1958 F.W.D.

Many poor VFD's in rural areas received these as excess Government vehicles and turned them into water tankers. And have turned them over in ditches because everyone forgets water is heavier than fuel.

First winter after I got the FWD Firetruck, we had one of those epic three foot plus blizzards. I took it out just to say that I did it. I **tried** to get it stuck. Wasn't happening!!! Did get it hung up on a plowed mound once but I locked the lockers and she climbed right out like it wasn't even there.

VARMINT CONG!

Back in my younger life, I was trying to get hired onto the Philadelphia Fire Department, and bought a house in the City to establish residency which was a requirement. Life went on and that did not pan out. I sold the house and moved up to the Lehigh Valley where we are now. I always thought I would miss living in the City, but every time I go back (have to get my cheese steak fix or go visit Philly Fire Dept friends at their firehouses) I can't wait to get the EFF out of there. Dennis Smith, a NYC Firefighter and Author that I like once said about New York: "I have been here too long to hate it, but I know it too well to love it." And yeah the Alzheimers/Dimentia thing sucks. We lost my mom in January 2020 just before the china virus hit. She had been suffering from dimentia and then full blown alzheimers. I wont go through the whole thing but it was 7 years of my Dad taking care of her and me and my wife stepping in once in a while to give him a break. In mid-December 2019 things got really bad and her brain started to forget how to tell her body to do things and she developed aspiration pneumonia and got admitted to the hospital. Christmas Day 2019 I went to visit her with my Aunt (her sister) and it was the first time she didn't know who we were. It was a kick in the stomach. She died a few weeks later on January 11, and not to sound like an a$$hole (I am sure many would agree with me) it was a relief and though my Dad would never admit it he was relieved.

The aerial was a special product called "Bulldog 1" made specially for Mack by Ladder Towers, Inc. who is currently owned by the Spartan/REV group of Ephrata, Pa. You can try to give them a call or send an email to see what they have as far as manuals but I would not hold your breath. Not many of these were made for Mack.

The clutch is most likely a 16" twin disc Spicer. Yes parts are available, you just have to hunt a little. Any reputable clutch shop should be able to rebuild it. As for the hub, you have to keep your eyes out at the truck flea markets.

I can tell you from looking at the pic as originally delivered compared to now, that the tank is not the original 500 gallon tank and is now larger. And I bet that the truck has no rust because when they modified the body to accommodate the larger tank, they probably did some cancer surgery at the same time.

That's not the original tank, which would have been steel. Poly tanks were relatively unheard of back then and certainly not installed OEM by Mack.

Sorry the parking lot is full that day, you'll have to go to the Pilot or the T/A at Exit 7 in New Jersey.

I had to get to Winfall to Uber all these hot chicks around, some guy there refused to give them rides.

If you want to check out a small but very nice fire truck collection in Estes Park, check out the Reliance Fire Museum www.reliancefiremuseum.org Estes Park located on the outskirts of Rocky Mountain National Park that has some fantastic views. I was at the museum in August but very briefly picking up a transmission, wish I had some more time to look around.

Don't get me wrong, I would never discourage anyone from wanting a bike or to ride. I have many friends who do, including Firefighters. Many are surprised that I am not into bikes for as big a gearhead as I am. Two accidents that I went to as a Firefighter when I was 19 really left a sour taste in my mouth. Won't get into details but they were pretty gory. You do you, it's just not for me. I have my fun in other ways.

Have been a volunteer and career firefighter/EMT for 33 years. I have seen enough that I have absolutely zero desire to ever ride. I am pretty sure I have been to more fatal motorcycle accidents than I have non-fatal ones.

Many of them are punch-type cards, some of which had microfiche negatives attached. As stated, not sure if they are indexed or if the museum even has the capability of reading the punch card information. All in all, the cabinets probably contain several hundred thousand cards.

I can absolutely confirm that the Museum did acquire records from Mack Australia a few years back in the form of 10 or 15 cabinets, containing hundreds of thousands of record cards. (Helped move them to the second floor records room.) Don't know if they are indexed or not or whether the museum has the capability to read them or not.

Here is a different AF with a better view of the piston pump.

The pump is a six-piston pump. When in operation, each piston creates a pulse. The chrome dome is traditionally called an "Equalizing Sphere" and eliminates the pulses in the discharge side of the pump.

The temp during the day in Phoenix that Monday. It was gross. Recommend 0/10

Mike and Rhonda's Place. We found it by accident! But it looked good so we gave it a shot and it was a grand slam!

Funny you mention that, if we had more time we would have gone the rest of the way (600 miles +/-) and went to the Los Angeles County Fire Museum and also visited a friend who now owns the FDNY Super Tender and the LA City F-Model Mack/Holmes Wrecker

Saw this old Ward LaFrance pumper somewhere up in the Mountans between Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon. The hugest, fluffiest, bestest tasting bistits at breakfast in Flagstaff A closeup of the rock at Monument Valley

SORRY!!! JUST EDITED!!!! You should be able to see the pics now without downloading or clicking on anything.

So a while back my Cousin who lives in Phoenix, Az bought a Tab400 Camper from a guy in Massachusetts. Long story short she didn't do homework before she pulled the trigger on buying it (although it is a super, super nice camper that she got for a good buy....) and didn't realize how expensive it'd be to get it shipped to her. So My Dad and I stepped up to the plate- I had some use or lose vacation time so Dad and I loaded up the green Ram 1500 and went on a road trip. We left Hellertown Pa 18055 on Friday July 28 aroud 7:15pm. We headed west on I-78 and south on I-81 and picked up I-40 in Knoxville. We went hard for 24 hours arriving in El Rey Oklahoma Saturday night around 9pm. We got up early Sunday and hammered down and got to Phoenix on Sunday night around 9pm. Monday during the day we went to the Hall of Flame, the largest firefighting museum in the world and is a must see if you are into that stuff. We dropped off the camper to Cousin's storage place Monday afternoon. It was 117 degrees which sucked. Monday night we went to dinner and when the sun went down it was 102 which was very nice! I can deal with a dry 102. So a week before we left, I was looking through the Fazebooks and was in one of the antique firetruck groups and a gentleman from Morristown NJ was looking for a trucker to give a transmission a ride from Estes Park, Colorado back to Morristown NJ. Since we were gonna go to the Grand Canyon and Monument Valley and then head back via I-80 to visit a friend in Hinckley, Illinois (southwest of Chicago) I looked where Estes Park was and we would have gone right by it. I called the gentleman and asked how big of a trans were we talking- it was an old 5-speed Spicer for a 1949 Ahrens Fox pumper. Was currently sitting on a grocery pallet and the pick up point has a forklift and the delivery point has an engine hoist. No brainer it would fit in the pickup bed so I threw a number at the guy to reimburse me for gas and put a few bucks in my pocket and he jumped on it. So for the first time in a LOOOONG time Dad and I would be hauling some revenue-earning freight together.....LOL We got up early Tuesday and left Phoenix. Had breakfast at a place in Flagstaff and had the biggest, fluffiest and best tasting bistits I ever had. We got to the Grand Canyon about 2-3 pm, hung out there for about an hour. Let me tell you that if you have never seen the Grand Canyon with your own eyes, you can look at all the pictures you want but it just doesn't do it justice. Make a point and go sometime. We then went to Monument Valley, about 2.5hrs from the Grand Canyon. It was cool in it's own way- probably the closest a human can come to stepping onto the surface of Mars. It is all Navajo Indian land. We then went north to I-70 and hung it up for the night at a hotel in Grand Junction. Woke up Weds morning, made our way to Estes Park got there about 1 or 2pm (the sights on 70 between Grand Junction and Estes Park were incredible!) and loaded up the transmission. Northbound on I-25, hung a right on 80 in Cheyenne and made it to Sidney Nebraska and got a room. Thursday we made it to my buddy's place in Hinckley Illinois around 8pm, visited with him and his lady for 2 hours and then got a room in Aurora. Friday we made it to Toledo and visited with another friend, and left Toledo around 530pm and got home to Hellertown around 0315 Saturday morning.. It was an absolutely fantastic trip!!! See pixtures for more lies errrr ahhhh I mean descriptions. Mileage at departure This is the camper, a Tab 400. Very nice little unit, very well built. About 3000lbs empty. Got 10mpg the whole way to Phoenix. Dad and I hadn't been on a real long road trip in years so I blew the dust off my trusty old Cobra. Wasn't transmitting but was receiving well. Someone's turbo puked just outside of Knoxville on the hill. We took a side trip and saw the Great Pyramid of Winfall. This super friendly little guy met us in the parking lot of the hotel in El Rey, Oklahoma. Westbound on 40, in New Mexico The Hall of Flame Fire Museum I saw several big Mack trucks at the Hall of Flame The Green Machine next to some kinda green plant. Every red-blooded American needs to see the Grand Canyon with their own eyes. Monument Valley- like the surface of Mars maybe. The grooves in this rock were carved by the wind over thousands of years. Somewhere on 70 between Grand Junction and Estes Park, Some of the prettiest country in the United States. A Sedan Cab American LaFrance 400 Series (1938) at the place where we picked up the transmission in Estes Park Co. to go to NJ. A Classic front-mount piston pump Ahrens Fox at the place in Estes Park. The transmission secured. Otherdog told me I should have used chains and binders but I told him to go bleep. Triple 28's and double 48's on 80 in Ohio HOME Saturday August 5, 5347 Miles total.

Come one, Come All!!!! The Greater Lehigh Valley Chapter of the ATCA has partnered up with the Portland Lodge #311 F & AM and tied onto their annual MASONIC MOTORAMA Car Show on Sunday, August 27 2023 8am to 3pm, rain or shine at the Blue Valley Farm Show Complex at 707 American Bangor Road in Bangor, Pa. just off of Pa Route 33. We hope that you will consider entering a truck or even coming out to check things out. Please see the flyer below for more information.