview since I only had 2.5 years experience. Other guys laid off with much more experience took the openings. This was 1984.

As we said in Pennsylvania when i was growing up...Built like a Mack Truck!!!
 
Princess Valiant said:
The mack truck, one of the most distinctive looking big trucks. I have been intrigued with the look of this truck since I first saw one decades ago. Only recently I came to know this distinctive truck was produced from 1965 to 2005.

As I look at internet pics of them, I'm really convinced these trucks did not belong in the 60s, because they were ahead of their time.

Have you noticed these around, whether as a concrete truck, dump truck, or any other move they could build?

View attachment 1716069323

View attachment 1716069324
Click to expand...
Youre right about the concrete trucks.
Alot of the concrete trucks in London here are old Macks cause they just dont quit!
And when they do break down they repair them cause they're still solid.
That red/white pic is awesome!
 
I like the old ones





If you are unaware, they have two gearboxes, one behind the other. Basically you go through the gears in the "main" then shift the auxiliary up a gear, then start all over in the main. "Sort of." Because there are certain combinations of the two gearboxes that cause overlap, that is nearly equal ratios with some other combination of the two, some combos are skipped. 3x4, 4x5 gearbox, etc
 
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